Economy and Society


 
 
Concept Explanation
 

Economy and Society

Economy and Society: At the beginning of the 20th century, 85 per cent of Russian population were agriculturists.. The cultivators produced for both , market and their own needs.

  • In France, 40 per cent and in Germany, 50 per cent people were agriculturalists.
  • In the Russian empire, cultivators produced for the market as well as for themselves.
  • Russia was a major exporter, of grain.
  • lndustries in Russia: In Russia, prominent industrial areas were St Petersburg and Moscow. Craftsmen undertook much of the production, but large factories existed alongside craft workshops.

  • In l890s, many factories started due to the expansion of the railway network and there was an increase in foreign investment.
  • As a result, coal production doubled and iron and steel output increased four times. In some areas, factory workers and craftsmen were almost equal in number by 1900.
  • Most industry was privately owned. Government supervised large factories to ensure minimum wages and limited hours of work.
  • In craft units and small workshops, the working hours were sometimes 15 hours, compared with 10 to 12 hours in factories.
  • Women made up 31 percent of  the factory labour forced by 1914 , but they were paid between half and three- quaters of man's wages.
  • workers associations were formed for helping members in times of financial hardships or unemployment.
  • Situation of Workers: Workers were a divided social group. Some workers had strong links with the villages from which they came and some others had settled in cities permanently. Workers were divided by skill. A metalworker of St Petersburg recalled that metalworkers considered themselves aristocrats among other workers. Their occupations demanded more training and skill. Women made up 31 per cent of the factory labour force by 1914, but they were paid less than men. A few associations were formed to help members in times of unemployment and hardships. Workers were sometimes united to participate in strikes. Many strikes took place in the textile industry during 1896-1897 and in the metal industry during 1902.

    Peasants in the Countryside: In the countryside, peasants cultivated most of the land. The nobility, the crown and the Orthodox Church owned large properties. Peasants were divided and they were deeply religious. Except in a few cases, they had no respect for the nobility. Nobles got their power through their services to the Tsar, not through local popularity. In France, during French Revolution in Brittany, peasants respected nobles and fought for them. But in Russia, peasants wanted the land of the nobles to be given to them. They refused to pay rent and even murdered landlords. In 1902, this occurred in a large scale in South Russia but later in 1905 such incidents spread all over the Russia. Russian peasants were different from other European peasants. They pooled their land together periodically and their commune (mir) divided the land according to the needs of the peasant families.

    In Russia , socialist were active in the countryside through the late 19th century . they formed the socialist revolutionary party in 1900 which struggle for peasants rights. Due to following reason , they were active in the country side

  • The party demanded that land belonging to nobles be transferred to peasants.
  • Russian peasants were different from other European peasants . periodically they pooled their land together and their commune divide it according to the needs of individuals families . some Russian peasants custom of dividing land periodically made them natural socialist.
  • social democrats believed that peasants not workers would be the main force of revolution . with them , Russia could become socialist more quickly than others . then land committee were formed for the redistribution of lands . encourage by this peasants seized land 1917.
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