Russian revolution SSWH16.D, SSWH17.B

Czar Nicholas II Became ruler of Russia in 1894. Believed in absolute rule Made efforts to bring industrialization to Russia

The Problems of Russian Industrialization Factories were built quickly and poorly Wages were extremely low Working conditions were terrible Child labor was tragically common

The Seeds of Revolution The ideas of Karl Marx found there way to Russia, and the workers began to think that they could run their own lives…and their own country. The idea of a society ruled by the Proletariat “the workers” began to grow.

The Seeds of Revolution Bloody Sunday (1905) 200,000 workers went to the summer palace in St. Petersburg to request individual rights, better working conditions, and a national legislature. Troops were ordered to open fire on the crowd. More than 1,000 were killed or injured.

The Seeds of Revolution World War One (1914-1917) 4 million casualties in the first year of fighting Severe lack of food and fuel both at home and on the front lines Trouble for Nicholas II Czar not able to handle the problems created by World War I effectively.

March, 1917 Striking workers call for the Czar to step down from power. Troops were called out, and the protestors were fired on. These troops soon turned on their officers and joined the revolutionaries Czar Nicholas Abdicates – March 17, 1917

“Down with the 10 Capitalist ministers “Down with the 10 Capitalist ministers. All power to the Soviets of workers, soldiers, and peasant deputies. To the socialist ministers, we demand that Nicholas II be transferred to the Peter-Paul Fortress.”

Protesters Fired on by Troops

Revolutionaries Split Into Groups Bolsheviks Mensheviks Small core group Professional revolutionaries Strict control of the movement Broad base of revolutionaries Popular support A common man’s movement

Provisional Government The Duma (Russian Parliament) formed a provisional government They intended to continue fighting the Germans Revolutionaries don’t like this government either, so they began to form Soviets (local councils)

Enter Vladimir Ilyich Lenin Charismatic, gifted, Bolshevik administrator Exiled in Germany Sent back in a sealed railroad car Begins to gain a lot of support with his rallying cry for “Peace, Land, and Bread”

Bolsheviks Come To Power Bolshevik forces storm the Winter Palace in November, 1917. The provisional government is removed. Lenin orders the redistribution of land to the peasants of Russia. In order to establish peace with Germany, the Bolsheviks give up a huge amount of Russian territory. This earns them many enemies.

Russian Civil War The Bolsheviks formed the Red Army Led by Leon Trotsky Everyone else grouped together as the White Army: Mensheviks Capitalists Czarists Non-Lenin Socialists

Results of the Russian Civil War 14,000,000 Russians dead because of fighting and famine Bolsheviks Remained in power Renamed themselves the Communists Karl Marx’s name for a classless society 1922 – Russia is divided into self governing districts and renamed: Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Joseph Stalin Comes to Power Lenin has a stroke Trotsky forced into exile Stalin “Man of Steel” comes to power. His authority becomes absolute.