Dissent and revolution 1917 - Unit 1 Flashcards
How did the first revolution happen?
Bread rationing
Women’s Day march
Pulitov works join the women’s day march
General strike
Soldiers join the protest
Tsar demands the troops fire on protestors
Soldiers refuse to fire
Rodzianko advised political reform but the Tsar refuses
Tsar attempts to suspend the Duma, they refuse
Russian generals told the Tsar they wouldn’t support him, Nicholas resigns 01/03/1917
Which was formed first, the Soviet or the Provisional Government?
The Soviet
What was the name of the rule that the Soviet passed that hampered the ability of the Provisional Government to rule without the Soviet?
Order Number 1
What was the name of the list of reforms the provisional government instantly issued?
The 8 point programme
What problems did the provisional government face?
Still fighting the First World War, Land - peasants wanted to own it, minorities, poor economy, the need for social reform
What were the events that happened between the Feb and October revolution?
Order number 1 issued
Lenin returns from Switzerland in a sealed carriage
Lenin issues the ‘April Thesis’ - Peace, bread and Land and All power to the Soviets
The Milyutov telegram
The Kerensky Offensive
The July days
Lenin flees and Kerensky becomes PM
The Kornilov coup and the creation of the MRC
Attempt to shut down the Bolshevik printing presses
Bolsheviks seize control
What method did the Bolsheviks use to give the illusion of control?
A series of decrees
When were political parties legally allowed?
1906
Why was there a revolution in February 1917?
- Poor living and working conditions
- Increased disconnent shown by worker strikes
- Repression of the people by the government - Okhrana, censorship
- Discontent at the failure of the October Manifesto - change to the franchise, Tsar’s power to veto with the Fundamental Laws
- Military failures - Tsar as Commander in chief
- Left the Tsarina and Rasputin in charge of St Petersburg
What were the 8 principles, passed by the Provisional Government?
They were bold and liberal compared to the rest of Europe
Included:
- End to the secret police
- Freedom of the press
- Political prisoners released
- Begin to develop the Constituent assembly
What was the April Thesis passed on the 3rd April?
Lenin’s plan to take over Russia
Key slogans were:
‘peace, bread and land’
and
‘All power to the Soviet’
The plan was to get control of the Soviet’s before it happened
What were the key events that led to the October revolution?
July 1917 - the Kerensky offensive - after promising to only fight a defensive war
July days = 700+ killed
Lenin flees
Kerensky becomes PM
Kornilov marches on Petrograd in August
Bolsheviks defend the city with the MRC led by Trotsky
Kerensky attempts to shut down the papers
TheBolsheviks seize control.
What problems did the Provisional Goverment have to address?
FIghting or ending the war
Lan - the peasants were seizing it
Minorities wanting independence
The economy
The need for social reform
Coup d’etat versus popular revolution, what does this mean?
Coup d’etat - is that lenin wanted and saw the opportunity to seize control, so just did
A popular revolution is where the population wanted revolution, were on the street calling for it etc
Was the Provisional Governemnt doomed to fail? Was it the author of its own downfall?
No but yes
It lacked legitimacy (not everyone had voted for the DUMA, let alone what was laft of the Provisional Government)
It also passed the 8 principles that gave lots of freedoms to the population that led to opposition growing
It also promised to only fight a defensive war, but the Mylutin telegram was leaked showing this wasn’t their intention. Then the Kerensky offensive was a disaster.
Releasing the Bolsheviks and arming them to defend against Kornilov - didn’t help either!!
