The History Book

276

HISTORY WILL

NOT FORGIVE

US IF WE DO

NOT ASSUME

POWER NOW

THE OCTOBER REVOLUTION (1917)

I

n October 1917, Russia was

in turmoil after suffering

huge losses in World War I.

There were food shortages, and

workers in the cities faced low

wages and appalling conditions.

The February Revolution had

ousted the Tsar, but the Provisional

Government that replaced him

faced imminent collapse.

Vladimir Lenin, a member of the

revolutionary Bolshevik Party, took

full advantage. He was committed

to a workers’ (proletarian) revolution

and set out a series of proposals to

overthrow the government in what

became known as his April Theses.

His simple slogan “Peace, land, and

bread!” became a revolutionary

IN CONTEXT

FOCUS

Russian Revolution

BEFORE

1898 The Russian Socialist

Democratic Labour Party

is formed.

1905 Russia suffers a crushing

defeat in a war against Japan,

which leads to an uprising.

1914 Russia enters World War I

and quickly suffers heavy

losses in defeats to Germany

on the Eastern Front.

AFTER

1918 Tsar Nicholas II and his

family are executed.

1922 Lenin creates the Union

of Soviet Socialist Republics

(USSR) under the control of the

Com mu n i s t Pa r t y.

1929 Stalin becomes leader

of the USSR and establishes

a dictatorship.

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277

See also: The founding of St. Petersburg 196–97 ■ Russia emancipates the

serfs 243 ■ Stalin assumes power 281 ■ The Siege of Sarajevo 326 ■

The Spanish Civil War 340

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin

Born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov

on April 10, 1870 (22 April, NS),

the founder of the Bolsheviks

and first leader of Soviet Russia

was a bold theorist and tireless

organizer. Lenin became an

active Marxist revolutionary

after his brother Alexander

was executed in 1887 for

conspiring to assassinate Tsar

Alexander III, an event that

caused Lenin to lose faith in

God and religion. In 1895 he

was arrested and exiled for

three years to Siberia.

Lenin’s chief aim was to

organize the opposition to

the Tsar into a single coherent

movement. Following the

Russian Revolution of March

1917, he returned to Russia

believing his moment had

come. In October, Lenin

led the Bolsheviks against

the government then,

suppressing all opposition,

became dictator of the world’s

first communist state.

Lenin’s main challenge

was civil war (1918–20). The

Communists won, but Russia

was brought to its knees.

The strain of leadership also

broke his health. After two

strokes, one of which deprived

him of speech, he died on

January 21, 1924.

rallying cry. On October 24

(November 6, Gregorian calendar

(GC)), there were attempts by the

government to curb the activities

of the Bolsheviks to prevent a coup.

Orders were issued for the arrest of

leading party members, and their

newspaper, Pravda (The Truth),

was closed down. Lenin, keeping a

low profile in his apartment, urged

action. “We must not wait! We may

lose everything! The government

is tottering. To delay action is

the same as death,” he wrote.

On October 25 (November 7,

GC), the government tried without

success to find armed support.

The Petrograd Soviet of Workers

and Soldiers party, of which the

Bolsheviks were a faction, could rely

on the support of troops in Petrograd

(later St. Petersburg). The Bolshevik

paramilitary Red Guards occupied

the main telegraph office, post

office, and power stations. Only

the Winter Palace, the seat of the

government, remained. The small

unit of military cadets guarding it

willingly surrendered to the

revolutionary soldiers. The regime

was overthrown, and power had

passed to Lenin and his Bolsheviks.

Laying the groundwork

The October Revolution was the

culmination of the civil unrest that

had rumbled on for months. On

February 23, 1917 (March 8, GC), in

Petrograd, a riot had started, led by

women frustrated at waiting hours

for bread. They marched through

the city, gathering support as they

went. This grew into a general

strike, and the demonstrations took

on a more political nature. Red flags

began to appear, and statues of ❯❯

THE MODERN WORLD

The Russian Revolution of 1905 forces a

range of reforms from the autocratic Tsar Nicholas II.

Dissatisfaction

persists among

the people.

In February 1917, the monarchy is overthrown and replaced

by the Provisional Government. The Tsar abdicates in March.

Russia suffers

defeats in

World War I.

Lenin and the Bolsheviks demand

total power for the proletariat,

launching the October Revolution.

Economic

hardship leads

to food riots.

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