The Establishment of the Provisional Government

Question 1

While the Feb revolution ended the power of the Romanovs what did it fail to do?

Answer 1

Establish a legitimate new government, itestablished a situation that Trotsky called ‘Dual Power’ - the Petrograd Soviet and Provisional government shared power

Question 2

What was the Provisional Government’s power based on?

Answer 2

By the fact it was drawn from the Duma (which had been legally elected)

Question 3

What did the Provisional Government recognise?

Answer 3

That it had a temporary role, its goal was to govern Russia until a new constitution could be established by a democratically elected Constituent Assembly

Question 4

Who did the Provisional Government consist of?

Answer 4

Mikhail convened the PG (allowing to be viewed as legitimate by old tsarist civil service, army officers etc)
New Prime Minister = Prince G.E. Lvov
Both consisted of leading Liberals who had favoured a constitutional monarchy(Kadets the strongest group), one social minister (Kerensky) and influential elites

Question 5

Why did Kerensky play an important role in government during dual power?

Answer 5

He was both a member of the Provisional Government and a member of the Soviet - able to help the two bodies collaborate.

Question 6

Who did the Petrograd Soviet represent and what were their aims?

Answer 6

Represented the working people and soldiers of Petrograd]

Aimed to defend the rights of the workers under the new ‘bourgeois government’

Question 7

Who elected the Soviet?

Answer 7

Regularly elected directly by the workers and soldiers of Petrograd meaning Soviet deputies genuinely represented those who elected them

Question 8

In what sense was the Soviet more powerful than the PG?

Answer 8

Due to the support of the people it was able to control the local garrisons, factories and railways of Petrograd

Question 9

When was the Soviet established and why?

Answer 9

27th February 1917 to coordinate striking workers across Petrograd

Question 10

In what ways was it similar to the St Petersburg Soviet of 1905?

Answer 10

Elected directly by Petrograd factory workers and soldiers
Delegates regularly elected
Delegates could be recalled by the factories or army units that elected them
Delegates received the same pay as ordinary workers

Question 11

What was the significant difference between the 1905 Soviet and the 1917 one?

Answer 11

The role of intellectuals - 1905 intellectual members of radical parties, allowed to advice soviet, 1917- allowed to become members. As Tsar government broke down soviets emerged in every major town

Question 12

What were four of the major problems the PG faced in 1917?

Answer 12

1. Government was committed to ‘revolutionary defensism’ (continuing war to defend revolution)
2. Continuing meant facing same economic problems that ruined the Tsar
3. Workers wanted higher pay and shorter hours
4. Peasants wanted to own the land they worked

Question 13

Why was the PG’s power limited?

Answer 13

It wasn’t elected so didn’t represent the working class/ peasants and therefore depended on the soviet to carry out its policies

Question 14

When was the PG declared?

Answer 14

2nd March

Question 15

Who were the soviets made up from?

Answer 15

Dominated by Mensheviks and non-socialist intellectuals
Petrograd soviet = radical socialist intellectuals, Mensheviks, SR’s and also a small number of Bolsheviks. Of it’s execute committee only 7 of the first 42 committee members were workers themselves.

Question 16

What did soldiers do on March 1st?

Answer 16

Went to the soviet and demanded representation where they gained order number one

Question 17

What did the soviet became known as and why?

Answer 17

‘Soviet of workers and soldiers’ deputies’ because each regiment was to elect committees who would send representatives to the soviet

Question 18

What was order number one?

Answer 18

Gave soldiers representation and gave their committees control of all weapons- stated soldiers only obey PG if the Soviet agreed

Question 19

What were some of the first measures taken by the PG

Answer 19

• Tsarist ministers+officials arrested and imprisoned, Secret police disbanded
• PG promised to arrange elections for a CA
• First decree = granting amnesty for political and religious prisoners, freedom of press, religion
• Dismissed Provincial Governors giving their work to the elected zemstva

Question 20

What were five key issues in March 1917?

Answer 20

Economy - how to Improve
Social reform - how quickly and how far
War - peace (loss of territory), offensive or defensive
Land - taken off nobility to divide among selves or government do it in a controlled way
National minorities - independence

Question 21

What were the main policies of the liberals (Kadets) in March 1917?

Answer 21

Despite the fact they had began to split into lefts and rights their main policies remained
Continue war
Solve land problem using CA
Not to break up the empire
Delay CA elections as its unlikely they would be elected

Question 22

What were the main policies of the socialists?

Answer 22

Co-operate with PG to ensure interests of the people
Fight defensive war
Leave land issue to CA
Offer more self-government to non-Russians

Question 23

Why were Mensheviks and SR’s split over war?

Answer 23

Left wing SR’s opposed war and moderate SR’s (Chernov) were in favour of a defensive war
Moderate Mensheviks supported continuation of war but Menshevik - internationalists opposed it

Question 24

Why didn’t the Soviet just take power?

Answer 24

Leaders didn’t think it was the right time for workers to form a government
Wanted to avoid civil war and counter revolution
Leaders were scared that they couldn’t control the masses
Lacked the confidence needed to assume direct control and thanks to negotiations by Kerensky an agreement to work together was reached

Question 25

What did the PG set up?

Answer 25

The Duma chamber in the right wing of the Tauride Palace in Petrograd and so perpetuated its rule, although never rejecting the idea of elections at a later date

Question 26

How did the majority of workers, soldiers and peasants regard the PG as?

Answer 26

A self-appointed committee of the wealthy, tainted by their previous associations with tsardom - they viewed the Petrograd soviet as more democratic

Question 27

How did the Petrograd soviet claim direct democratic authority despite not mostly being made up of workers?

Answer 27

Its members were elected by various lesser St Petersburg soviets

Question 28

In Dual Authority what did the PG promise the soviets?

Answer 28

A general amnesty for political prisoners
Civil liberties
The abolition of legal disabilities based on class, religion and nationality
Freedom to organise trade unions and to strike
The election of a CA to determine Russia’s future
Later said that the power of the state shouldn’t be based on violence and coercion but on the consent of free citizens to the power they created themselves

Question 29

What were two of the disagreements between the PG and the soviets?

Answer 29

The PG tried to discipline army deserters and restore order in towns and cities while soviets encouraged peasants and workers to defy authority and assert their ‘rights’
The PG believed the change in regime should result in al all out attack to win the war but the soviets wanted war ended as quickly as possible without annexation of territory by the Germans as the price of peace

Question 30

What did Milyukov announce in April 1917 and what was the result?

Answer 30

That the government would continue fighting until a ‘just peace’ had been won
Led to protest forcing him and Guchkov to resign under popular pressure led by the Petrograd Soviet in May
They were replaced by socialists from the Soviet (Chernov became minister of Agriculture and Kerensky became minister of war), two other Mensheviks added to the cabinet and in July 1917 Lvov was replaced as chairman (effectively prime minister) by Kerensky

Question 31

Why were the PG in an impossible situation?

Answer 31

War was deeply unpopular but they had alliances with B and F and relied on F for loans
They were committed to CA elections but knew SRs would win support of peasants and by June 1917 that the Bolsheviks would get the workers vote in cities
Elections were continually postponed and the PG were waiting for elections before carrying out policy changes like land redistribution so little got done
The Soviet offered no alternative leadership as the largely SR and Menshevik leadership believed their main task was to protect rights of workers and peasants

Question 32

Define constitution?

Answer 32

The set of laws by which a country is governed