Product Description

This book explores the long-term reasons for the demise of Imperial Russia, examining the failure of the autocratic state to strengthen its own political position while economic change transformed society. It seeks to explain its debilitating internal tensions and to link these to the pressures exerted by Russia's repeated failure in war and by the empire's continuing expansion. Lastly, it analyzes what lead to Russia being governed, only eight months after the collapse of Tsarism, by the Bolsheviks' revolutionary regime.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #122111 in Books
• Published on: 1997-04-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 200 pages

Review
'It is no mean task to write a brisk, accessible analysis of the fall of the Russian old regime which takes into account recent discoveries in social history without neglecting the traditional (and essential) virtues of politics and diplomacy. Peter Waldron has achieved that aim with exemplary clarity. A good index...well-balanced and cleverly organized thematic chapters...a model textbook that will be equally useful to undergraduates and to A-level students. If all the contributions to European History in Perspective are as good as this one, the series will be well worth having.' - Simon Dixon, History '...summaries all the latest historiography...examining the political framework of the Tsarist state, the nature of the economy, economic and social change, the place of the Tsarist empire in Europe, and the impact of the First World War...the book serves as a highly effective, accurate general guide to the period.' - A.G. Marshall, School of Slavonic and East European Studies, University of London

Customer Reviews

Good , if brief, coverage of the causes of the revolution.
Waldron focuses on the inherent inability of Tsarist Russia to cope with modernisation and the economic and social change occurring in the country during a period of European unrest.

Considered primarily from the point of view of the various economic, social and cultural classes living together in Russia between the beginning of Alexander II's reign in 1855 and the 1917 revolution, rather than as a purely academic debate between theories this book provides a fascinating, if not entirely easy to read overview of one of the most critical periods in Russian history.

Having read this as a student of Russian history the book provided a valuable addition to my studies although in isolation would be unlikely to be sufficient due to the lack of academic debate. Perhaps a tad too dry for the casual reader or amateur historian this is nonetheless recommended for those willing to persevere.