Why Were There Two Revolutions In Russia In 1917

During the first revolution the political issues were a large factor for it to happen. With the Tsar leaving the country to command the army, the Tsarina was left in charge. This was a poor decision at first because the Tsarina was German and many people saw her as either a spy for Germany or having split allegiances so would make poor decisions and not consider what was best for Russia. The government became very unstable with the Tsarina in charge as she continually kept changing the ministers especially if they did not want to make decisions directed by the ‘Man of God’. On top of this the Tsarina took advice from a peasant called Rasputin, who was first Tsars Nicholas II’s sons doctor to try and cure his haemophilia. Rasputin was a advisor to the Tsarina and many speculated

Within a few days in February 1917, Tsarist Russia came to an end. The Romanov family, who had ruled Russia since the 17th century, were overthrown and the monarchy crumbled. Traditional historian Bernard Pares argues that incompetent ministers and weaknesses of Nicholas II is to blame. While traditionalist historian Edmund Walsh blames the incompetence of the Tsarina and her mysticism beliefs. There are however many factors contributing to the Russian revolution of February 1917, such as: World War 1, political and economic failures. Therefore this essay will consider the impact of each factor in order to assess whether the winter of 1916-17 was the final straw for the people of Russia.

When the Provisional Government came into power Russia was in a state of major unrest. Russia had just overthrown the Tsarist regime, which had been in place for three hundred years and there were multiple groups who wanted to take power for themselves such as Lenin's Bolsheviks, they were fighting in an endless war and losing terribly, peasants where rebelling in the countryside and the people were angered over food shortages. On top of all these problems the Provisional Government was made up of members of the Duma who had no experience actually being in charge or having power over anything let alone the biggest and most culturally diverse country in the world. All these factors played a role in the downfall of the Provisional Government but overall it was the Provisional Government who played the biggest part in their own failure.

Therefore, morale in Russia was not a reason why there was an outbreak of revolution in 1917. Nevertheless, the few military successes could not make up for the shocking casualty list revealed later on in wartime. Also, when the economic and military problems arose they could have been tolerable for the general public if they were encouraged by the people at the top such as the Tsar but no leadership was shown. Though this was a problem in Russia the morale in Russia was not too bad although people did begin to focus more on taking care of themselves because of the effects of the war on everyday life. On the other hand, the fact that central leadership was not being provided to the Russian public, criticisms began to be pointed directly at the Tsar. Nicholas failed in being commander-in-chief of the Russian armed services. He did not encourage war effort and did not prove to be the appropriate representative for the Russian people. In addition, the fact that he took on this important role meant that he was responsible for the wars consequences and the survival of Tsardom depended on military success. Due to the lack of success, Nicholas II was blamed and not his generals. This was a reason for the revolution in February 1917 to happen as it appeared to the citizens of Russia that they did not have a strong leader, also the tsarist system’s claim to the loyalty of the Russian people had been forfeited thus

n March 2nd 1917, the rule of a 300-year-old dynasty was laid to rest as Tsar Nicholas II signed his warrant for abdication, officially sanctioning the end of the Romanov Dynasty. The immediate cause permitting this action was the success of the February Revolution however; this event evolved because of several internal and external factors, both long and short term in nature. Predominant among all we recognise the perpetuation of an outdated system of rule, the repercussions of rapid industrialisation, emerging doctrines of liberalism, political inflexibility and the vices imposed by the First World War. These factors progressively embellished societal discontent among the Russian people and inexorably stimulated the insurrection of the February Revolution.

In 1917, the year of the Russian Revolution, there were two revolutions that took place to ensure good change in Russia. The first of the revolutions was the March revolution, the purpose of it was to overtake the imperial government and the second named the November revolution; which placed the Bolsheviks in power. The Russian Revolution took place during a difficult time in Russia. These distresses began before World War I and lasted up until the 1930's. Russia's population was built up of mostly poor, starving, unfortunate peasants at this point; caused by the prevalent and growing civil unrest, as well as dramatic food shortages which led to a huge rebellion against the present government. “World War I provided the catalyst for revolution in Russia .” Although at first it raised national pride

The fall of the Romanov Dynasty in 1914 proved that the Tsar could not handle the problems of Russia. Ironically, he would have been ideal as a constitutional monarch, but was adamant against the idea. As the First World War started Russia’s problems arises, from short-term and long-term causes. The war brought back inflation which led to “demonstrations over food shortages combined with workers’ grievances,” (Hosking, 2012, p. 91) thus this destroyed Nicholas’s image as Father of Russia. Military became ineffective as the transport system was not adequate, thus leading to food supplies decreasing in key cities such as Petrograd. Historians believe the impacts of the First World War led to Russian society becoming unstable and was ultimately the main reason of the downfall of the Tsar. However other factors, such as the Tsarina placing large amounts of trust into Rasputin who was notorious for his reputation as an alcoholic and a womanizer (Westwood, 2002, p. 215) and the role of the revolutionaries due to Lenin promising peace, land and bread, eventually leading to the growth of the Bolsheviks Party. Although, it can most rightfully be deemed that the impact of the war was the main reason for the fall of Tsar Nicholas II in 1917.

