Russian Revolutions: February & October

The Russian Revolution: From Tsarist Autocracy to the USSR

Tsarist Autocracy

In the Tsarist empire, the Tsar's authority was absolute. Its economy was the most backward in Europe. Political power was entirely in the hands of the government, ruling by decree without a constitution or parliament. A vast bureaucracy, a powerful Orthodox Church, and the army dominated the empire. Land ownership was concentrated in the hands of the privileged aristocracy, and the peasant population was subjected to a near-feudal system.

Some parts of the empire experienced industrial development driven by foreign capital, leading to the emergence of an industrial proletariat. These workers, influenced by Marxist ideas, founded the Russian Social Democratic Party, which later split into the Mensheviks and the Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks, led by Lenin, aimed for a socialist revolution in Russia.

The February Revolution

World War I triggered a revolutionary outbreak in Russia. The country was ill-prepared for a prolonged war, leading to military setbacks, a decline in agricultural production, and the diversion of economic resources to the war effort. This caused widespread unrest among workers and peasants, discrediting Tsar Nicholas II, who proved incapable of implementing necessary changes.

The population organized into Soviets, demanding the Tsar's withdrawal from the war and the end of autocracy. Political opposition also called for the Tsar's abdication.

The Fall of Tsarism

In February 1917, a revolution in St. Petersburg led to the downfall of the Tsarist regime. Power transitioned to a Provisional Government led by Kerensky, supported by liberal parties in the Duma. Russia became a democratic republic.

The October Revolution

Slow land reforms and Russia's continued involvement in the war fueled popular dissatisfaction. The Bolsheviks capitalized on this, promising to establish socialism. They advocated for a government of workers' and peasants' soviets, promising peace, land redistribution, worker control of factories, and nationalization of banks.

On October 25th (by the Julian calendar), within ten days, the Bolsheviks seized power. Lenin established a worker's government. The first revolutionary measures included land distribution among peasants and worker committees taking control of factories. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed with Germany, ending Russia's participation in World War I.

Stalin's USSR

The Soviet government faced a civil war. A faction of the former Tsarist army formed the White Army. The Bolsheviks responded by creating the Red Army, led by Leon Trotsky. The country suffered widespread poverty, and famine claimed the lives of five million people.

The Bolshevik Party was renamed the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) and became the sole source of power. In 1922, the USSR was established as a federal state encompassing the former Tsarist empire. The USSR was governed by a parliament, but the CPSU controlled all political life. It was a totalitarian system where the state and party were completely intertwined, and institutions were not democratically elected. This new political system was justified by the concept of the "dictatorship of the proletariat," with the Communist Party holding power.