Russian Revolution part 3 Flashcards
what were the conditions of petrograd in winter 1917
In the winter of 1917, conditions in the capital, Petrograd, were grim.
The layout of the city seemed to emphasise the divisions among its
people. The workersí quarters and factories were located on the right
bank of the River Neva. On the left bank were the fashionable areas,
the Winter Palace, and official buildings, including the palace where
the Duma met. In February 1917, food shortages were deeply felt in
the workersí quarters. The winter was very cold ñ there had been
exceptional frost and heavy snow. Parliamentarians wishing to
preserve elected government, were opposed to the Tsarís desire to dissolve
the Duma
what happened afterlockout on 22 feb
On 22 February, a lockout took place at a
factory on the right bank. The next day, workers
in fifty factories called a strike in sympathy.
In many factories, women led the way to strikes.
This came to be called the International Womenís
Day. Demonstrating workers crossed from the
factory quarters to the centre of the capital ñ the
Nevskii Prospekt. At this stage, no political party
was actively organising the movement. As the
fashionable quarters and official buildings were
surrounded by workers, the government imposed
a curfew. Demonstrators dispersed by the evening,
but they came back on the 24th and 25th. The
government called out the cavalry and police to
keep an eye on them.
describe the formation of petrograd soviet
On Sunday, 25 February, the government
suspended the Duma. Politicians spoke out against
the measure. Demonstrators returned in force to
the streets of the left bank on the 26th. On the
27th, the Police Headquarters were ransacked. The
streets thronged with people raising slogans about
bread, wages, better hours and democracy. The
government tried to control the situation and
called out the cavalry once again. However, the
cavalry refused to fire on the demonstrators. An
officer was shot at the barracks of a regiment and
three other regiments mutinied, voting to join the
striking workers. By that evening, soldiers and striking workers had gathered to form a ësovietí or ëcouncilí in the
same building as the Duma met. This was the Petrograd Soviet
explain abdication of monarchy
The very next day, a delegation went to see the Tsar. Military
commanders advised him to abdicate. He followed their advice and
abdicated on 2 March. Soviet leaders and Duma leaders formed a
Provisional Government to run the country. Russiaís future would
be decided by a constituent assembly, elected on the basis of universal
adult suffrage. Petrograd had led the February Revolution that
brought down the monarchy in February 1917.
what happened after february revolution
whta was the provisional government like
Army officials, landowners and industrialists were influential in
the Provisional Government. But the liberals as well as socialists
among them worked towards an elected government. Restrictions
on public meetings and associations were removed. ëSovietsí, like
the Petrograd Soviet, were set up everywhere, though no common
system of election was followed.
when did vladimir lenin return from his exile?
what was the april these?
what were bolshevik reactions to april theses?
In April 1917, the Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin returned to
Russia from his exile. He and the Bolsheviks had opposed the war
since 1914. Now he felt it was time for soviets to take over power.
He declared that the war be brought to a close, land be transferred
to the peasants, and banks be nationalised. These three demands
were Leninís ëApril Thesesí. He also argued that the Bolshevik Party
rename itself the Communist Party to indicate its new radical aims.
Most others in the Bolshevik Party were initially surprised by the
April Theses. They thought that the time was not yet ripe for a socialist revolution and the Provisional Government needed to be
supported. But the developments of the subsequent months changed
their attitude.
explain the uprisings of summer of 1917
Through the summer the workersí movement spread. In industrial
areas, factory committees were formed which began questioning
the way industrialists ran their factories. Trade unions grew in
number. Soldiersí committees were formed in the army. In June,
about 500 Soviets sent representatives to an All Russian Congress
of Soviets. As the Provisional Government saw its power reduce
and Bolshevik influence grow, it decided to take stern measures
against the spreading discontent. It resisted attempts by workers
to run factories and began arresting leaders. Popular
demonstrations staged by the Bolsheviks in July 1917 were sternly
repressed. Many Bolshevik leaders had to go into hiding or flee.
Meanwhile in the countryside, peasants and their Socialist
Revolutionary leaders pressed for a redistribution of land. Land
committees were formed to handle this. Encouraged by the
Socialist Revolutionaries, peasants seized land between July and
September 1917.
what happened as conflict between provisional government and bolsheviks increased
As the conflict between the Provisional Government and the
Bolsheviks grew, Lenin feared the Provisional Government would
set up a dictatorship. In September, he began discussions for an
uprising against the government. Bolshevik supporters in the army,
soviets and factories were brought together.
On 16 October 1917, Lenin persuaded the Petrograd Soviet and
the Bolshevik Party to agree to a socialist seizure of power. A
Military Revolutionary Committee was appointed by the Soviet
under Leon Trotskii to organise the seizure. The date of the event
was kept a secret.
explain the socialist revolution
The uprising began on 24 October. Sensing trouble, Prime Minister
Kerenskii had left the city to summon troops. At dawn, military
men loyal to the government seized the buildings of two Bolshevik
newspapers. Pro-government troops were sent to take over telephone
and telegraph offices and protect the Winter Palace. In a swift
response, the Military Revolutionary Committee ordered its
supporters to seize government offices and arrest ministers. Late in
the day, the ship Aurora shelled the Winter Palace. Other vessels
sailed down the Neva and took over various military points. By
nightfall, the city was under the committeeís control and the
ministers had surrendered. At a meeting of the All Russian Congress
of Soviets in Petrograd, the majority approved the Bolshevik action.
Uprisings took place in other cities. There was heavy fighting ñ
especially in Moscow ñ but by December, the Bolsheviks controlled
the Moscow-Petrograd area.
