Читать книгу The Russian Revolution: History in an Hour - Rupert Colley - Страница 8
ОглавлениеOn Sunday, 22 January 1905, the workers of St Petersburg organized a peaceful demonstration to demand political and constitutional reform. Led by an Orthodox priest, Father Georgy Gapon, 150,000 demonstrators, including whole families, marched through the city streets to present a petition to the Tsar. Penned by Gapon, the petition called for a reduction in the working day from eleven to eight hours; the right to strike; the introduction of universal suffrage; and an end to Russia’s on-going and disastrous war with Japan.
Bloody Sunday and the 1905 Russian Revolution
Gapon and his legion of demonstrators were not anti-tsar – indeed, dressed in their Sunday best, families carried icons and portraits of Nicholas II, whom they affectionately called their ‘little father’, and sung hymns and songs proclaiming their support for him. Unbeknownst to the marchers, Nicholas II, forewarned of the demonstration, was not at the Winter Palace, but at his summer residence on the outskirts of the city.
The Tsar’s troops shooting at demonstrators in St Petersburg, Bloody Sunday, 22 January 1905
Arriving at the Palace, the marchers found their way barred by thousands of armed troops who first fired warning shots, then fired directly into the dense crowd. Panic ensued; many were killed or wounded. Cossacks on horseback charged, galloping through the crowds, slashing at people with their sabres. Elsewhere canon was used against the helpless hordes. Estimates vary, but nearly 200 people were killed and many more wounded; the casualties included children.
Bloody Sunday, as the tragedy came to be known, was the moment the Russian people lost their faith in the Tsar. Up to then, there had been economic hardship and discontent; the Tsar ruled by autocracy and he had made use of the Okhrana, his secret police, but on the whole he had the support of the masses. That Sunday, he may not have issued the fatal order to fire but the people held him responsible – and they felt betrayed.
Mutiny on the Battleship Potemkin
Following the defeat at Tsushima during the Russo–Japanese War, mutinies broke out across the armed forces, most notoriously, among the crew of the Battleship Potemkin of the Black Sea Fleet. Morale, already low, coupled with harsh discipline and resentment of Russia’s participation in what was viewed as a pointless war, created a volatile situation. On 27 June 1905 the provision of maggot-infested meat brought the crew to the edge of rebellion. When an officer shot one of the crew, spontaneous mutiny broke out. The mutineers, in turn, killed seven officers. Flying under the red flag of revolution, the sailors sailed the ship that evening to the port of Odessa in the Ukraine. The funeral two days later for their fallen comrades turned into a city-wide protest, resulting in government troops firing into the crowds. As the Potemkin set out to sea, Nicholas II dispatched a number of ships to intercept it to force its surrender. But when the Potemkin declined to surrender, these crews refused to open fire. The Potemkin finally reached Romania where its crew gave up the ship and sought asylum.
The Russo-Japanese War was finally concluded in September 1905 with the Treaty of Portsmouth (in New Hampshire). Despite its humiliating defeat, Russia won an honourable peace due to Sergei Witte, the Tsar’s ex-finance minister. For his efforts, Witte, who had been out of political favour, returned to the fold and was appointed prime minister.