Russia struggled to provide food for its populations. Citizens took control into their own hands, Ludovic Naudeau wrote in October 1917, “One morning recently I was awakened by the cries of my neighbor in the next room. His boots had been stolen. The same day the manager of a newspaper office told me that he had been robbed six of pairs of pantaloons, … “Four hundred thefts every night!” he cried; that is the average for the last two weeks,”(One Aspect of Bolshevist Liberty). Russia could not even uphold itself because the economy was not successful compared to other countries. This led people to desire a change in the government; therefore this led to the Russian Revolution. People went to different maters to get what they wanted such as stealing since they were not getting the aid that they needed and they needed financial support. This caused them to protest against their government because many people from the lower class could not take care of their families. This cause led to a greater impact compared to Tsarist weak authority.

The Russian Revolution actually has two important parts to it the February Revolution (March 1917) and the October Revolution (November 1917). The February Revolution, which took place in modern day St. Petersburg, was lethal to the royal government of Russia. It began with the bread, it was not like they did not have the supplies for the population, “the problem was the breakdown of the transport system” (Figes 68). The February Revolution was also largely caused by the ineffectiveness of the Russian military in World War One and the failure of the Russian empire throughout the last couple decades. The people of Russia were ashamed of the military throwing away their lives and having to eat sparingly to survive the winter. Peasants were so poor they could barely afford a piece of bread for a week. Mass demonstrations were held in the squares and violence took to the streets. People ambushed the royal guards in front of the palace and they were shot down by the insignificant force left to guard the capital. The revolution was largely leaderless as Russian people just wanted food

It is clear that a lot of people did not want to put up with the constant down spiralling because of the autocracy, many people decided to rise against the situation. These people were split between the reformers and a smaller group of revolutionaries. The reformers, or Liberals, wanted to modernise Russia gradually.They wanted free elections, more education for the people and no censorship. The revolutionaries, on the other hand, wanted to throw out the whole tsarist system and build a different one.Revolutionaries were the ones waiting for the perfect moment to strike the match since the autocratic regime had caused a long term fatigue in the society - the long term situation let them was highly in favour of this group in terms of revolution, only a slight push to the angered people was needed to proceed.

The Russian Revolution of 1917 did not just suddenly happen overnight, just as there was no main reason why it happened. The Revolution was more like a virus or bad bacteria. At first you barely notice it, even though you know it is there, but soon it starts to multiply and take over your body and before you know it you have been diagnosed with a terminal illness. There are about 4 or 5 significant reasons why there was the revolution of 1917, with the Russian Tsar Nicolas II to be the blame for almost all of them.

Many leaders in the provisional government are related to Nicholas. The government actually had no power to control the country. People still faced severe poverty, and did not get bread and peace which are the two things they demand. Therefore, the Bolsheviks and the workers’ Soviet overturned the provisional government and established Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR). This revolution is called the October Revolution. The revolution completely overthrows absolute monarchy system in Russia and create the way for the establishment of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

The Russian Revolutions of 1917 There were two revolutions that occurred in Russia in 1917. The first one, in February, overthrew the Russian monarchy. The second one, in October, created the world’s first Communist state. The Russian revolutions of 1917 involved a series of uprisings by workers and peasants throughout the country and by soldiers, who were predominantly of peasant origin, in the Russian army.

In 1905, the social and economic tensions building up within Russia boiled over into Revolution. It was described by Lenin as the “Great Dress Rehearsal” for the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 and may give us clues as to why the 1917 revolution started. The suggestion that Tsar Nicholas II and his actions were to blame for this revolution is debatable and there are many factors such as the repressive Tsarist system, the growth of opposition from the time of Alexander II and the defeat in the war with Japan to consider. These events can be separated into short and long term effects on the revolution. Bloody Sunday and defeat to Japan would be short term effects whereas the

In 1905 and 1917 Russia was tormented by chaotic revolutions. The workers and the intelligentsia had arrived at the point of hating the autocracy because they could no longer endure the suffering, hunger and repression that the tsarist policies brought with them. Years later Lenin referred to the revolution of 1905 as a “dress rehearsal for the October Revolution” of 1917. In 1905 tsardom nearly fell. Nicholas II succeeded in remaining in power, stabilizing the situation, only thanks to various concessions. However, his continuing to rule harshly and unwisely brought him to be forced to abdicate in the February of 1917, signing the end of the Russian monarchy.