APEH: The Russian Revolution

NB: We will hold a Raszoomstin next Thursday during our regular Zoom sessions. I can’t not talk about this guy.

The Russian Revolution is my favorite thing to teach and it is killing me that we aren’t in school for me to be able to do it. This is why we’re having the Raszoomstin. Unfortunately (well, that’s not the word for it, really) this week we need to discuss post-WWI societal destruction and ennui.

If there’s been a theme in this class, it’s been that the family interactions and personal motivations of people can impact millions of lives. It’s important to understand the personalities of those involved. Just like we looked at Louis XVI, who just wanted to make clocks and go on nature hikes and his wife, Marie Antoinette, who meant well but people hated because she was an “aloof” foreigner, here we have Nicholas II (whose words upon the death of Alexander III were “I never wanted to become tsar” and who was never taught want to do) and Alexandra, a German princess who suffered from social anxiety so bad that she would erupt in blotches at public events. People gossiped, blame got heaped on Nicholas that he didn’t completely deserve (though he wasn’t a strong ruler, he was not heartless), and the entire family withdrew from public life when the tsarevich Alexei was born with hemophilia, a disease that prevents blood clotting.

Much of the public anger that lead to the Russian Revolution could’ve been prevented with communication, but a we’ve seen, communication in an autocracy is a one way street.

We’ll discuss Lenin’s policies a bit more on their own next week, but we have to *get* to Lenin first.

Please make sure that you review the portion of Chapter 25’s PowerPoint that pertains to the Revolution. If you’d like, the College Board also has one of their AP Review sessions set up for this topic. It’s about 45 minutes and has good info, but is also dull.

Instead, please view the CC Euro on the Revolution, which is not dull.

There is also an adorable 10 Minute History on one of the worst and bloodiest events of the 20th Century (which is saying something):

Instead of watching these, if you prefer, there’s the Russian Revolution in color. It is fantastic.

Monday I will post the Vladimir Lenin portion of the assignment (and pt. 2 of the Russian Revolution in Color – it covers the Lenin years).

Please post at least one question that you have from the Crash Course/Notes/textbook in the comments section and I shall answer it. I’ll also answer questions today during the Zoom. If you need any more documentary suggestions please ask because I have a *lot*.