Continuity and change between 1855 and 1964:

Divide the class into four groups. Each group focuses on one key theme: politics, the economy, society, war, and answers the questions below for the periods 1855-1917 and 1918-64. Possible areas of research appear in the left-hand column.

(a) What were the most important developments under the Tsarists and Communists?
(b) Why were some periods marked more by continuity than by change?
(c) How far was 1917 the main turning point in Russia's development between 1855 and 1964?

Explain your reasons.

 

KEY THEME	1855-1917: Tsarism	1918-1964: Communism
Politics: rulers, cult of the individual, form of government, opposition groups, reaction v. reform, repression v. liberty
Economy: feudalism, state control, agriculture, trade, industry, transport, population, military needs
Society: peasantry, proletariat, landowners, nobles, clergy, women, non-Russian subjects, education, religion
War: effects of the Crimean War, the Russo-Japanese War, the First World War, the Civil War, the Great Patriotic War, the Cold War