Volume 9, Number 2, November 2013
Revision
Russia in Revolution, 1881–1924:
AS Unit 1 (p. 10)
Robin Bunce
You can use this revision activity alongside the Edexcel exam focus column on p. 10 of this issue of
the magazine to help you revise this topic.
The column focuses on the question: Why did the Romanovs fall from power in 1917?
This activity is designed to help you understand how questions work, and how to use information to
answer questions.
Advice
Two types of question
In Unit 1, there are basically two types of question: single-factor questions and multi-factor questions.
Single-factor questions
Single-factor questions tend to look like this:
How successful were Stolypin’s economic reforms between 1907 and 1914?
This is a single-factor question because it focuses only on the success of Stolypin’s economic reforms.
Therefore, an answer that includes a lot of detail about other aspects of Stolypin’s policies, such as his
political policies, is unlikely to do well.
Multi-factor questions
Multi-factor questions tend to look like this:
Why did the Romanovs fall from power in 1917?
Or
How far were the failings of Nicolas II the main reason for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917?
These are multi-factor questions because they require you to consider lots of reasons why the
Romanov’s fell in 1917. In fact, the second question requires you to consider ‘the failings of Nicolas II’
as well as other factors (such as the consequences of the First World War and the impact of
Rasputin).
Philip Allan Updates © 2013
1
Activity
Dealing with a multi-factor question
Multi-factor questions are by far the most common type of question asked in Unit 1, and the ‘How
far…’ question is the most common type of multi-factor question. Therefore, it is crucial that you know
how to deal with one.
(a)
Identify the focus
Read the following question:
How far were the failings of Nicolas II the main reason for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917?
The question asks about two different things — (i) the failings of Nicolas II and (ii) the fall of the
Romanovs. It is important to work out which is the prime focus of the question because otherwise you
are unlikely to get a high mark.
The focus of this question is the fall of the Romanovs. Therefore the whole essay should focus on the
fall of the Romanovs. The failings of Nicolas II is one possible reason why the Romanovs fell. So, you
need to consider the failings of Nicolas II, however, your essay must consider other reasons too. A
whole essay on the failings of Nicolas II is unlikely to do well.
Below are three exam-style questions. Underline the main focus of each question. You can check if
you are right by looking at the correct answers, which have been supplied separately in this online
edition.
i.
How far was disunity among the tsar’s opponents the main reason why the tsar survived the
1905 Revolution?
ii.
‘The Provisional Government’s fall was mainly due to Russia’s continued involvement in the
First World War.’ How far do you agree with this view?
iii.
How accurate is it to say that Russia’s economic problems following 1914 were the main
cause of the February Revolution?
(b) The stated factor
There are two main types of multi-factor question.
Type 1 begins: ‘Why…’
Type 2 focuses on: ‘How far…’
‘How far…’ questions tend to link an issue (the main focus of the question) to a possible factor. For
example, the question below links the issue, the fall of the Romanovs, to the possible factor — the
failings of Nicolas II.
How far were the failings of Nicolas II the main reason for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917?
The factor mentioned in the question is known as the stated factor.
Advice
When dealing with a ‘stated factor’ question:
i.
Make a plan to answer the question including the stated factor and three or four other
possible factors.
Philip Allan Updates © 2013
2
When you write your essay, deal with the stated factor first — otherwise you risk either
forgetting the stated factor or running out of time before you can deal with it.
ii.
In the case of this question:
How far were the failings of Nicolas II the main reason for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917?
Your plan might look like this:

the failings of Nicolas II [stated factor]

the impact of the First World War

the impact of Rasputin

Russia’s long-term political and economic problems
(c) Re-work the essay
The student’s essay on p. 10 of this issue of the magazine answers the question:
Why did the Romanovs fall from power in 1917?
However, it contains a lot of information that can be used to answer other related questions.
i.
Read the student’s essay and work out what the plan for the essay was.
Tip: the essay considers four factors, so make sure that you identify all of them.
ii.
Now re-write the question four times. Turn the ‘Why’ question into four ‘How far…’ questions.
Write a ‘How far…’ question for each of the factors that you have identified in your plan:
Question 1: How far was Factor 1 the main reason for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917?
Question 2: How far was Factor 2 the main reason for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917?
Question 3: How far was Factor 3 the main reason for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917?
Question 4: How far was Factor 4 the main reason for the fall of the Romanovs in 1917?
iii.
Now write an essay plan for each of the four questions that you have just written.
iv.
Briefly, answer the following questions:

What have you learned about the structure of ‘How far…’ questions?

What have you learned about the kinds of questions that can be set in Unit 1?
v.
Now try the same process again. Make a plan for the following question and then write three
other questions that focus on the same issue.
‘The Provisional Government’s fall was mainly due to Russia’s continued involvement in the
First World War.’ How far do you agree with this view?
Philip Allan Updates © 2013
3