In the Reforms’ Shadow. Conspiracy, Duplicity and Revolution in Pëtr Stolypin’s Russia Cover Image

All’ombra delle riforme. Cospirazione, doppiogiochismo e rivoluzione nella Russia di Pëtr Stolypin
In the Reforms’ Shadow. Conspiracy, Duplicity and Revolution in Pëtr Stolypin’s Russia

Author(s): Francesco Randazzo
Subject(s): History
Published by: Editura Universităţii Petru Maior
Keywords: Russian Empire; Stolypin; Revolution; Agrarian Disorders

Summary/Abstract: In 1911 a double agent working for the Okhrana assassinated Stolypin, and Finance Minister Vladimir Kokovtsov replaced him. The cautious Kokovtsov was very able and a supporter of the Tsar, but he could not compete with the powerful court factions that dominated the government. Historians have debated whether Russia had the potential to develop a constitutional government between 1905 and 1914. The failure to do so was partly because the Tsar was not willing to give up autocratic rule or share power. By manipulating the franchise, the Government obtained progressively more conservative, but less representative, Dumas. Moreover, the regime sometimes bypassed the conservative Dumas and ruled by decree. During this period, the Government's policies waivered from reformist to repressive. Historians have speculated about whether Witte’s and Stolypin’s bold reform plans could have "saved" the Russian Empire. But court politics, together with the continuing isolation of the Tsar and the bureaucracy from the rest of society, hampered all reforms. Suspensions of civil liberties and the rule of law continued in many places, and neither workers nor the Orthodox Church had the right to organize themselves as they chose. Discrimination against Poles, Jews, Ukrainians, and Old Believers was common. Domestic unrest was on the rise while the empire’s foreign policy was becoming more adventurous

  • Issue Year: 11/2011
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 157-180
  • Page Count: 24
  • Language: Italian