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THE RUSSIAN
REVOLUTION

Section 14.1
pp. 433 - 439
• Industrially, Russia lags
far behind Britain and
Germany, but begins to
catch up.
• Working conditions
harsh, many workers
become influenced by
Communism – idea
founded by Karl Marx

• What is Communism?
Leaders of the Marxist movements were arrested
and exiled to Siberia, or out of Russia altogether.

One of these revolutionaries was a man named

Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov.

His brother was executed by Tsar Alexander III for

allegedly conspiring against the Tsar’s life. As a
result, young Ulyanov began a long career of
bringing revolution to Russia.

In exile, Ulyanov adopted the name Lenin.

LENIN
For almost a decade the Tsar continued to rule
autocratically. He repressed all dissent and
arrested thousands of people who opposed his
policies.

The final blow to the Russian monarchy came in

1914, when a disastrously unprepared Russia
threw itself into World War One.
Rasputin, the “Mad Monk”
Rasputin was from a small Orthodox Christian sect
that believed that before one could be saved, one
had to sin as much as possible.

When the Tsar’s wife, Alexandra, arranged for

Rasputin to move into the palace, rumors spread
among the Russian people that the two were
having an affair.

The Tsar had lost almost all of his authority.

1917
The MARCH
revolution
In March 1917,
• hundreds of thousands of workers took to the
streets and protested against food shortages
and the war.
• Soldiers fired at the crowds, but soon they
joined the protesters.
• Soldiers at the front began to desert their posts.

The last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas II, abdicated his

throne. A provisional government was established,
headed by Alexander Kerensky.

Kerensky chose to keep Russia involved in the

war, a very costly mistake.
In the cities, workers and soldiers formed local
councils called soviets. These soviets took care of
people’s needs, like getting food and firewood
during the chaos of the early days of the
provisional government.

The soviets soon gained the trust of the people,

and the provisional government was largely
ignored.

Meanwhile…
Lenin had returned to Russia, as the head of the
Bolshevik Party. The Bolsheviks had two main
slogans they used to rally the people.

• “All power to the Soviets!”

• “Peace, Land and Bread!”

Why were these slogans

effective?

Soon the Bolsheviks had gained control of the

Petrograd Soviet, as well as the soviets in all major
Russian cities.
 1917
The NOVEMBER revolution
In November 1917, units of armed Red Guards
(Bolsheviks) stormed the Winter Palace and took
control of Russia. The provisional government
disappeared without a struggle, and in a few days
the Bolsheviks were in power.
Within a short time, the Bolsheviks:

• Gave control of the factories to the workers.

• Divided Russia’s vast farmland up among the

peasants.

• Signed a truce with Germany, ending Russia’s

involvement in World War One.
Bolshevik leaders began to re-organize Russian
society around a new model – Communism.

Leon Trotsky Josef Stalin

THE RUSSIAN
CIVIL WAR
Of course, not everyone agreed with the
Bolsheviks. Old Tsarist military leaders and people
who had some money hated the policies of these
new revolutionaries. They formed armies, known
as the White Armies to fight the Bolsheviks (the
Red Armies).

Some other nations, including the United States,

Japan, France and Britain also sent troops to fight
against the Red Armies.
Some Russians wanted the Tsar restored to
power, so the Bolsheviks murdered the entire royal
family. Rumors would be heard years later that
one of the daughters managed to escape to Paris.

This is where the Anastasia story comes from.

It’s not true.
In three years, fighting, starvation and disease had
killed some fourteen million people in Russia. In
the end, the Red Army – formed and led by Leon
Trotsky – were victorious.

The Bolsheviks changed their name to the

Communist Party, and the Soviet Union was born.
From 1920 until his death in 1924, Lenin worked to
establish a new Russia. He granted a temporary
free-market economy to stimulate agriculture, and
farming increased greatly. He also brought
electricity to the villages.

The rest of the world refused to accept the Soviet

Union as a legitimate country. By the time of the
next Soviet ruler (Josef Stalin), the USSR was
completely cut off from the world and would have
to go it alone.

To be continued…
 Causes and Effects of 2 Russian
Revolutions 1917
Causes - Tsarist Russia Effects/Causes – March
Revolution
Tsar’s leadership was weak Tsar abdicates
Revolutionary agitation - Provisional government
challenges the government takes over
- Lenin and Soviets gain
power
Widespread discontent Russia stays in World War
found among all classes One
Effects – Bolshevik
Revolution
Provisional government is
overthrown
Bolsheviks take over
- Bolsheviks sign peace
treaty with Germany
and leave World War
One
- Civil War begins in
Russia