February Revolution Flashcards
What sparked the revolution
The Great War - its catastrophic defeats shook the very core of society
What three themes could you use as to why the February revolution occurred (in order of importance)
Military
Social
Political
What did Trotsky state about war
“War is the locomotive for history”
Why did Russia get involved in the Great War
Considered herself the caretaker of the Slavic people (including Serbs)
Acted in defence of Serbia against the Austrian-Hungary Empire
Give examples of the inadequacies of Russia providing military provisions
No Ministry of Supply had been established in 1914, and only a 3-month offensive had been planned
- This meant by Christmas 1914, already short of munitions, warm clothing and suitable weaponry
- 1915, Russian army limited to 3 shells per day - negative impact on soldier morale
In 1914, the infantry had only two rifles for every…soldiers. Soldiers had to rely on weapons from……………………to fight on
3
Fallen comrades
What did rifle production doubling and heavy armoury production quadrupling in 1916 come at the expense of
Civilian needs - limited industrial capacity
What is the Zemgor
1914 - Duma dissolved itself
Later that year, the existing zemstva and municipal dumas joined together to form the Zemgor chaired by Prince Lvov
Tsar refused to work with this liberal organisation
Empowered political groups and highlighted goverment incompetence
What was the Congress of Representatives of Industry and Business in 1915
Formed by factory owners and businessmen to help coordinate production and combat supply problems
What was the ‘Progressive Bloc’
Tsar recalled Duma in 1915
Met a unified DUma who demanded the tsar create a ‘government of public confidence’.
Nicholas suspended the Duma but unauthorised meetings continued - holding Tsar personally responsible for shortages on the front lines
What did the ineffective Russian command system mean and give some evidence
Troops were only partly trained, leading to defeats and low morale
- Supreme commander had never engaged in serious fighting, and most top commanders had little Profesional training/military experience
How many peasants were conscripted in war
15 million
By 1917, …million Russians had been killed, …m wounded and 2.5m prisoners
1.7
8
What were the consequences of the Tsar assuming supreme commander
Made him directly accountable for future military disasters, and left his wife and Rasputing free reign to meddle with the court
How was Nicholas’ authority/autocracy damaged from the war
Rumours spread that his German wife was deliberately undermining the war effort
Rasputin’s increased influence over Alexandra further damaged Nicholas’ reputation
Rasputin constantly changed ministers that opposed him, which was almost everyone - made members of the army, duma and general public increasingly cynical about the autocratic system
Russia’s infrastructure………….with rising unemployment and………….and falling industry, crippling Russia with social…….and resentment
Collapsed
Inflation
Unrest
WHay was much of the Russsian industrial capacity lost
Poland and other parts of Western Russia were overrun by Germans
Naval blockades at the Balci Sea and the loss of overland routes brought trade to a standstill
What was the result in transport networks serving military, not civilian needs
Huge food shortages
Foodstuffs that should have reached cities rotted beside railway sidings and huge cargos of grain were sent to the front rather than towns
How did inflation fro WWI affect the peasants
Drop-in agricultural prices - peasants lost their purchasing power
Started to hoard grain as they could not buy manufactured goods
Hence why Lenin’s Peace Bread Land’ was so popular
The Russian army does not have………, it does not have experienced………….., most of them being simply conscripted………..who don’t even know why they’re fighting this war
Experience
Soldiers
Peasants
Russia was the first nation to suffer from………………….in WWI
manpower shortages
Despite there seemingly exhaustible supply of peasants
How many institutions did the Zemgor have
8,000
What caused the initial strikes of 100,000 on 14th February in St.P
News that bread rations would be rationed from March due to war shortages
What happens on International Women’s Day
90,000 workers go on strike and women join the marchers
240,000 protesting - police restore order
What happens on the 25th February
250,000 on strike - makes up over 1/2 capital’s workforce forcing Petrograd to a virtual standstill
Crowds overrun Tsarist statues and shout revolutionary slogans - no political parties are seen to be organising this unrest
What is Nicholas’ response to Duma president Rodzianko’ dire warning to the unrest
Didn’t even bother to reply
Just told Duma to stop meeting
Give an example when the army turns on the Tsra
27th Feb
66,000 soldiers mutiny and join protesters, giving them 40,000 rifles
Army high command change their minds and orders soldiers to stop attacking protestors and support Duma committee
How does the Petrograd Soviet from
Duma sets up a provisional committee to take over the goverment - begins organising food supples for city and in theory, becomes in charge of army
How many prime Ministers were there from 1914-16
4
How many desertions were therein 1916 alone
1.5 million
SD and SR leaders were still in…….in 1917 (February)
Exile
In 1917, fewer than….earned the minimum wage
10%
How much did prices rocket from inflation
400%
Give some examples of how political factors caused the Feb revolution
Zemgor
Prov Gov set themselves up as contenders to take over from the tsar in late Feb
Tsar did not respond to Rodzianko’s warning properly
March 1st - PS agrees to recognise the legitimacy of the PG. After Nicholas fails to install his brother as future Tsar, all political authority is handed through the Prov Gov
