Provisional Government Flashcards
Explain the FIRST 4main fuck-ups by the provos in regards to retaining power. How did their specific liberal policies undermine their reign?
Overall:
- Liberal idealism (Miliukov from Constitutional Democrat party) -> comprised of Octobrists, (Kadets?), and centre/lib parties.
- 9/11 members of first govt from 4th Duma
- LIBERAL VALUES and IDEALISM result in provos not having the power to retain control and actually implement the reforms they want to -> what leads to their collapse and the eventual Bolshevik consolidation of power
- Didn’t want to be like tsar - end up failing because of this
- AMNESTY all political prisoners / release revolutionaries (breshkovskii, etc).
- Allows opponents to enter Russia unopposed. Lenin only faces difficulty getting through Central Power territory. Allowed to openly propagate Bolshevik ideals against the govt when he arrives back in April 1917 (April theses) - GUARANTEE of civil rights -> speech, assembly, conscious.
- Allows enemies to congregate against them/
- Miliukov note leaks to press -> results in army betrayal of loyalty - Replace Police with “People’s Militia”
- Takes 6 weeks to organize -> anarchy
- Have no CENTRAL FORCE with which to consolidate control
- After army abandons them following Petrograd promise reneging and Kerenskii offensive, left with no armed group to enforce policy/retain control
- After economic breakdown of May, no one to patrol countryside and stop peasants from requisitioning LL lands
- All Russian Peasant Congress allowed to claim whatever land they want in May 1917 - PETROGRAD guarantee: wouldn’t be sent to front.
- When they abuse this later, Petrograd able to be recruited by Lenin
- Left with no guards
- Also guarantee no military hierarchy / trappings here -> soldiers VOTE on whether or not to follow officers
- This is Order #1 -> word spreads and within two weeks similar soldier committees/soviets appearing along the front
- RUINS plan for disciplined army and continuing Tsar’s war of annexations -> entrenchment of defencist stance by army
Explain WTF the Petrograd Soviet is and what it’s relationship was to the provos
Emerged during 1905, reemerges now following FEB rev.
What it is:
- council of worker’s and soldiers’ deputies (representatives)
- Moderate socialists (REV LEADERS ALL EMIGRES AND CAN’T EXERCISE INFLUENCE) -> conditional support for provos
- Duel power mode (share two wings in Duma)
What it wants:
- Defencist position
Relationship:
- Socialist demands result in provo adopting these for conditional support but also UNDERMINE SUCCESS OF GOVT:
(1) Amnesty of all political prisoners/terrorists / etc
(2) Basic civil freedoms -> including armed forces
(4) Constituent assembly)
(5) police for People’s militia
(7) PETROGRAD MILITARY GARRISON WON’T BE SENT TO FRONT OR DISARMED
EVIDENCED BY: Guiding principles of provo govt doc and list of demands by Petrograd soviet the same basically (as above)
Importance to Lenin:
- Soviet represents the people more. More
- “All power to the Soviets” -> simple to read for peasants
- Platforming the worker to the head of all “democratic elements” truly -> thinks the coalition govt is just representing the Bourgeoisie like the Duma and 1905 all over again.
