Changes

A new industrial class of workers was emerging, and society was becoming increasingly urbanized. However, this class was impoverished and lived and worked in appalling conditions. The majority of the population were still peasants that often worked the land for wealthy landlords and endured lives of great hardship. The industrial workers and the peasants did not benefit from the economic expansion in any way. Russia’s economic growth did create a new middle class. However, this class was excluded from the political system and resented the Tsar’s restrictions on its political and personal freedoms. Only the aristocracy and the elite supported the Tsarist government and just out of self-interest.

[[File:The_Russian_Revolution,_1905_Q81553.jpg|thumbnail|left|300px|Barricades manned by workers of Schmidt factory in Moscow, Dec. 1905]] There was widespread discontent in the Russian Empire. Since the 1890s, various terrorist organizations had waged a violent campaign against the Tsar’s regime. There were many radical political parties active in the country, including the Bolshevik party. <ref>Wood, Alan (1993). ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415307341/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0415307341&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=c7ddf62267e62ec99e78cd6a10e4245b The Origins of the Russian Revolution, 1861-1917]''. London: Routledge</ref> Many people believed that Russian was ripe for a revolution. In 1905 Russia was routed by the Japanese Empire in a brief war in North-East Asia. This defeat was a national humiliation, and the Tsar and his government became very unpopular.