People Lost Faith in the Russian Government |
The "Russian Revolution" was actually two separate revolutions which erupted in the country during 1917. Why did revolution happen at all in Russia though? Well, that is a long and complicated story, but there are a lot of similarities to the revolutions we have studied before.
Basically, by 1917, the majority of the Russian people had no confidence in the royal family, especially Czar Nicholas II, who was the reigning monarch of the country. Nicholas II was a weak ruler, and his government was extremely corrupt. Even worse, the Russian economy remained backward and had not industrialized like the rest of Europe, which led to repeated losses to the German army on the Eastern Front. Nicholas II continually dissolved the Duma, which was the Russian parliament that was setup after a revolution which occurred in 1905, so the people had no way to complain about problems they were having. |
The End of Monarchy in Russia |
The direct cause of the February Revolution though (the first phase of the Russian Revolution of 1917), was Russia’s involvement in World War I (1914-18). Russia's army was weak, had poor generals and officers leading it, and was no match for the German military. Russian casualties were enormous, more than any other country in any previous war. Economically, Russia was bankrupt from the war effort, and there were chronic food shortages throughout the country. People began calling for the overthrow of the Czar, and an end to the war with the Central Powers.
After many years of abuse and failure, workers marched on the Russian capital, Petrograd (St. Petersburg), to demand change. Nicholas II refused to cooperate, and sent in the city's army garrison. Despite killing many protesters, the military began to question what they were doing, and switched sides after a few days. With no other choice, Nicholas II abdicated his throne, and with the refusal of his brother to become the new Czar, the Russian monarchy collapsed. |
The Revolution Continued |
Power was transferred to a Provisional Government, which was weak and did not do an effective job at running the country. They also refused to end Russian involvement in World War I. After a few months, the Petrograd Soviet (Council), which was made up of workers and peasants in Russia's capital, took matters into their own hands.
The nearly bloodless October Revolution ended with the rise of Marxism in Russia. The Bolsheviks (the radical political party), seized power and gave Vladimir Lenin almost complete control of the government. Lenin made peace with Germany (Treaty of Brest-Litovsk), nationalized Russian industry, and made land reforms. Beginning in 1918 though, the Bolsheviks had to fight a bloody civil war with anti-Bolshevik forces (know as the White Army). It was not until 1920 that the White Army was finally defeated, and in 1922, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR/Soviet Union) was formed. |