1. Early political reforms

Question 1

Negotiations in Feb 1917

Answer 1

• Duma politicians and PS reached agreement on an interim form of govt and package of political reforms that would take effect immediately

Question 2

How did the PG honour the Feb agreement in Spring 1917?

Answer 2

• Introduced series of measures that together turned Russia into what Lenin called ‘the freest country in the world’

Question 3

What measures did the PG introduce?

Answer 3

1) Amnesty for all political prisoners, including those detained for terrorist offences
2) Unrestricted freedom of speech and assembly
3) Equal rights for all citizens (therefore abolition of restrictions preventing Jews living outside the Pale of Settlement)
4) Dissolution of Tsarist police forces - replaced by local militias with elected officers
5) Election of the zemstva and town councils on a fully democratic basis