Quick Test

Question 1

What were peasant homes called in 19th-century Russia?

Answer 1

Izba (a wooden home)

Question 2

How did urbanisation under Alexander II/III affect housing?

Answer 2

Led to overcrowding
Made worse by lack of sewage and running water

Question 3

What housing reforms did Lenin attempt after 1917?

Answer 3

Private property and landownership abolished

Question 4

What were kommunalki?

Answer 4

Communal apartments- several families shared one flat

Question 5

How did Stalin’s industrialisation impact housing?

Answer 5

Massive urban migration during industrialisation led to extreme overcrowding
Families lived in one room

Question 6

How did WWII affect housing?

Answer 6

Enormous destruction of urban housing
Millions displaced and much of existing stock was destroyed

Question 7

How did Stalin use housing as a political tool?

Answer 7

Housing was used as a reward
Good flats given to loyal party members and top workers
Poor housing for ordinary citizens

Question 8

What was Khrushchev’s housing policy?

Answer 8

Aimed to solve housing crisis
Launched a state housing campaign in 1957
Focused on quantity and affordability
Mass construction of 5 storey flats

Question 9

How did khrushchyovkas change family life?

Answer 9

Allowed nuclear families to live independently for the first time
Ended communal living for millions

Question 10

What remained constant about housing 1855–1964?

Answer 10

Continued shortage of good housing
Most ordinary people lived in cramped basic accommodation

Question 11

What was the population of the Russian Empire in 1855?

Answer 11

• 70 million people lived in Russia
• 82% were rural peasants

Question 12

How did emancipation affect population trends?

Answer 12

• freed 50 million peasants
• rapid population growth
• rapid migration, urban population growth and overcrowding in cities

Question 13

What did the 1897 census record?

Answer 13

population of approximately 125–130 million.
Low urbanisation (only about 15% urban).
Low literacy rates — only about 21% could read or write.
A multi-ethnic empire, with Russians making up just under half of the population.

Question 14

How did WWI affect population size?

Answer 14

Millions killed in combat and through disease.
Food shortages and famine worsened mortality rates.
Displacement of refugees and destruction of housing and farmland reduced birth rates.

Question 15

What was the USSR’s population in 1926?

Answer 15

147 million people

Question 16

How did collectivisation affect demographics?

Answer 16

Millions of peasants were deported or executed as “kulaks.”
Large-scale migration to cities as people fled famine and collectivised farms.
Combined with repression, it led to a fall in rural population and rapid industrial urbanisation.

Question 17

How many died in the 1932–33 famine?

Answer 17

killed approximately 5–7 million people.

Question 18

What was the impact of WWII on population?

Answer 18

Estimated 27 million Soviet citizens died (soldiers and civilians).
Vast areas of western USSR were depopulated and destroyed.
Birth rates collapsed, and millions were left homeless or displaced.

Question 19

What was the USSR’s population by 1960?

Answer 19

210–215 million people.

Question 20

What long-term issue remained 1855–1964?

Answer 20

• imbalance between rural and urban populations

Question 21

What was the state religion in 1855?

Answer 21

• Russian Orthodox Church

Question 22

How did Alexander II treat religion?

Answer 22

• maintained orthodoxy but was slightly more tolerant that his predecessors
• allowed some freedoms for non orthodox faiths

Question 23

What were the May Laws (1882)?

Answer 23

• restricted Jewish settlement to certain areas
• banned property ownership in rural areas
• limited access to professions and education

Question 24

What did the 1905 Decree on Religious Toleration do?

Answer 24

It legalised the practice of non-Orthodox religions and allowed conversion away from Orthodoxy for the first time
Didn’t remove discrimination from minorities

Question 25

How did the Bolsheviks treat the Orthodox Church?

Answer 25

The Bolsheviks were hostile to religion, viewing it as a threat to socialism and a remnant of Tsarism.

Question 26

What was the League of the Militant Godless?

Answer 26

A state-sponsored atheist organisation founded in the 1920s. It aimed to promote scientific atheism and undermine religion through propaganda, lectures, and publications.

Question 27

How did Stalin use the Church in WWII?

Answer 27

Stalin temporarily relaxed persecution of the Church to boost morale and patriotism. Religion was linked to Russian national identity, and priests encouraged citizens to fight for the “Motherland.”

Question 28

What happened in 1943 to the Orthodox Church?

Answer 28

Stalin formally restored relations with the Orthodox Church.

Question 29

How did Khrushchev treat religion?

Answer 29

Launched a major anti religious campaign - Reclosing churches reopened under Stalin ( - Catholic monasteries closed (1959). - Anti-religious propaganda revived; The Godless and similar magazines returned. - KGB surveillance of clergy and restrictions on pilgrimages. - Female believers targeted, as women made up the majority of churchgoers.

Question 30

What was the overall trend 1855–1964?

Answer 30

A steady decline in religious freedom — from dominance under the Tsars to near elimination under Khrushchev — though private belief survived throughout.

Question 31

What law regulated working hours in 1897

Answer 31

The new factory law Limited the working day to 11.5 hours per day Weak enforcement as they still worked 12-14hours

Question 32

How did workers protest poor conditions under Nicholas II?

Answer 32

Strikes, riots and revolutionary movements

Question 33

What reforms came in 1917?

Answer 33

Decree on workers controls Declaration of the rights of toiling and exploited people 8 hour day

Question 34

How did War Communism affect workers?

