17.1.3

Living & Working Conditions

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Living Conditions in Russian Cities

Industrialisation and urbanisation often worsened living conditions for people working in cities.

Results of industrialisation

Results of industrialisation

  • Witte's policy of industrialisation meant that lots of workers moved to cities for work.
    • People often lived in cramped houses, but this was probably a better existence than living as a serf.
  • Trade unions only became legal in 1905.
Recession of 1899-1902

Recession of 1899-1902

  • Between 1899 and 1902 the Russian economy contracted and industry struggled.
  • There were bad harvests, which meant there was not enough food.
  • Foreign investors stopped investing money in Russia (as happened in Germany in the 1920s after the Great Depression).
  • Unemployment rose and as living standards fell, workers became more open to the ideas of communism.
Overpopulation

Overpopulation

  • A quarter of a million people moved to St. Petersburg between 1890 and 1900.
  • With not enough housing being built, more and more people lived in a fixed number of houses and living conditions fell.

Conditions in the Countryside

The 1890s were a challenging time for peasants, following the 1891 famine.

Famines

Famines

  • The 1891 famine led to revolts against landlords.
  • Bad harvests are often associated with rebellions and revolutions.
  • There was a very high birth rate in rural Russia.
    • Contraception was not commonly used at the time.
Urbanisation

Urbanisation

  • Urbanisation means that the number of people living in cities compared to the countryside increases.
  • Many peasants were landless and moved to the cities during the 1890s to escape the famine and find work.
    • Cities could not absorb this number of people.
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