Give an overall timeline of the key successive provo govts up to the July Days
OVERALL:
- Illigitemate because not elected, appointed selves and from 4th Duma
- CONTRAST to Petrograd Soviet: elected councils BY people and soldiers
FIRST coalition ()
- Launches program of lib reforms. Immediate political concessions -> secures backing of PS by accepting their demands (similarity of principles/demands)
- 9/11 from 4th Duma (libs)
- Guarantees to Petrograd Soviet, etc
- Faces April crisis when FREEDOM OF PRESS BACKFIRES and allows Miliukov note to be leaked and a breakdown of discipline and resistance to form in army. Lose out on military support
- Results in cabinet shuffle/govt reorganization
SECOND coalition (May 5)
- 6 of 16 were socialists. sliiiiide to the left -> include Chernov (SRs) only if socialists agreed to support the war
- means socialists went against their ideology to hang onto power (SRs)
- Also ONLY done to appease radicals/socialists -> STILL NOT ENOUGH TO INFLUENCE POLICY
2nd fuck ups:
- Continues to delay land reforms -> concrete promise of only it being decided upon convocation of constituent assembly
- Concessions to workers (limits on child labour) -> But NO major concessions like 8 hour work day which would have appeased workers -> evidence that socialists still a minority -> mostly industrialists in govt
- Wave of mutinies as a result of June Kerenskii offensive when asked them to advance
July Days caused by all this
Explain the challenges to legitimacy that faced the provos
NOT inevitable collapse -> DECISIONS by coalition lead to collapse
(idealism doesn’t pan out) NOT a stable entity -. reorganized 4 times in 6 months
Time crunch:
- main goals are to win war and bring about equal constituent assembly
- Therefore no time for significant social policies such as land reform
Political legitimacy:
- Anointed by Grand Duke Michael upon his refusal of the throne, but 9/11 representatives were from 4 DUMA POST STOLYPIN COUP
- None had been elected to their positions, (Miliukov head of Kadets appointed as Minister of FA
- When elected to DUMA, Stolypin Coup had greatly restricted the electoral franchise, therefore do NOT represent a significant portion of the Russian pop.
Peasant Legitimacy:
- Don’t understand language of the revolution and politics, therefore need to render them “citizens” like in France
- Especially since NOT appointed by the people -> relies on rhetoric to win their support
- BECAUSE IT HAS NO POLICE OR POLITICAL LEGITIMACY TO BACK GOALS OF WINNING WAR AND GETTING CONST ASSEMBLY -> NEED TO RELY ON PROPAGATING WITH LANGUAGE PEASANTS CAN UNDERSTAND (evidence of lack of power basically)
- Important because peasants will make up MAJORITY of electorate come time to vote, also supply the bodies for war effort and crops
- Supply NEW dictionaries on political terms, run political Q/A columns in rural periodicals/press
- Use of family terms because of peasant family structure -> everyone within the family (Russia) must contribute to the harvest, etc
Reliance on Petrograd Soviet:
- Duel power sharing
- Need to lean on it for popular support since peasants/workers see legitimacy in it
- Therefore end up adopting list of demands in guiding principles (Guarantees to Petrograd Garrison, constituent assembly, etc)
CONSEQUENCE:
- Peasants, workers, society at large start to look to other authorities (Petrograd Soviet)
- Allows Lenin opportunities to exploit later…
Explain what the SRs were up to around this time
Why did the SRs lose their popular support in favour of the Bols eventually?
- Coalition procrastinates on LF -> Bols grant immediate land reform and gain support of peasants
During Feb and immediately after -> remain most popular party
- Elected to represent workers soldiers and peasants in each locality
BECAUSE: anti-war and anti govt to broadest spectrum of society -> elected into Soviets post Feb
PEOPLE TRUSTED SRS AND MENS TO: get land, end war, worker control of factories
WHY THEY SHIFT TO BOLES -> because S/M starts to slip on promises here in coalition -> Bols look like best option for achieving these goals
Evidence that peasants, etc don’t really distinguish between parties
Shift to Bolsheviks:
- BECAUSE of idealism of revolution, start to incorporate more moderates into the party (posers)
- Chernov tries to appease right wing of the party -> disagree with new policies (which ones?)
EVIDENCE: From Feb on, urban and provincial SR orgs ignoring central committee’s orders -> by fall VAST MAJORITY of these orgs have declared support for soviet power
Including those i nhubs like Kharkov and Petrograd
Leftist SR wave overwhelming by fall basically
Agai, left = land for peasants, workers’ rights, dfencism, all power to Soviets
Therefore, opens doors for SR defection to Bolsheviks BECAUSE of conservative leadership
Explain the NEXT 4 fuck ups by the provos
EVIDENCE OF: too idealisitic because want land and const to be perfect (premilinary studies and land committees only concrete actions respectively)
- Call constituent assembly but no concrete action. Delay date from August to November
March 25 -> Commission starts draft for “preliminary technical study” WEEKS after provos start lmao
“Must be essence of all spiritual and mental forces of the people” -> Prince Lvov - Implicit support for military hierarchy of officers retaining direct authority over soldiers.
