Russian revolution and communism 2

RUSSIAN
REVOLUTION
AND COMMUNISM 2

It was the end of the tzars.
The first elections were held for the workers’ soviet.
There had been about a hundred deaths, mostly protesters.
The fall of the regime came as a surprise, and was greeted with with enthusiasm.

The Provisional Government succeeded the Tsarism rapidly.
The working class became very political.

Laws introduced by the first Provisional Government
-Full and immediate amnesty on all issues political and
religious, including: terrorist acts, military uprisings, and
agrarian crimes etc.
-Freedom of word, press, unions, assemblies, and strikes with
spread of political freedoms to military servicemen within the
restrictions allowed by military-technical conditions.
- Abolition of all hereditary, religious, and national class
restrictions.
Immediate preparations for the convocation on basis of
universal, equal, secret, and direct vote for the Constituent
Assembly which will determine the form of government and the
constitution.
-Replacement of the police with a public militsiya and its elected
chairmanship subordinated to the local authorities.
-Elections to the authorities of local self-government on basis of
universal, direct, equal, and secret vote.
-Non-disarmament and non-withdrawal out of Petrograd the
military units participating in the revolution movement.
-Under preservation of strict discipline in ranks and performing a
military service - elimination of all restrictions for soldiers in the
use of public rights granted to all other citizens.
- It also said, "The provisional government feels obliged to add
that it is not intended to take advantage of military

The Duma elected Mijail Rodzianko,
an ex official of the Tzar of the
Octobrist party, monarchic and rich
landlord.
From 15 march Gueorgui Lvov
a liberal progressive of
the Democratic Consitutional party
took the reigns of government.Rodziank Lvov

Eventually the Soviet
of Petrograd and the
Provisional Government
agreed that
Aleksandr Kérenski,
social-revolucionary,
should take control.
He was vice-president
of the Soviet of Petrograd
and Minister of
War and Justice.

The continual crises – the days of April
-The protests against and for the government caused the first battles.
-The minister for External relations Miliukov resigned.
-The moderate socialists entered into government with the support of most of the
workers,

In the February revolution,
the political parties, trade unions,
cooperatives, and soviets were rival
forms
of organisation, competing
for leadership in the Russian society.

The Bolshevics,
which means
“majority”
were in fact
in the minority

Menshevics –
Pavel Axelrod, Julius Martov, Alex Martinov

Soviets or meetings of the workers, peasants, soldiers, were formed
within

Lenin was the leader of the small Bolshevic party.
It became more radical under his leadership.
He became spokesman of general discontent.

Lenin refused to support
the Provisional
Government and
demanded
1 the confiscation of lands
and redistribution to the
peasants
2 that the workers control
the factories
3 the immediate transition
to a soviet republic

These ideas were not mainstream among the Bolschevics,
who generally supported the government.
Their newspaper Pravda, edited by Stalin and Molotov
even spoke of renewing work and normality.
Stalin
Molotov

However, when the economy collapsed and the war continued,
Lenin’s and Trotsky’s ideas started to dominate.
In June the Bolshevics held the majority in the Sóviet of Petrograd
Trotski

He wanted to stop the Central Powers
before American forces arrived
and to renew the discipline
and spirit of the Russian troops.
A last offensive led by
General Kerensky
June 1917

He had some initial victories,
but soon became bogged
down for lack of support
and discipline.
The Central Powers counter
attacked, recovering lost
ground reaching Tarnopol
The offensive was a military
and political failure.
It gave rise to the July days
of protest in the capital.
It polarized the people
politically favouring the
extremists
of both right and left.

The July days (protests)
The soldiers in Petrograd refused to go back to the war-front.
Uniting with the workers, they demanded the Soviet should
take over. The Bolshevics were against a premature uprising.

In the summer of 1917 the peasants took over the lands,
without waiting for the agrarian reform

The trade unions, where the Bolshevics were in the majority.
In spite of suffering repression, they organised a strike
which was supported by the masses.

