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AQA A Level Depth Study Notes - Russia: The October 1917 Revolution £2.99
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AQA A Level Depth Study Notes - Russia: The October 1917 Revolution
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Extremely high quality and detailed notes for the AQA History Depth Study Russia. Notes cover: - The October Revolution Events of October 1917 - Weaknesses of the Provisional Government - Strengths of the Bolsheviks

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  • March 16, 2022
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The October Revolution

CAUSES
 14 Sept -> 9 day ‘Democratic Congress’ opened in Petrograd by the PG (1600 delegates)
o Plan = for PG to introduce a programme of revolutionary democracy for new gov
that would be voted in by the Constituent Assembly
o “a last-ditch attempt to build unity” between RW establishment, liberals + the LW in
Soviet…. but “few held any hope of success”
 Kerensky tired + ill --- in comparison --- Trotsky = “the king of the agitators”
 Congress was thwarted by Bolsheviks – “…an extremely hostile Bolshevik response…
culminating in a mass walk out”
 Many (including the British Ambassador) believed that a Bolshevik coup was imminent
Causes:
1. Weakness of PG + WW1 defeat
2. Political manoeuvres of Bolsheviks under Lenin + Trotsky All created an EXPLOSIVE
3. Deteriorating economic situation MIX
4. Resentment of soldiers, peasants + workers

Events of October 1917

Reasons why Lenin though the time was right for a Bolshevik rev:
1. Bolsheviks dominated both the Petrograd + Moscow soviets as well as other soviets
2. PG = v weak; Kerensky’s credibility reduced after Kornilov coup
3. Bolsheviks had Red Guards, armed by Kerensky during K coup
After MRC established 16th Oct, 15/18 Petrograd garrisons declared allegiance to MRC not PG

KEY CHRONOLOGY:
24th October:
 Throughout night, 5,000 sailors + soldiers from Krondstadt moved into Petrograd + Red
Guard seized key positions in city
 Lenin in hiding until evening – travelled to Smolny to take charge of insurrection
25th October
 By morning further 3,000 pro-Bolshevik troops arrived in city
 Kerensky fled disguised as nurse in car borrowed from American Embassy
 Lenin said: ‘The Provisional Government is no more, power has passed to soviets’
Night 25th/ 26th October
 Aurora warship fired blank round at Winter Palace -> signalled start of Bolshevik attack
 By 2 am, 26th, remaining members of PG captured in Winter P -> only 6 died in assault -> few
guards left at Palace – mainly laid down weapons + surrendered

27th October:
 Congress agreed to Lenin’s Decree on Land
o These were opposed by Mensheviks + LW Social Revolutionaries
 Central Executive Committee set up: 101 members 62 = B, 29 = LW SRs
 ‘Soviet of People’s Commissars’ (Sovnarkom) created to run gov – only Bolsheviks as LW SRs
refused to join (Lenin = chairman)
o 7 SRs latter joined in Nov
o Reluctant to share power + side-lined the Petrograd Soviet
 Other resolutions adopted -> transfer of power in provinces to local soviets, freeing of those
arrested for political action by PG, the abolition of death penalty at front + immediate arrest
of Kerensky

, WEAKNESSES OF THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT STRENGTHS OF THE BOLSHEVIKS

Political Position Political manoeuvres
 Essentially liberal – members had supported  Tactful retreat and compromise
constitutional monarchy, meant there were already  Lenin would threaten resignation + appeals to the
unpopular with many rank and file in attempt to persuade members of
 Members – all old industrialists + landowning the Bolsheviks to support an immediate revolution
class, would never have support of working-class  Use of slogan e.g. ‘peace, bread, land’
revolutionaries who had fought for abdication of
Tsar
 Temporary -> not an established government, just
looking to set up constituent assembly -> never
solved big problems
 Order No. 1 (passed by Soviets) meant they had
very little order an urgent policies couldn’t be
passed
Policies Policies
 Members were generally more revolutionary  Wanted to stop the war
 Didn’t solve 2 major problems –> land hunger and  Wouldn’t support unpopular Provisional
the war Government
 Allowed Bolsheviks to seize initiative by insisting  Would transfer all power to popular soviets
only Constituent Assembly could make important  Would re-allocate land to peasants by local
decisions -> tied hands for too long soviet
 Released all radicals (Bolsheviks, SRs, Mensheviks)  Sort hunger problem -> good slogans
 Give proletariat the power
Kerensky’s mistakes Lenin and Trotsky as leaders
 He delayed elections of Constituent Assembly  Lenin = skilful orator, had strong skills of
 Arrogant -> lived in Alexander III’s rooms in persuasion
Winter Palace + had red flag raised up and down  Strong – wouldn’t give in
as he went in + out of palace  Gave people what they wanted
 Reputation among enemies as a Napoleon figure
 Inflexible -> insisted on continuing war  Trotsky = more rational, wanted to wait until
 Kerensky offensive -> lost faith of officers + Congress of Soviets to try and get support from
soldiers all socialist parties before revolution
 Appointed Kornilov as Commander-in-chief -> v  Described as ‘king of the agitators’ – spread that
right wing general who wanted to try and seize coup was imminent
power  Chair of Petrograd Soviet – good leader, main
 July days – didn’t take harsh enough measures organiser of revolution
against Bolsheviks ‘the Bolshevik putsch could have been prevented by a
pair of bullets’ (Kotkin)
WW1 defeat Pressure from workers and peasants

 7m Russians killed, wounded or captured by end  Dealt with them by promising policies that
of 1916 -> did not end war soon enough because would benefit them e.g. re-allocating land and
they were too reliant on French loans, lost a lot getting rid of Prov Gov
of support
 Kerensky offensive lost a lot of morale + caused
a lot of soldier to desert


The Extent of the Oct/Nov Revolution

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