Theme 1 - Provisional Government and Bolshevik revolution of 1918 Flashcards
When does Nicholas personally take control of the war
- May 1915
- Leaving GERMAN empress in charge under the influence of Rasputin
When is the start of WW1
- Early August 1914
Whats the inital public opinion of the war
- Intially high spirits
Describe the first major defeat in WW1
- Tannenburg
- 29 August 1914
- 70k dead
What is the mood in Petrograd in late 1916
- “The industrial proletariat of the capital are in dispair”
- Dec 1916
State of the war effort by 1916
- One rifle between 3
What is the political mood in early 1917
- High discontent
- Eastern front near collapse
- Worst winter in memory at -30
- Alexandra refused to listen to the Duma - the Duma thought they could do a better job
When was Rasputin Assasinated
- December 1916
When does the president of the Duma declare no confidence in Nicholas
- 14 Feb 1917
When does disquiet begin in Petrograd
- 18 Feb 1917
- Strike at Putilov engineering works
- By 25 there were 300k demonstrators in the street
What was the impact of international womens day
- 23 Feb 1917
- 100k women in the streets
When does Nicholas try to reimpose order & what happens
- 26 Feb: Nicholas instructs garrison to restore order
- 27 Feb: Most of the garrison mutiny
When does Nicholas order the Duma to dissolve
- 27 Feb 1917
- 12 delagates refuse and set up the “Provisional Committee”
- Kerenesy demands Nicholas’ abdication
When is the first meeting of the Petrograd Soviet?
- 27 Feb 1917
What is “Soviet Order No. 1” and when is it issued
- 1 March 1917
- Removes officers powers and transfers them to elected representatives of the soldiers
When does Nicholas II abdicate
- 2nd March 1917
- At the behest of Generals
- Proposes his brother - Grand duke Michael but he refuses to take crown
When does the Provisional Committee rename itself the Provisional government?
- 3 March
When is the Petrograd soviet set up and what do they do initally
- 12 March 1917
- Take control of the food supply
What are the major problems for the Provisional Government
- Further defeats in WW1
- Food Shortages
- Existance of Soviet
When does Trotsky become Chair of Petrograd soviet
- September 1917
When does Lenin arrive in Petrograd
- April 1917
- With assistance from the Germans
Describe the level of Newspaper support of Lenin
- June 1917
- Over 40 newspapers in circulation in support of Lenin
Describe the explostion in Bolshevik party membership in 1917
- 24k in Feb 1917
- 740k in Oct 17
Describe Lenin’s April Thesis
1: End to War
2: Redistrobution - middle to working class
3: Land to Peasants
4: Police, Army & Buerocracy to end
5: Overthrow of Capitalist system - banks, factories and transport nationalised
6: Bolsheviks should take control of the soviet to achieve this
When was the first attempt of the Bolsheviks to overthrow the government? Describe it
- July 1917
- 3 Days of Rioting
- Kerensky brought in loyal troops to quell the disorder
- Lenin went abroad and others went into hiding
When and what was the Kornilov affair
- August 1917
- Gen. Kornilov attempts to establish a military dictatorship
- Kerensky forced to release bolsheviks to save petrograd
- Rail workers prevented Kornilov from reaching petrograd
- Kerinsky weakened as forced to release red guard
When does Lenin convince the central committee to act? Was it unanimous?
- 10 October 1917
- Zinoviev and Kaminev dissenting
What do the Bolsheviks do in prepartation for october
- Reduce size of street demonstations
When was the october revolution? What Happened?
- 24 October 1917
- Bolsheviks sieze key government buildings
What happens in the aftermath
- 25th to 27th October
- Remaining members of PG arrested
- Second congress of Soviets - adopts Lenin’s decree on peace and land
- Approves council of people’s commisars with Lenin as chair
Why do Mensheviks and SR’s oppose Lenin’s seizure of power
- They view it as a Bolshevik not Soviet seizure
Why was Lenin successfull in October 1917
- Used simple slogans focusing on Key issues
- Increased party membership
- Created red guards
- Superb orator
- Convinced the garrison to support them
- ## Provisional government support lacking: peasants wanted Land reform
Factors to suggest October revolution was sudden
- Wasn’t planned in the long term
- No mood for revolution until Lenin returned October 7th
- 7 –> 10 Oct - no unanimous vote for revolution
- Zinoviev and Kaminev wrote a letter saying why it was too soon for revolution
- Trotsky urged caution
Factors to suggest it was planned
- Existence of a “military revolutionary committee”
- In October the bolsheviks scaled down demonstrations
- Sailors from Krondstat sailed into Petrograd to signal start of the revolution
- Key buildings taken simultainiously
When did Lenin return to petrograd from his second exile?
- October 7th 1917
What was the outcome of the Provisional Governments June offensive
- June 1917
- Supported by Soviet
- Was a failure and undermine the Provisional Government
- Returning soldiers took part in Land Seizures
