Historian Reacts to Oversimplified's Russian Revolution (Part 1)

One historian's reaction to Oversimplified's Russian Revolution. I've decided to break this first part up into two sections as I didn't think anyone would watch a video of nearly an hour long. I hope you enjoy!

#history #reaction #review

[joyplummeridge]

My first husband was descended from Cossacks, his great great grandfather escaped from Russia during the revolution, he left behind a diary of the events, and apart from the stuff we know about, he mentioned things which do not always make it into the history books. For example, ordinary people who were punished during the revolution, he mentions two, a Professor who returned from work and found his wife and young daughters, and the housekeeper raped and dead, why? Because he had servants. The doctor whose wife had just given birth, he returned home to find the baby dead, bayoneted to the front door, and his wife raped and dead. My first husbands great-great grandfather also mentions how, once the Royal family were dead, the revolutionaries then turned their attentions to some of those who had helped them, he was unaware of this until he went to visit a friend, he was looking for a another friend of theirs who had gone missing. The person who he was visiting gave him the bad news, their friend was dead, killed by a group of revolutionaries and they were after him also. So, this mutual friend, who happened to be a farmer, hit upon an idea, he was due to take potatoes to the docks and so, my first husband's great-great grandfather got into the cart, and the farmer put a large crate over him and filled the cart with potatoes, once at the docks, he managed to sneak on board, finally revealing himself when the ship was too far out to sea to turn round.

[andrewmckenzie]

Talking about "reform out of control", textbook example the collapse of the USSR. Gorbachev wanted to reform it, not dissolve it but tried to do too much too quickly. Most of us will recall the social and economic chaos that resulted in 1990s Russia.

[andrewmckenzie]

Thanks for the extra background about Lenin's early days! Even many of the knowledgeable reactors either didn't know about it or didn't mention it.

[andrewmckenzie]

Thank You for your insight regarding "divine right to rule". While it seems archaic now, these people actually believed this of themselves and the old (likely republican propaganda) of the autocratic monarch getting some type of guilty pleasure out of brutalising people is largely fiction. Inefficiencies and perhaps a touch of indifference from most of said monarchs created a very inefficient and class based society and its only natural learned Russians of the time question how the west could be so seemingly prosperous and happy and wanting to bring that to Russia. Of course some of it is a case of "the novelty of freedom/democracy wears off after a while" as we see in the modern western world, but this time we find ourselves in (especially if we research history) gives us an oppourtunity to see things with more of an open mind.