Kornilov Affair Flashcards
KA - Growth of Kornilov popularity
Empire collapse
- 21 August Germans captured Riga, ‘could take Petrograd at any moment’
- Finland and Ukraine declaring independence
- militant strikes, anarchy on the railways
Gathers support
- ‘Deep down we both know that the salvation of Russia is to be found in the restoration of the monarchy’ Milyukov
- business leaders against Skobolev, mech Minister of Labour
- gentry opposed to Chernov agri SR
- Officer’s Union, Union of Cossacks
- Republican centre formed in May
KA - planning
- Kor demands reforms 3 August (martial law, death penalty, ban on strikes and worker meetings)
- Kerensky was going to agree to be in dictatorship
- Lvov met Kor, Kor says ready to subordinate to Kerenske if need be
- 26 August, Lvov told Kerensky that Kornilov was demanding dictatorial powers
- Kerensky saw opportunity (“conflict between two Napoleons”)
- pretended to be Lvov on Hughes Apparatus, asked Kornilov to confirm what he had said
- called cabinet meeting – urged to confirm, refused, said it was too late; demanded ful authority, ministers signed en masse
KA - march
- telegram of dismissal August 26, Kerensky = Bolshevized
- ordered Krymov’s troops to advance on the capital and place it under martial law
KA - resistance
Soviet executive
- told supporters to arm themselves
- Committee for Struggle Against the Counter Revolution (dependent on Bolshevik military organization, without which “it could have only passed the time with idle speeches by orators who had lost their authority”
Bolshevik role
- could mobilize workers and soldiers + arm them en masse
- Red Guards and trade unions organized defence of factories (Vikzhel railway obstructed railways) 1st cossack division halted at Luga, came over to PG side
KA - outcome - lose support from Right
Kerensky betrayed Kornilov, should have backed out
KA - outcome - lose suport from Left
- Kerensky somehow involved, personal feud between 2 Napoleons
- Kerensky didn’t pursue democracy after (coalition with Kadets, assoc w Kornilov, appointed Alexeev as Commnader in Chief (sympath), no real inquiry = something to hide)
- phantom counter-rev = treason in tsar times
- decrees ignored (‘The prestige of Kerensky and the PG was completely destroyed by the KA’ Kerensky’s wife)
KA - outcome - army deteriorated
- soldiers suspected officers suported KOr, arrested executed
- peace can’t be obtained until nature of state changed
- desertion ‘I can state with horror that we have no army’ September, resigned
KA - outcome - Bolshevik power increased
- 40,000 workers armed (‘The army that rose against Kornilov was the army-to-be of the October revolution’ Trotksy)
- Bol MIlitary Org expand influence under guise of Struggle Com