Answer 34

Working day extended to 11 hours Compulsory labour for all able bodied people aged 16-50 Harsh punishments for lateness or slacking Workers had no freedom to move or change jobs

Question 35

What happened to workers under the NEP?

Answer 35

Small industries denationalised Working conditions modestly improved compared to War Communism but remained poor. Inequality reappeared Scissor crisis- rising industrial prices vs falling agricultural prices

Question 36

How did the Five-Year Plans affect conditions?

Answer 36

- rapid industrialisation-> harsh dangerous conditions - labour book decree whihc controlled movement - workers faced strict discipline, poor housing and long hours

Question 37

What was Stakhanovism?

Answer 37

A labour productivity campaign launched in the 1930s which encouraged workers to exceed norms, offering rewards, but also pressure and competition.

Question 38

How did WWII affect workers? f

Answer 38

Labour militarised again: long hours, low pay, and dangerous work. Many workers conscripted; women and teenagers filled factory jobs. Severe housing shortages and rationing. Forced and prison labour heavily used

Question 39

How did Khrushchev improve rights?

Answer 39

Ended mass repression and released millions from Gulags. Forced labour largely ended. Promoted better working conditions and modest wage increases. Tried to decentralise control with regional economic councils

Question 40

What was the overall trend 1855–1964?

Answer 40

Gradual increase in workers’ rights and state welfare in theory, but in practice, conditions remained controlled, unequal, and often harsh.

Question 41

What caused the 1891–92 famine?

Answer 41

Poor harvests and a worsening grain export crisis Transport failures meant food couldn’t be moved to affected regions Government aid was delayed

Question 42

How did emancipation affect food security?

Answer 42

After 1861, peasants gained freedom but less and poorer-quality land. High redemption payments left many unable to invest in farming. Subsistence farming continued, leaving peasants vulnerable to bad harvests.

Question 43

How did WWI affect food?

Answer 43

War disrupted transport and blockades cut off imports. Requisitioning for the army reduced food for civilians. Inflation destroyed the value of wages, leading to shortages and rationing.

Question 44

How did War Communism affect food supply?

Answer 44

Bolsheviks seized grain from peasants to feed the Red Army during the Civil War. Peasants stopped producing surplus due to lack of payment or incentive.

Question 45

What caused the 1921 famine?

Answer 45

Civil War destruction, drought, and grain requisitioning combined.

Question 46

What caused the 1932–33 famine?

Answer 46

Collectivisation, harsh grain quotas, and restrictions on movement prevented relief. Exports continued even during shortages. Resulted in mass starvation

Question 47

How many died in the 1932–33 famine?

Answer 47

Estimated 5–7 million deaths across the USSR. 3–4 million in Ukraine alone.

Question 48

What happened during the Siege of Leningrad (1941–44)?

Answer 48

German blockade cut off the city for 900 days. Civilians faced extreme starvation and cold, eating sawdust, wallpaper paste, even pets. Around 1 million deaths

Question 49

What was the 1946–47 famine?

Answer 49

Post-war harvest failures, war damage, and grain export priorities caused shortages. Affected rural Russia and Ukraine

Question 50

How did Khrushchev try to improve food supply?

Answer 50

Launched the Virgin Lands Scheme (1954) to expand farmland in Kazakhstan and Siberia. Early success: huge boost in grain output and falling food prices. Later decline due to poor soil and planning. Private plots remained vital to feed citizens.

Question 51

How did Alexander II reform education?

Answer 51

- Zemstvo schools-> increased access for peasants. - The 1863 University Statute granted universities broadened the curriculum - Education became more accessible after the emancipation of the serfs. - Literacy rates began to rise

Question 52

What did Alexander III do to education?

Answer 52

- The 1884 University Statute placed universities under tight government and Church control. - The curriculum was refocused on classical subjects, religion, and loyalty to the Tsar. - Russification policies banned minority languages - Education less accessible to lower-class

Question 53

How literate was Russia by 1897?

Answer 53

around 21% of the population was literate

Question 54

How did Nicholas II expand education?

Answer 54

- He oversaw expansion of state and parish schools, though all remained under Tsarist and Church supervision. - Education was used to promote patriotism and loyalty to the autocracy. - By 1914, literacy reached about 38–40% of adults, showing steady progress but continuing inequality.

Question 55

What was the Bolshevik approach to education?

Answer 55

Lenin and the Bolsheviks saw education as essential to building socialism and eliminating illiteracy.

Question 56

What was Proletkult?

Answer 56

aimed to create a new “proletarian culture” independent of bourgeois traditions.

Question 57

How did Stalin change education?

Answer 57

- Stalin recentralised and standardised education to serve industrialisation and ideology. - 1931 Curriculum Reform -> Ended experimental “polytechnic” model; focused on literacy, maths, science. - 1932 Discipline Decree -> Reintroduced exams, homework, and strict attendance.

Question 58

How did WWII affect education?

Answer 58

- Many schools and universities were destroyed or repurposed during the war. - Teachers and students were conscripted or evacuated. - Educational focus shifted to technical and military training.

Question 59

What did Khrushchev do for education?

Answer 59

- 1956: Abolished secondary and university fees. - 1958 Education Law: Made education compulsory for ages 7–15 - Teacher numbers rose from 1.5m (1953) to 2.2m (1964) - Literacy reached ~98% by late 1950s

Question 60

What was the literacy rate by the 1950s?

Answer 60

Around 98% of adults were literate across the USSR.