April - October 1917 Flashcards
April - Aug 1917 problems faced by provisional Gov - The war
Milyukov ( minister of war ) wanted territorial gains towards black sea - angered soviets who wanted defensive war - Milyukov resigned which put provisional government into crisis
5th May 1917 Provisional Government underwent a reformation
Summer offensive 1917 - attempt to take pressure of eastern front - only lasted 3 days with thousands killed etc - Leads to the July days
April - Aug 1917 problems faced by provisional Gov - Land
May 1917 - unrest in countryside as peasants wanted land and due to collapse of central authority, no one was stopping them ( 257 cases of land seizures by peasants in July) - liberals didn’t like this as they were worried peasants would leave their roles on the front line to claim land.
Chernov, minister of agriculture, wanted the peasants to take the land
April - Aug 1917 problems faced by provisional Gov - National minority demand
centralised tsarist state collapsed with Finland and Poland wanting independence - liberals saw this as the breakdown of Russia
April - Aug 1917 problems faced by provisional Gov - The deteriorating economic situation
food shortages etc leading to Feb revolution - provisional government taking power didn’t help the situation - between Feb and July, 568 factories closed down
October revolution - October 7th - 9th
Lenin returns and meets with Zinoviev - Trotsky set up military revolutionary committee
October revolution - October 10th
Bolshevik central committee confirms decision to seize power
October revolution - October 24-25th
key points in city seized - many left the palace
October revolution - October 25-26th
Bolshevik soldiers entered Tauride palace - Lenin announced formation of the Bolshevik government
October revolution - Next 10 days
bloody fighting in Moscow - Trotsky states 5% of workers and soldiers in Petrograd were involved in the storming of the Tauride palace
Role of Lenin in the October revolution
- April - Lenin arrives back in Russia
- May - idea ‘all power to soviets’ and ‘bread, peace and land’ became popular
- June - In Finland
- July - Accused for working for Germans
- August - In Finland
- September - Bolshevik party surge in support
- October - 26th announces formation of the Bolshevik Soviet
- November - Focused policies for workers control of factories etc
- December - introduced land distribution and establishes the Cheka
Role of Trotsky in the October revolution
- April - Trotsky in New York
- May - arrives in Russia and assumes control of the Menshevik party
- June - Elected as member of the Russian central committee
- July - Arrested and became Bolshevik
- August - Organised Bolshevik strategy of gaining people
- September - elected president of Petrograd Soviet
- October - Arranges for red guards, sailors and soldiers to take key points in the city.
- November - led negotiations that resulted in the signing of the treaty of Brest-Litovsk
- December - led the soviet delegation
Sovnarkom
Council of Peoples Commissars set up after the October Revolution and ran until 1941
- Ruled by decree so Lenin didn’t have to share power with the Soviets
Lost influence after the formation of the Politburo in 1919
- Government position = precarious as its power was limited with the Bolshevik’s influence non-existent in the Countryside - the state bank also refused to hand over any money - took 10 days to open the vaults
Key positions within Sovnarkom
- Chairman - Lenin
- Commissar for foreign affairs - Trotsky then Chicherin after 1918
- Commissar for war – Trotsky from 1918
- Commissar for internal affairs - Rykov
- Commissar for social welfare - Kallanki
- Commissar for nationalities -Stalin
- Commissar for education and culture - Lunacharsky
Why was Lenin willing to give peasants and workers what they wanted
in order to survive the first few months
Land Decree - Peasants had right to take estates off of the Gentry and Land could no longer be bought or sold
- Workers control Decree - factory committees given right to control production and finances in the workplace
Lenin’s consolidation of power - Radical
- Forms his own government
- Bans opposition press
- Banned other socialist parties
- Bans trade unions
- Full equality for women
