The nature of dual power Flashcards
Who was named the new Tsar following the abdication of Nicholas II?
His uncle Grand Duke Mikhail.
Although Milyukov and right-wing members of the Kadets welcomed the new Tsar…
the workers of Petrograd refused to support a constitutional monarchy.
When did the Grand Duke Mikhail abdicate?
3 March 1917 - this decisively ended the power of the Romanovs
Why did the February Revolution fail to establish a legitimate new government?
Rather, the overthrow of Tsarist led to a situation which Trotsky called Dual Power, in which the Petrograd Society and the Provisional Government shared power.
Dual power was not…
a formal constitutional relationship - indeed, the relationship between the two institutions changed over time.
How did Provisional Government see itself?
- The Provisional Government claimed to be the sole legal government of Russia
- However, its role was to govern temporarily, until a new constitution could be established by a democratically elected Constituent Assembly
How did the Petrograd Soviet see itself?
- The Petrograd Soviet was a democratically elected body representing the working people and soldiers of Petrograd
- The Soviet didn’t claim to govern Russia
- Nonetheless, it had the support of the vast majority of the capital’s workers and soldiers
- Therefore, it could control the local garrisons, the factories and the railways of Petrograd
- In this sense, it was more powerful than the Provisional Government
Who dominated the First Provisional Government?
- Former members of the Progressive Bloc
- Prince Lvov, the head of Zemgor, was head of the First Provisional Government
- Milyukov and other leading Kadets played leading roles
- Alexander Kerensky was also in the government - a socialist who had been elected to the Fourth Duma
Why couldn’t the Provisional Government rely on the support of the army?
Soviet Order Number 1 - without overwhelming military power the Provisional Government was dependent on the Soviet to ensure that its measures were carried out.
The Provisional Government had a difficult relationship with…
the people of Petrograd.
What did the threat of further rebellions force the new government to guarantee? When were they introduced?
What did these do, in terms of popularity?
Introduced in early March 1917 Basic rights including: - Freedom of expression and assembly - Freedom of conscience - Universal suffrage for all adults - Equal rights for minorities Therese measures, won over the majority of the working people of Petrograd.
During March 1917, the Mensheviks, SRs and even the Bolsheviks…
offered a degree of support for the new government.
Radical parties believed that Russia needed a period of…
parliamentary democracy and capitalism before a truly socialist revolution.
In March and April of 1917, the Provisional Government and the Soviet were in agreement over…
major issues:
- Important leaders of both institutions favoured ‘revolutionary defencism’: the policy of continuing to fight the First World War in order to defend the Revolution.
