1. Ch. 14 – Revolution and Nationalism
I. Revolutions in Russia
Before 1917 Revolution:
- Decades of unrest and revolts against oppressive Czars
- Czar Alexander II assassinated in 1881 by radicals demanding reform
A. Czars Resist Change
Alexander III – Wanted to crush reformists and
radicals who killed his father
Autocracy – form of gov’t where one person has
total power – AIII wanted to keep it that way
- Tried to create uniform Russian culture by
oppressing all non-Russian peoples in the empire
-AIII targeted Jews with pogroms – gov’t – approved
attacks against Jews

2. B. Russia Industrializes
– # of Russian factories doubled, but it was still far behind
- Czar Nicholas II – ramped up industrialization in the 1890’s – it was
effective, but caused problems:
- Poor working conditions, low wages, child labor
- gov’t outlawed trade unions
- Angry workers organized strikes
- Revolutionary groups formed
and competed for power

3. Revolutionary Groups:
Marxists – agreed w/ views in Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto, 1848:
- Believed the proletariat – working class - would overthrow Czar and
rule the country as a “dictatorship of the the proletariat”
Marxists split into 2 groups:
- Mensheviks – moderates who wanted a broad-based
popular revolt that would come gradually
- Bolsheviks – wanted a small group of radicals in
charge of immediate revolt
“Workers of the world, unite! You have noting to lose
but your chains!” – Karl Marx, The Communist Manifesto

4. Lenin - Born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov – changed his name to Lenin
- Leader of the Bolsheviks, fled Russia before WWI to escape arrest
- Charismatic, great organizer, ruthless

5. C. Crises at Home and Abroad
1. Russo-Japanese War: fought over control of Korea & Manchuria
- Japan’s battle victories led to unrest & revolt in Russia
2. Bloody Sunday: The Revolution of 1905
- 200,000 workers on a peace march to the Czar’s Winter Palace to
request better working conditions and democratic reforms
- Czar’s troops opened fire, 1,000 wounded, hundreds killed
- Riots & strikes broke out to protest the shootings
- Czar allows formation of the Duma – an elected parliament
3. World War I:
- Russia – major defeats due to bad leadership, lack of industry
- Rasputin- peasant-healer- gained favor w Czarina & made disastrous
Decisions in Czar’s absence – eventually killed by nobles
- Soldiers deserted, mutinied, ignored orders due to massive losses
- Civilians rioted over food & fuel shortages

6. Bloody Sunday, 1905
Rasputin

7. D. The March Revolution
- Riots & strikes in the capital, St. Petersburg (Petrograd), soldiers shoot
protesters at first, then join them
- Czar abdicates – formally resigns – due to revolts
Provisional Gov’t – temporary gov’t led by Alexander Kerensky continued
the war effort, lost support of soldiers and civilians
Soviets – local councils of peasants, workers, and soldiers- gained power,
grew more radical
Lenin Returns – Germans helped Lenin return to Russia through Germany,
Hoping he would cause strife & hurt Russia’s war effort

8. Bolsheviks (Red Army) VS White Army (everybody else)
E. The Bolshevik Revolution
- Lenin & Bolsheviks took control of Petrograd Soviet, called for
“All power to the Soviets!” AND “Land, Peace, and Bread!”
- Workers stormed the Winter Palace, overthrew the Provisional Gov’t
- Lenin & Bolsheviks signed treaty of Brest-Litovsk w/ Germany – surrendered
large part of Russia’s territory – they don’t get it back
- Russians furious w/ Bolsheviks over treaty, murder of royal family
Russian Civil War:
Bolsheviks (Red Army) VS White Army (everybody else)
- Czarists – wanted return of Czarist rule
- Republicans – wanted democracy
- Socialists – wanted socialism, not Bolshevism
- Western nations, including US, sent troops
Leon Trotsky – Red Army commander, trounced the White Army

9. G. Stalin Becomes Dictator
F. Lenin Restores Order
- Civil War killed 14 million Russians, devastated the economy
- New Economic Policy – Lenin allowed peasants to sell excess crops & keep
the $, and allowed small private farms businesses to operate – gov’t kept
control of major industries and banks
- To prevent nationalist uprisings, Lenin divided the territory into several
self-governing republics & named the nation the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics (USSR) to honor the soviet groups which sparked the revolt
G. Stalin Becomes Dictator
- Lenin had a stroke in 1922, died in 1924
- Trotsky and Joseph Stalin vied for control
- Stalin was a Bolshevik hit-man, became a dangerous leader in
Communist party
- Lenin wanted Trotsky to succeed him, but Stalin drove Trotsky into exile