Socialism in Europe: Note on History Class 8

Socialism is a political, social, and economic philosophy that encompasses a variety of economic and social systems that are distinguished by social ownership of the means of production rather than private ownership. There are two types of socialist systems: non-market and market. Socialism in Europe throws light on the emergence of socialism in Europe. Here, you can learn how the thinking of this age was spearheaded by different groups of people like liberals, radicals, and conservatives. Enlightenment and new ways of thinking made people overthrow oppressive capitalist regimes in France and Russia. 

Also, this chapter explains the Russian Revolution brought about by major socio-economic and political reasons. The Russian Revolution brought forth the issue of economic equality as well as the welfare of workers and peasants. The new Soviet government initiated major changes like mechanization of agriculture and industrialization.

The age of social change 

Post the French Revolution, enlightenment ideas were propagated throughout the world. The French Revolution started questioning the unequal society of ‘estates’ and ‘orders.’ People had more confidence to rise against their rulers or the church.

Some people had radical ideas of changing society, while others were moderate in their approach.

Liberals

Liberals were a group of people who took a more tolerant approach towards change. For example, they did not favour religious discrimination or the rule of monarchs. They wanted an equal society with an elected parliamentary government. However, they did not believe in ‘universal adult franchise’ or the rights of all citizens to vote. According to liberals, only men with properties could vote, and women shouldn’t be allowed to vote.

Radicals

As opposed to liberals, radicals believed in the drastic change of societal values. Many of them supported women’s voting rights and equal distribution of wealth and property. 

Conservatives

As compared to liberals and radicals, conservatives were against drastic changes in society. Though they accepted that change was necessary, it had to take place gradually over a period of time.

Industrial society and social change

Industrialization brought about remarkable changes in society. The opening of factories brought many men and women to work in factories. However, their condition remained deplorable. Low wages, poor sanitation, cramped accommodation, and unsafe workplaces dampened the spirit of the workers. This oppression at the hands of the land-owning aristocratic class further fuelled the winds of revolution.

Many liberals and radicals sympathized with these workers and fought for their rights. They had support from the common masses who called for the end of dynasty rule in Italy, Germany, France, and Russia. Giuseppe Mazzini was one of the famous Italian nationalists whose writings became famous far across countries like India.

The coming of socialism to Europe

Socialism became a popular theory in Europe by the mid-nineteenth century. The socialists saw private property as exploitative to the workers. According to them, the capitalists or the industry owners worked for their profit and did not care about workers’ benefit. Unless there is societal control of the private property as a whole, the workers will not progress.

In its early days, socialism was tried and tested by many people in different scenarios:

• An English businessman Robert Owen put forth the theory of cooperatives for workers’ welfare. He made initial efforts to set up a cooperative society called New Harmony in the USA
• Louis Blanc of France believed that governments must set up cooperatives. Here, workers share the profits collectively
• Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels believed in overthrowing the capitalist society to own private property socially

The support for socialism

Socialism became a strong ideology in Europe by 1870. An international body by the name of Second International was set up to coordinate the efforts of socialists the world over.

A brief timeline of socialist organizations:

• Associations for workers’ welfare were set up in Germany and England. Many of these associations were involved with the Socialist Democratic Party (SDP) of Germany
• In 1905, the Socialist Party of France and the Labour Party of Britain were set up

The Russian Revolution and its implications on Europe

The Russian Revolution was a landmark event that popularized socialism across the world. This revolution took place in two phases, the February revolution of 1917 and the October Revolution of 1917.

The background of the Russian Revolution can be traced back to the rule of the oppressive Czarist regime in Russia. The government successfully put down the revolution of 1905, and half-hearted reforms were made. One of them was the creation of the Parliament or the Duma.

Further, Russia’s poor performance in World War I (1914 – 1918) enhanced public anger against the government. With its major trade route through the Mediterranean Sea cut off, Russia faced an ammunition shortage, leading to the low morale of the army. Also, the war resulted in a food crisis, leading to increasing protests from the Russian public.

The February Revolution of 1917 began with the demonstrations at Petrograd due to food shortage. Women led many of these strikes. Eventually, the Tsar quit and made way for a provisional government. A democratically elected constituent assembly was set up to oversee Russia’s future.

The Bolshevik party led by Lenin led the October Revolution of 1917. The Bolsheviks vouched for complete socialism in Russia to redistribute land to peasants and bank nationalization.