The Februrary/March Revolution of 1917 Flashcards
Why was there an increase in urban unrest, strikes and protests that occurred in major cities by 1916?
WW1 had created extreme economic hardship:
Goods became increasingly scarce.
Inflation = value of workers wages cut by half.
How many workers were on strike in Russia in 1914 compared to 1916?
1914=10,000
1916=880,000
What were the primary causes of peasant unrest from war?
What caused a fall in standard of living in the countryside?
War brought hardship to rural areas - young male peasants conscripted in large numbers - dramatic drop in rural workforce.
Horses requisitioned to help with war.
Grain prices kept low but rising inflation = fall of standards of living in the countryside
Why was the Tsar’s initial response to the unrest complacent?
Complacent - despite the Okhrana and Army leadership being aware of the unrest, he assumed that after 1905 the government could survive even severe unrest.
What happened on Monday 14th February?
100,000 workers from 58 different factories were on strike in Petrograd
news that bread would be rationed from March 1st brought round the clock queues, violence and police being attacked
What happened on 24th Feb?
200,000 workers on strike and crowds overturned tsarists statues, waved red flags, shouted revolutionary slogans
No obvious organisation from any radical political parties but some radicals distributed banners with political demands on
What happened in February when the Government announced that bread would be rationed from 1st of March?
What was the immediate actions.
What happened on the 23rd of February.
Panic buying, food shortages and mood strikes.
On 23rd February thousands of women took to streets in Petrograd to celebrate International Women’s Day. Women in major textile factories in Petrograd went on strike in protest of bread rationing and appealed to male workers of Putilov Engineering Works to join the strike.
In the last days of February, how did the Tsar’s power crumble?
(protesters, workers, troops, factories)
By 25th of February 200,000 people protested on streets of Petrograd.
Workers established soviets to put forward their demands.
Cossack troops instructed to supress protest refused to stop the rebellion and reports reached the Tsar that his own troops were handing out rifles and bread to people of Petrograd.
Major factories and most shops closed.
Who suggested the Tsar’s abdication and when did he agree?
Representatives from the Duma met the Tsar on his train and requested his abdication - he agreed to abdicate on March 2nd
What happened on 22nd Feb?
20,000 workers were locked out of the Putilov Steel Works by the management after pay talks collapsed . Workers in other factories went on strike on support
Apart from himself who did the Tsar abdicate for?
His son who suffered from haemophilia, The Tsar believed he was too ill to assume the government of Russia (His brother then refused to take power)
What two things were different for Nicholas II in 1905 than in 1917, meaning he could not reassert power?
(two groups of people)
In 1905 he had support of the army, in 1917 senior generals indicated they were not willing to help him.
In 1905 he was able to compromise with the middle class, by 1917 they had lost faith in the Tsar due to rumours of corruption and incompetence of his wartime government
Was the revolution popular?
By the time of Nicholas’s abdication, support for him had universally collapsed and few people wanted him to continue running the country.
What happened on Thursday the 23rd of February:
How were men persuaded to join in the strikes?
What job did women have the most impact from strikes?
How many workers on strike and how many factories closed?
How many on the street in total?
How was order restored?
International Women’s day march - women marched towards the centre and went to the factories in Petrograd.
They called men cowards if they would not join them.
Many went on including women tram drivers who overturned trams into the street?
90,000 workers on strike and 50 factories closed.
240,000 on the streets.
Order restored by desperate police force - no loss of life.
How did the bread riots evolve over the next few days?
Who joined in the strikes by Saturday
Demonstrations grew taking on a more political nature - demands for bread turned into demands for an end to war and an end to the Tsar.
People from all classes joined and by Saturday it was virtually a general strike - major factories, shops and restaurants closed.
