Chapter 28 Lesson
2: Russia Moved Toward Revolution
by: Jonathan Lin
Key Terms:
Soviet –
councils; soldiers and workers began to gather to form soviets after the czar
was overthrown.
Karl Marx – a
German philosopher who advocated revolution among the working class against the
ruling classes. He also believed in
socialism. His beliefs were the basis of
the Social Democrats in Russia.
Lenin – one of
the leaders of the Social Democrats, he devoted his life to the revolution and
hoped to spark a worldwide Marxist revolution.
He was exiled from Russia
by the czar’s government but returned after the czar’s overthrow.
Bolsheviks – the
Russian word for “majority”. The
Bolsheviks were Lenin’s followers.
Mensheviks – the
Russian word for “minority”. The Mensheviks
were Lenin’s enemies.
Bloody Sunday – the name given to the day
where Russian troops opened fire on a crowd of protestors near the czar’s Winter
Palace.
Duma
– a Russian parliament. These were
instituted and dissolved by the czar numerous times.
Alexandra
– the czar’s wife. She was German
so people thought she was a spy during WWI.
She also placed a lot of trust in Rasputin
which further ruined her reputation. She
had control of Russia
during WWI because her husband was at the battle front.
Rasputin
– a self acclaimed “holy man” who “cured” the czar’s son of hemophilia. He got a lot of influence in the Russian
government because of his good relations with the czarina.
Alexander Kerensky – the
“leader” of the Russian government after WWI.
He was a prominent figure in both the Petrograd Soviet and the Duma.
Notes:
- There
were two radical parties: the Social Revolutionaries and the Social
Democrats.
- The
Social Revolutionaries believed that the revolution would be led by the
peasant class because Russia
had so many peasants
- The
Social Democrats were Marxists and believed that the revolutionary would
be led by the urban working class
- Important Person: Lenin
- Lenin
was a leader of the Social Democrats.
- He
was eager to act and believed that while the working class of Russia
was small and uneducated, they could pull off a successful revolution if
they had a determined group of Marxists to show them the way.
- He
believed that after revolution, a temporary dictatorship would be
instituted to manage Russia
until the people were ready to take over.
- Lenin’s
idea barely passed amoung the SD’s. When it did, Lenin named his party the
Bolsheviks and his political enemies the Mensheviks
- How
the Czar screwed up
- He
resisted change despite a long series of crises.
- The
Russo-Japanese War
- Russia
failed to uphold a series of agreements with Japan
over Korea
and Manchuria.
The Japanese attacked Russia
and Russia
suffered shocking losses
- The
Revolution of 1905
- January 22, 1905, soldiers
opened fire upon protesting workers and their families.
- The
workers were petitioning for better working conditions and more personal
freedom
- Known
as Bloody Sunday
- Caused
a wave of strikes
- The
czar was forced to institute a Russian Parliaments called a Duma.
- Duma was instituted and dissolved several times; it
never had any real power
- How
WWI really screwed it all up for the czar.
- Russia
was not prepared for war
- The
were slaughtered by the million and people were drafted against their
will
- Nicholas
went to the battle front leaving Russia
in czarina Alexandra’s hands
- Bad
things about Alexandra
- She
is German… the enemy is German… the people think she is a spy
- Rasputin is a self claimed “holy man” who “cured”
Alexandra’s son (the heir to the throne) of hemophilia
- In
reality, Rasputin was vulgar, uncivilized, and
sly (probably why he was exiled to Siberia in the
first place). He got a lot
influence in the government because he healed the czarina’s son.
- The
people hated Rasputin and murdered him. (poisoned him and shot him and drowned him… no kill like
overkill eh?)
- Russia
ran out of supplies toward the end of the war. They had no fuel or food and massive
inflation had occurred.
- Strikes
began
- A
Provisional Government Screwed Up Too
- The
czar was forced to abdicate because of the bread riots
- A
provisional government was formed by the Duma
- Radicals
ignored the Duma and the provisional government
because they had had no part in the revolution.
- Soviets
- Workers
and soldiers began gathering soviets which planned protests and
demonstrations
- Every
factory and barracks in Petrograd sent
representatives to the Petrograd soviet.
- The
Petrograd Soviet was more powerful locally than the provisional
government because the workers and soldiers obeyed its commands
- Important
Person: Kerensky
- He
had connection in both the Duma (he was a Duma deputy) and the Petrograd Soviet. Because of this, he led the
provisional government
- The
Provisional Government Screwed Up
- The
continued the war
- No
one wanted to fight anymore
- Soldiers
mass deserted the army
- Germany
snuck Lenin back into Russia
-