Developments Between the Revolutions Flashcards
At which location was ‘The July Day’s based?
Kronstadt Naval Base
How many soldiers were involved in the July Days from the Kronstadt Naval Base?
20,000 and they were all armed
When did ‘The July Days’ take place?
3rd-5th of July
What did the soldiers at the Kronstadt Naval Base actually do?
Organised their own armed demonstrations. They used Bolshevik slogans.
What was Lenin’s response to the July Days?
He sent Bolshevik soldiers to ensure the demonstrations were peaceful.
What happened when Lenin sent Bolshevik soldiers to calm the protestors?
The Bolshevik soldiers fired shots into the crowd and this undermined Lenin’s credibility.
How did the July Days demonstration come to an end?
The Provisional Government, supported by Mensheviks and Social Revolutionaries, used reinforcements to crush the demonstrations.
What were the four main outcomes of the July Days?
- Lenin and Stalin fled, but Trotsky and Kamenev were
imprisoned. - Bolshevik newspaper ‘Pravda’ was forcibly closed down.
- Bolshevik propaganda was burned.
- Kerensky became Prime Minister of the Provisional
Government.
Why was Kornilov appointed as Commander in Chief of the Army?
Because the Brusilov Offensive (June 1917) was beaten back with heavy losses and desertions, so Kornilov was hired to restore order and discipline. He was a right-wing prick.
What did the Bolsheviks think of Kornliov?
They hated him because he was right-wing and spoke out against his reinstatement of the death penalty.
Which area of society supported Kornilov?
Businessmen and Landowners saw Kornilov as their savour because they felt that the Provisional Government had done little to protect their land and businesses.
When was the Kornilov Affair?
End of August 1917
What did Kornilov organise?
6 regiments of troops to march on Petrograd to crush the Soviet and establish a military dictatorship.
What did Kerensky do when Kornilov refused to stop his attack?
Released all imprisoned Bolsheviks and armed them with weapons to crush Kornilov’s troops. Bolsheviks succeeded.
How did the Bolsheviks benefit from the Kornilov Affair?
They saved the day! They cut off Kornilov’s supply lines and ensured that the leaders were arrested.
The Red Guards were given a lot of credibility.
They used propaganda to insult Kerensky’s government.
How did Bolshevik membership differ after the Kornilov Affair?
It was 23,000 in February and stood at 200,000 by October 1917.
How large was the ‘Red Guards’ in October 1917?
10,000
What did Lenin start doing after he heard about the Kornilov Affair? (Bear in mind Lenin was still in exile in Finland).
Lenin began bombarding the Central Committee with letters, claiming that ‘History will not forgive us if we do not assume power now.’
Which two members of the Central Committee in particular opposed the Bolsheviks’ seizure of power?
Zinoviev and Kamenev. They even burnt some of Lenin’s letters.
Why did Kamenev and Zinoviev feel that Lenin was being too bold in wanting a revolution now?
They felt that Russia wasn’t economically ready for revolution and that they should instead wait for the Constituent Assembly Elections.
Lenin became frustrated after he received opposition from within the Central Committee, so what did he do?
Slipped back into Russia in disguise on October 10th and harangued the Central Committee all night.
What was the outcome of the vote to assume power in October 1917?
10 to 2. Lenin had won.
What was Trotsky’s ‘Military Revolutionary Committee’?
66 members (48 were Bolsheviks) who were given the task of planning the revolution. Trotsky was the head boyo.
How many Petrograd garrisons out of 18 declared their loyalty to the Soviet rather than the Provisional Government?
15/18.
On the eve of the October Revolution, how many people did Trotsky command?
200,000 Red Guards, 60,000 Baltic Sailors and 150,000 soldiers from the Petrograd Garrisons.
