Proposal for a new course 2010-11 Revolutionary Russia, 1861-1921 3/4 MA option (20 credits) Course organiser: Iain

Lauchlan

A. Rationale This course will increase the number of modern European history honours courses available. Student demand for Russian history courses is high. There are currently no specifically Russian history courses on offer. This course will focus on a key period in Russian history: charting the tsarist regimes attempts to grapple with political reform, industrial revolution and social upheaval, the Russian revolution and the consolidation of Bolshevik power. This period is essential to understanding Russias separate path in Europe and its unique contributions to the modern world. The chronological spread across the revolutionary divide will mean that the course will give students a solid understanding of the background to both Imperial and Soviet history. The subject reflects the research interests and expertise of the course organiser, who has written a book on the role of the security police in the coming of the Russian revolution, and is currently writing a biography of one of the leading Bolsheviks, Felix Dzerzhinsky, which covers almost exactly the same period as this course (he lived from 1877 to 1926).

B1. Course Aims and Objectives Upon completion of this course, students should be able to: show a good understanding of Russian political and social developments from 1861 to 1921; understand historical controversies on the nature and collapse of tsarism; discuss the reasons for the outbreak of the Russian revolution; understand the development of both reactionary and revolutionary ideologies in late nineteenth century Russia; reflect on the distinctive features and contributions of Russian culture in the period; evaluate the role of warfare in Imperial Russian statecraft and the eventual collapse of the Romanov regime; place developments in Russia in the wider context of late nineteenth and early twentieth century European history; 1

 discuss the influence of Russias imperial and revolutionary past on the future course of Russian history.

B2. Intended Learning Outcomes Upon completion of this course students should be able to demonstrate in their essays, written examination, general participation in class discussions and oral presentations the following attributes: knowledge of events in Russia 1861 to 1921 the ability to critically assess different historiographical interpretations of the Russian Revolution; the ability to assess critically primary and secondary sources, understanding of the challenges faced by historians when investigating the past; And the following skills which can be defined as transferable: the capacity to work independently on a research topic and demonstrate the ability to evaluate and use effectively the relevant information; the ability to appreciate, and respect, different opinions; the capacity to express themselves clearly and effectively, both orally and in writing; the ability to produce well-argued, well-documented, and properly referenced coursework; good time-management and the ability to organize the workload effectively so as to meet the established deadlines.

C. Student Intake This course is intended for third and fourth year undergraduates and for suitably qualified visiting students. A pass in any first level historical course and any second level historical course or equivalent is required.

D. Course Content Indicative seminar topics Introduction: Orthodoxy, Autocracy, Nationality The Great Reforms Eternal Russia: Rural life New Russia: Urban life Revolutionary Movements: Populism, Marxism, Terrorism 2

The 1905 Revolution: Origins and Course The Constitutional Experiment The Silver Age: Society and Culture War and the Collapse of Tsarism The Bolshevik seizure of power 1917-1921 Conclusion and exam preparation

E. Organization of Teaching The course organiser is Iain Lauchlan. Teaching will consist of weekly seminars lasting one hour and fifty minutes. After the first introductory session, the seminars will be based on weekly student presentations (around two per week), analysis of primary source extracts and the salient points of each subject in a class-wide discussion. In addition to seminar reading suggested by the tutor, students will be encouraged to find (sometimes working in groups of two or three) and suggest specific primary and secondary sources for discussion in class.

Teachability: The reading list will be divided into a separate section on each seminar topic, and, within these sections into lists of core reading and further reading. Electronic versions of the students and course organisers presentations will be made available on WebCT, and numerous sources (particularly articles and some chapters and primary sources) will be available online. Students can also email the course organiser or visit at mutually agreed times for resolving any other matters that might arise. The course organiser will provide additional individual guidance to those students whose learning profile requires it.

