 During this time the Russification of Belarusian culture brought to the results that in the 1897 Russian Empire Census, about 5.89 million people declared themselves speakers of "Belarusian" language rather than "Litvin" or "Ruthenian", as they did under Polish rule.The Belarusian nobility and middle class had a firm footing in the regions and Stolypin's reforms allowed the peasants standard of living to greatly increase.However at the same time, many rising Belarusian nationalists, were fearing that the growth of the Russian influence on their culture, and as a result played a decisive role in the 1905 Revolution afterwards Nicholas II officially recognised Belarusian language as independent and allowed its teachings.