October Manifesto

Document issued by Tsar Nicholas II in October 1905.

In response to the unrest caused by the Russian Revolution of 1905 and on the advice of his minister Sergey Witte, Nicholas promised to guarantee civil liberties and establish a popularly elected Duma. The manifesto satisfied the moderate revolutionaries, and further unrest was crushed. In 1906 the Fundamental Laws were established to serve as a constitution and to create the Duma. The Duma was in fact given only a limited voice in the government, and the civil rights actually granted were far less substantial than those promised by the manifesto.

* * *

▪ Russia [1905]

Russian  Oktyabrsky Manifest  

      (Oct. 30 [Oct. 17, Old Style], 1905), in Russian history, document issued by the emperor Nicholas II that in effect marked the end of unlimited autocracy in Russia and ushered in an era of constitutional monarchy. Threatened by the events of the Russian Revolution of 1905 (q.v.), Nicholas faced the choice of establishing a military dictatorship or granting a constitution. On the advice of Sergey Yulevich Witte, he issued the October Manifesto, which promised to guarantee civil liberties (e.g., freedom of speech, press, and assembly), to establish a broad franchise, and to create a legislative body (the Duma [q.v.]) whose members would be popularly elected and whose approval would be necessary before the enactment of any legislation.

      The manifesto satisfied enough of the moderate participants in the revolution to weaken the forces against the government and allow the revolution to be crushed. Only then did the government formally fulfill the promises of the manifesto. On April 23, 1906, the Fundamental Laws, which were to serve as a constitution, were promulgated. The Duma that was created had two houses rather than one, however, and members of only one of them were to be popularly elected. Further, the Duma had only limited control over the budget and none at all over the executive branch of the government. In addition, the civil rights and suffrage rights granted by the Fundamental Laws were far more limited than those promised by the manifesto.

* * *