F. Student Assessment and Guidance Final Exam 50% One 3000 word Essay 30% Oral 20% (one presentation 10%, class participation 10%)

Students will receive advice on the criteria for assessment of essays in the course handout. Students will receive written feedback on their work, and can expect individual consultation. Course objectives will be discussed in the first class. The final

class will be devoted to an overview of the course and a discussion of exam preparation. Oral grade: Students will prepare a short text to accompany their presentation. The course tutor will decide the grade for the presentation based on criteria published in the course document; 50% of this will be based on the delivery of the presentation in class, and 50% on the text, which along with the course organisers written feedback to the student will be made available to the external examiner. The class participation grade will be discussed with the student shortly before the essay is due. Essay advice can be given at this meeting and the student will be asked to fill in a brief self-assessment form on their oral performance. It is hoped that the student and tutor will closely agree on the grade based on criteria published in the course document, though the final decision will be made by the tutor and the selfassessment form will be made available to the external examiner. Assessment will be altered from this structure if the School Co-ordinator of Adjustments indicates that this would be appropriate.

G. Feedback and Evaluation Students will be able to comment on the teaching and the content of the course through a questionnaire that will be circulated in week 10. During the course students will be invited to provide informal and formal feedback during the tutors office hours, or via the student-staff liaison committee.

H. Resource Requirements This course will be delivered by Iain Lauchlan. The Library resources on Russian history are already strong thanks to previous teachers of Russian history. The course organizer will continue to recommend the purchase of relevant primary and secondary sources from the funds already allocated within History. There will be no additional costs for the students.

I. Documentation A DRPS entry will be prepared in the usual way. A course booklet will be provided in accordance with usual practice in the School.

J. Indicative Bibliography 4

Acton, E. Rethinking the Russian Revolution (1990). Acton, E. et al (eds.), Critical Companion to the Russian Revolution (1997). Billington, James H. Fire in the Minds of Men: Origins of the Revolutionary Faith (1980) Billington, James H. Icon and the Axe: An Interpretive History of Russian Culture (1970). Brooks, J. When Russia Learned to Read (1985) Conrad, Joseph Under Western Eyes (1911) Figes, O. A Peoples Tragedy. The Russian Revolution 1891-1924 (1996). Figes, O. and Boris Kolonitskii, Interpreting the Russian Revolution: the language and symbols of 1917 (1999). Figes, O. Natashas Dance (2004). Freeze, G. L. Russia: A History (1997). Gatrell, Peter Russias First World War: A Social and Economic History (2005). Geifman, Anna (ed.) Russia under the Last Tsar: Opposition and Subversion, 18941917 (1999). Gooding, J. Rulers and Subjects: government and people in Russia, 1801-1991 (1996) Hosking, G. Russia: People and Empire (1998) Hosking, G. Russia and the Russians: From Earliest Times to 2001 (2002) Marks, S. G. How Russia Shaped the Modern World (2004). McCauley, Martin & Peter Waldron (eds.), Octobrists to Bolsheviks: Documents on Imperial Russia 1905-1917 (1984). McKean, R. B. St Petersburg Between the Revolutions (1990). Merridale, C. Night of Stone: death and memory in Russia (2000). Pipes, R. Russia Under the Bolshevik Regime, 1919-1924 (1994). Pipes, R. The Russian Revolution, 1899-1919 (1990). Schimmelpenninck van der Oye, Toward the Rising Sun: Russian Ideologies of Empire and the Path to War with Japan (2001). Stites, Richard The womens liberation movement in Russia 1860-1930 (1978). Stone, Norman Eastern Front, 1914-1917 (1985). Thatcher, Ian (ed.) Late Imperial Russia: Problems and Prospects (2005). Vernadsky, George & S.G.Pushkarev (eds.), A Source book for Russian history from early times to 1917 (1972). Waldron, Peter, The End of Imperial Russia, 1855-1917 (1997) 5

Westwood, J.N. Endurance and Endeavour: Russian History, 1812-1992 (2002).