- No mention of change in platform (FIRST GOVT)
- April 18 Miliukov note to allies TRIGGERS resistance Promise NOT to seek separate peace w/ Germany -> therefore keep advancing until victory. (explicitly outlines desire for straights of Constantinople) - Destroy authority in countryside by reassigning land captains and dismissing provincial governors
- Peasants begin to seize land -> farm choicest crops -> wave of desertions from front as peasants hear about this and make their way back - DELAYING LAND QUESTION:
- Land committees form: meant to collect DATA to ONE day make an equitable land solution
- All while peasant soldiers flock from front to claim land
- ONLY concrete action. Say it will be decided by constituent assembly
- Do this because they WANT RESEARCH / TOO IDEALISTIC (second coalition)
All while deserting peasant soldiers armed coming back to country lmao
Overall: peasants mad and turn to SRs and Bols when these delayed too long
Explain the July Days and successive coalition govts
JULY DAYS: SHIFT TO AUTOCRATIC MEASURES
- Pop demands revs take over by this point -> carry banners demanding land and freedom in the streets
- Also demand power to the Soviets -> EVIDENCE PEASANTS JUST GOING TO WHATEVER PARTY PROMISES LAND.
- As a RESPONSE -> restore death penalty in army, Kerenskii bans soldiers Committees and Bolshevik propaganda on front
- Fire upon street demonstrators
THIRD Coalition:
- 9 of 15 now socialists
- Strikes continue on -> need to reassert industrial capacity
Third fuck ups: Alienation of workers and peasantry:
- New circulars BY coalition -> TO workers in factories -> could now only discuss certain topics (RESTRICTION OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH) side w/ industry
- COMBINE with -> alienation of peasantry through military commitments (endangerment of sons, death penalty).
Third fuck ups: Kornilov Affair:
- Looks like Kornilov will launch coup
In defence, Kerenskii releases ALL revs from July days -> need support other than military (Reason: to DEFEND revolution -> ARMS THEM w 40,000 guns).
Results in: all military hierarchy/officers lose faith in Kerenskii -> no longer counts on army
Exactly like Nick in 1905
Third coalition collapses -> cabinet reigns
Boles start to call for immediate end of war.
Only lasts 5 weeks
FOURTH Colaition:
- Mostly fringe socialists under Kerenskii
- No army to rely on, no police
- uh oh!
Story of provos: 1917 showed a vast gulf between people who THOUGHT the rev had been achieved (monarchy is gone, we’re done) and those who thought “monarchy is gone, this is only the START of what the future could entail” Boom Bitch.
Explain the peasant takes on power and how
Peasant takes on power: - Thought a constituent assembly would enshrine their rights to take whatever land they wanted and be FIRM about this -> sole class interest - Hundreds of villages pass formal resolutions SUPPORTING provos and petro because of this after FEB FOR FIRST TIME IN HISTORY -> PEASANTS AWARE OF THEIR POWER AND INFLUENCE TO SHAPE STATE -> see state as institution to enforce their OWN interests (land rights)
IN WAKE OF failure of provos to deliver concrete action beyond “land committees” ->
Peasants begin to ignore coalition and take power into own hands:
All Russian Peasant Congress in May 1917 -> gives “legal” sanction to steal gentry land despite provos not allowing it
Think any “resolution” passed by their own assemblies are now “laws”
- these are peasant Soviets basically
ENCOURAGED by Bolsheviks -> ALL POWER TO SOVIETS
Also, Nearly all peasant soviets have Red Guards
See THIS as law / legal thing as opposed to “official” government -> don’t see legitimacy in anyone (including provos) because they only care about land)