Government reaction - was directed against the Bochevics.
-Trotski was jailed - Lenin fled to Finland
-The newspapaer Worker and Soldier was prohibited.

-The regiments that had supported the Revolution were dissolved,
-and sent to the war front in small detachments.
-The workers were disarmed.
-90 000 men had to abandon Petrograd;
-The agitators were jailed and the death penaly was re-introduced

The union of officials of
the Army and the Marine,
wanted a miltary
dictatorship.
Capitan Muraviov,
member of the Social-
Revolucionary party,
formed death batallions
to march on Petrograd to
suppress the Bolshevics.

Kornílov’s Uprising
Lavr Kornílov was appointed by Kerensky as new commander in chief.
Although the army was disbanding, Kornílov wanted to the previous
iron discipline. In April he had given orders to shoot deserters.

At the end of August 1917, Kornílov organized an uprising.
sending 3 regiments of infantry by rail to Petrograd,
to surpress the Soviets and workers organizations
and bring Russia back to the war.

The Provisional Government was inept for defending itself,
rather the Bolchevics organized the defense of the capital.
The workers dug trenches and the rail men sent the trains to
dead ends, leading to the dissolution of the contingents.
Red guards defended
the Winter Palace

To put down the rising, Kérensky sought the help of the revolutionary parties.
The Bolcheviques came out of hiding and the political prisoners including Trotsky
were released by the Marine of Kronstadt.. The masses rearmed,

The Revolucionary
Military Committee
was formen in the
Sóviet of Petrogrado,
led by por Trotski.
It was comprised
of armed workers,
soldiers and marines.
They made sure of
the neutrality of the
military detachment,
and methodically
prepared taking
strategic points
of the city.

The uprising started on the night of 24 oct

The Bolshevic Red Guard took without resistence control of the bridges,
stations, central bank, and post office and telecomuncations.
Then they made an assault on the Winter Palace.

On 25–26 October Red Guard forces under the leadership of Bolshevik commanders
launched their final attack on the ineffectual Provisional Government.
Most government offices were occupied and controlled by Bolshevik soldiers on the
25th;
the last holdout of the Provisional Ministers, the Tsar's Winter Palace
on the Neva River bank, was captured on the night of the 26th.

The sacking of the Winter Palace by the Red Guard

In the effort to take Moscow from 28 de octubre to 2 de
noviembre there was violent resistence. The Bolchevics
occupied the Kremlin, but the local leaders doubted and
signed a treaty with the social-revolutionary authority of the
city before evacuating the building.

The government troops took the opportunity
to machine gun the 300 Red Guards
and unarmed workers as they left the building,
following the orders of the social-revolucionario lord mayor

There followed
a week of tremendous
fighting, until the
Bolchevics, led by
Nikolái Bukarin,
finally took the
Kremlin and control
of the city.
Bukarin

On 25 October, Trotski dissolved the Provisional Government
and opened the 2.º All Russian Congress of Sóviets
of workers and peasants., with 562 delegates,
382 of whom were Bolchevics
and 70 were of the Social-Revolucionario leftist party .

In the II Congress, the Bolshevics now held a majority

Kerensky escaped the
Winter Palace raid and fled
to Pskov, where he rallied
some loyal troops for an
attempt to retake the capital.
His troops managed to
capture Tsarskoe Selo
but were beaten
the next day at Pulkovo.
Kerensky spent the next
few weeks in hiding
before fleeing the country.
He went into exile in France
and eventually emigrated to
the U.S.

The Bolsheviks then replaced
the government with their own.
The Little Council (or
Underground Provisional
Government)
met at the house of Sofia Panina
briefly in an attempt
to resist the Bolsheviks.

And so the Bolsheviks came to power,
and formed their own government, the Sovnarkom,
which would lead to civil war in Russia

Russian revolution and communism 2

Russian revolution and communism 2

More Related Content

What's hot

Viewers also liked

Similar to Russian revolution and communism 2

More from Martin M Flynn

Recently uploaded

Russian revolution and communism 2