The revolution in the Russian empire in 1917, in which the Russian monarchy

(Czarist regime) was overthrown resulting in the formation of the world’s

first communist government.

Russia’ Romanov dynasty had lasted 300 years but Nicholas II, who

ascended the throne in 1894, turned out to be the last Czar of Russia.

How did such an ancient monarchy fall so quickly in 1917?

Rewind -1905

Czar Nicholas II The Last Czar of Russia

•Descendant of the Russian Romanovs. Absolute ruler with unlimited powers-Ruled alone and unquestioned.•Weak personality.•Ignored the needs of his people.•Czarina Alexandra, wife of Nicholas II was German.•Both were very unpopular.

•Majority of the Russians were peasants or factory workers. •Most peasants did not own the land they farmed.•Factory workers had to endure long hours, low pay, and horrible working conditions. •About 80% of Russians were poor.

•.

• Economy was based on agriculture.• Russia was not as industrialized as the rest of Europe.• Russia’s war with Japan

had devastated Russia’s economy.• Food prices went up, but the

wages remained the same.• Many people were starving.

Sunday, 22nd January, 1905

On a Sunday afternoon, a large group of over 200,000 unarmed workers, their families, and supporters along with Father Gapon, a Russian priest led a peaceful demonstration in St. Petersburg.

• Demonstrators wanted to present a petition to the Czar regarding better working conditions, more wages, and freedom.

• The unarmed demonstrators were shot by the Czar's troops.

Many innocent people were killed.

• Bloody Sunday sparked several protests and strikes by the Russian people.

• The Czar was forced to create the Duma-the Russian Parliament.

• Nothing really changed, Nicholas kept power and if members of the Duma disagreed with the Czar they were sent away…

The First World War proved to be the last straw for the Czar’s government.•Millions of Russian troops were getting killed.•Soldiers were not well prepared with proper weapons, or supplies.•. Nicholas left the government in the hands of his wife, the Czarina, and the monk, Rasputin.

Overview of Causes

THE END OF RUSSIAN AUTOCRACY

oThree centuries of Romanov Dynastic rule comes to an end. Czar Nicholas II abdicates his throne.

THE RISE OF COMMUNISM

Lenin leads the Bolsheviks to power.

February 1917 Revolution October 1917 Revolution

• On February 28, 1917, Czar Nicholas is forced to abdicate (give up) the throne.

• A provisional (temporary) government takes over.

• THE PROBLEM:• Provisional government

supports the war.• Peasants are still without

land.

• Bolsheviks gain support from peasants with promise of land.• Led by Lenin with slogans such as “Peace, Land, Bread!”, the Bolsheviks take over the provisional government.

The Bolshevik Party will be later named The Russian Communist Party.

“Peace, Land, Bread!” “All power to the Soviets!”

In 1918, Lenin officially pulls Russia out of WWI.

Note: Russia stopped fighting in1917

In 1918 Bolsheviks order the deaths of Nicholas II and his family.

Russia shifts from the rule of one (Czarist Regime) to a rule of a few (Bolsheviks).

• Communism is the theory that all people should be

equal and there should be no classes. Everyone

should work for the good of the country and wealth

would be equally shared amongst all citizens.

In the following years after the two revolutions, the Bolsheviks or the ‘Reds’ defeat the Mensheviks or the ‘Whites’ in a civil war . By 1923 all areas of Russia came under communist control and is renamed the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

CIVIL WAR

In 1926, a few years after the death of Lenin the country comes under the control of dictator Joseph Stalin.

In the years to come, the USSR under Joseph Stalin emerges as the world’s

leading superpower.

1) A major cause of the Russian Revolution of 1917 was theA.German defeat in WWI.B.marriage of Czar Nicholas II to a German princess.C.existence of sharp economic differences between social classes.D.Russian victory in the Russo-Japanese War.

• • Led the Russians in a second revolution (1917)• • Promised “Peace, Land, and Bread”• • Redistributed land to the peasants.

2) Which leader is being described by these statements?

A.Czar Nicholas IIB.Vladimir I. LeninC.Nikita Khrushchev D.Mikhail Gorbachev

 

•“Czar Abdicates! Provisional Government Formed”

•“Peasants Promised ‘Peace, Land, and Bread’”

3) Which event is the focus of these headlines?

A.Bloody Sunday

B.October Revolution

C.February Revolution

D.Both B and C.

4) In the view of this cartoonist, Russia under Lenin’s rule was characterized byA.a continuation of traditional lifeB.the introduction of capitalismC.support for a constitutional monarchyD.rejection of the czarist system

A. World War I created conditions within Russia that helped trigger a revolution

B. World War I postponed the Russian Revolution by restoring confidence in the Czar

C. the Russian Revolution inspired the Russian people to win World War I

D. World War I gave the Czar’s army the needed experience to suppress the Russian Revolution 

 

•A) the Bolsheviks•B) the Duma•C) the Cheka•D) the Whites

A. the DumaB. the Winter PalaceC. the House of WindsorD. Petrograd

A.Nicholas IIB.LeninC.StalinD.Rasputin

A. WWIB. Russo-Japanese WarC. WWIID. Bloody Sunday

A. October RevolutionB. February RevolutionC. Bloody MondayD. Bloody Sunday