2) 1917 October Revolution Flashcards
Who was War Minister under the Provisional Government?
Kerensky
Why didn’t Russia leave WW1?
1) Worried about accepting defeat
2) Worried about the loss of support from their allies
3) Worried about accepting a peace treaty where Germany and Austria-Hungary would dictate the terms.
How many casualties and deaths did the Russian army experience during the June Offensive?
200,000 casualties and 60,000 deaths
How did the PG deal with the amount of deserters from the Russian army?
They set up death squads to hunt down and execute deserters
How did the PG improve conditions for workers?
1) They set up 8 hour working days for industrial workers
2) They allowed trade unions to operate.
Why did the PG not give the peasants more land?
They were worried that soldiers would desert the army in order to return home to their new land.
How did peasants react to not receiving more land?
They began to take it illegally
How did the PG deal with illegal land grabs by the peasants?
They sent the army in to take the land back by force.
Why did the PG lack legitimacy?
They were former Duma members, put in place by the Tsar. They had therefore not been elected.
Who shared ‘dual control’ in Russia with the PG?
The Petrgorad Soviet
How did Order Number One increase the power of soviets?
It meant that the military in Petrograd would not act without orders from the Petrograd Soviet
Why was the Petrograd Soviet powerful?
It controlled workers therefore it controlled…
1) Railway system
2) Postal service
3) Telegraph service
4) The military in Petrograd (via Order Number One)
Who led a failed military coup in August 1917?
General Kornilov
Who helped the PG defend the Petrograd Soviet?
The Bolshevik Red Guard
Why was the Kornilov Revolt significant for the Bolsheviks?
1) The PG armed the Bolshevik Red Guard with guns
2) The Bolsheviks were seen as the saviors of Petrograd
3) Kerensky lost popularity - many thought he was working with Kornilov
4) Many army generals lost their job/were killed/were imprisoned.
Why was 31st August 1917 significant for the Petrograd Soviet?
The Bolsheviks gained a majority therefore they were in control of the Soviet.
Who was elected chairman of the Petrograd Soviet?
Trotsky
What was announced by Trotsky at the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets?
That a revolution was needed to remove the PG
Who walked out of the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets?
The Mensheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries (SRs)
How did the Bolsheviks justify a revolution at the Second-All-Russian Congress of Soviets?
They presented their authority as ‘fait accompli’ (something that has already happened/been decided)
When did Lenin return to Russia from exile?
April 3rd 1917
What popular slogan emerged from Lenin’s April Theses
‘peace, bread, land’
What did Lenin’s booklet ‘State and Revolution’ promise?
The old classes would be swept away (under a dictatorship of the proletariat)
As chairman of the Petrograd Soviet what military wing did Trotsky control?
The Military Revolutionary Committee (MRC)
How did Trotsky use the MRC?
by 23rd October the MRC had control of all soldiers in Petrograd and occupation of key areas of the city
Who did Kerensky replace as leader of the PG?
Prince Lvov
