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Tsar Nicholas II is Leader
He is in power from late 1894. Time shortened to fit timeline. -
Beginning of the February Revolution
Document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Od4NaiLST64oPiMT8g2CE2aDeqf5joS4H8MqnjiH4q0/edit?usp=sharing On Feb 14th, Russian army commander (Krymov) informed the President of the Duma, Rodzianko, that soldiers had lost faith in the Tsar. The Tsar was unwilling to listen to their concerns. Consequently, the people were increasingly discontent. -
Workers' Strike
On Feb 18th, the Putilov engineering workers’ strike started - they wanted higher wages to afford food. -
Women's Day March
The 23rd was the International Women’s Day march - protests demanding food were organised by socialist groups. -
Developments in the Strikes
By the 24th/25th, Strike numbers increased to 200,000. The police started to show sympathy for the strikers. Nicholas instructed the army to get the strikers off the streets. He was misinterpreting the desperation of the people, and the motivations behind their protests. The army refused, as they were on the side of the strikers. The Tsar instructed the Duma to close, but they refused and established a provisional committee, who demanded the Tsar to abdicate. -
The Petrograd Soviet
On the 1st of March, the Petrograd Soviet, established that same month, issued Soviet Order Number One. This meant that orders of the provisional government were only binding in regards to military affairs if they were approved by the Soviet weakening the government's authority. -
Abdication of the Tsar
On the 2nd, Nicholas returned to Petrograd, but his presence would not save the situation, so he abdicated alongside his son and his brother. Nobody was left in the Romanov family to run the country anymore. 300 years of Romanov rule came to an end. -
Provisional Government
On the 3rd March, The Provisional Committee was renamed the Provisional Government. They had some level of legitimacy, because being in the Duma was an elected position, however not everyone in the country had the right to vote so it was mostly made up of middle class people. A true, democratic election was required. There was now dual authority in Russia; between the Petrograd Soviet and the Provisional Government. -
Lenin Returns to Russia
Lenin had been in exile in Switzerland. He opposed the war, unlike other groups, such as the Mensheviks. The Germans helped him re enter Russia, in hopes that he would insight another revolution, which in turn would lead to Russia pulling out of the war, meaning a German victory. He was consequently suspected, by some, to be a German spy. -
July Days and Lenin flees
From July 3rd to July 6th, there was chaos in Petrograd, when the soldiers and some Bolsheviks tried to overthrow the provisional government. These are known as the July days. The riots and disorder were only restored when Kerensky was able to move loyal troops to crush the rebels. About 400 people were killed and injured and Lennon fled to Finland. -
Kerensky is made Prime Minister
Kerensky was appointed the new prime minister. He had cemented his position as the most powerful politician in Russia. He wanted to continue the war, and wait until the elections before any decisions would be made about ending Russia’s participation, however, there was growing discontent among many Russians, because little seemed to have changed since the abdication of Tsar Nicholas. -
The Kornilov Revolt
He said he would help ensure that there was no socialist-style government in Russia. He decided to march to save the provisional government. There is some evidence to show that Kerensky asked Kornilov to march, but then changed his mind when he realised Kornilov’s intention. To win support and explain his aims, Kornilov issued a manifesto, attacking the Bolsheviks in the Soviet, asking for the war to be continued and calling for the meeting of a Constituent Assembly. -
Trotsky is elected Chairman of the Petrograd Soviet
The Bolsheviks secured control of the Petrograd Soviet. Trotsky was elected as its leader, and this became the key to success. In October, he became the dominant member of the three party MRC of the Soviet. This provided a useful screen for his secret preparations. The MRC, in theory, controlled 20,000 red guards, 60,000 Baltic sailors and the 150,000 soldiers of the Petrograd Garrison. -
Lenin Returns to Petrograd (Again)
Lenin returned to Petrograd on the 7th of October, and immediately went into hiding. On the 10th, he persuaded the Bolshevik Central committee to agree, in principle, to an uprising, but two influential leaders - Zinoviev and Kamenev - voiced strong objections. These objections were published in a newspaper, alerting Kerensky to the Bolshevik threat. -
The Bolshevik Revolution
The Bolshevik party seized power in October 1917, with very little opposition. The provisional government was removed with ease, and Lenin established a government based on the ideas of Karl Marx. Although the Bolshevik party had been quite insignificant before 1905, membership began to grow slowly. The leading Bolsheviks were determined and dedicated, and never lost sight of their goal – a revolution that would bring power to the working classes. -
Sovnarkom is Established
Lenin’s government, which was set up in October/November 1917, was called Sovnarkom (or the Council of People's Commissars). Soviets across Russia Joined the revolution and took control of most towns and cities. Nearly all of Russia was in Soviet hands by the end of 1917, however this did not mean that Lenin and the Bolsheviks had total control, since not all the Soviets were run by the Bolsheviks. In the countryside, many supported the SRs. -
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Lenin is Leader
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Constituent Assembly Election
The Constituent Assembly's November elections were the first free elections in Russian history. The SRs gained more seats than all the other parties put together. Lenin was concerned that the Bolsheviks had only gained a quarter of the votes, primarily from the working-class of the cities. He was also concerned that some of the nationalities, such as Finns and Estonians, were trying to break away, and he wanted to avoid the disintegration of Russia. -
Peace Talks Begin
Peace talks with Germany began in early December, 1917, and Trotsky was sent as Russia's representative. Talks were held at Brest-Litovsk near the German border. Trotsky and his negotiating team tried to prolong the talks as long as possible, because they believed that workers in central Europe were on the brink of revolution. When this revolution came, the war would end, and then Germany and Russia would make fair peace. -
Constituent Assembly Meets
Lenin wrote an article for the Bolshevik newspaper, Pravda, in which he stated that because there were Soviets in Russia, there was no need for the constituent assembly. Nevertheless, the assembly met on the 18th of January. It drew up a new constitution for Russia. The Bolsheviks and left-wing SRs proposed that the power of the assembly be limited. When the proposal was defeated, Lenin made the decision to dissolve the assembly. -
The Dissolving of the Assembly
Less than 24 hours after the meeting, Lenin gave the order to dissolve it. The Bolshevik Red Guards killed and wounded more than 100 people who demonstrated outside of the palace in support of the assembly. Two leaders of the cadets were killed in a hospital. The Red Guards then prevented the elected deputies from entering the assembly, and closed it down permanently. -
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
As the German army advanced into Russia in February 1918, Lenin’s hand was forced and he decided to make peace. The terms of the treaty were the harshest possible for Russia, as they had to surrender huge tracts of land from the Black Sea to the Baltic, and had to pay huge reparations amounting in the billions of roubles. The impact on Russia’s economy would be immense and felt across the country. Russia could not afford to fight back. -
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Russian Civil War
[1918 - 1921, ignore dates] There were many reasons why the Bolsheviks faced opposition from a variety of groups following their takeover in October 1917 this culminated in a Civil War that lasted from 1918 to 1921. One of the main reasons was the economic and social hardship, but there was also opposition to the reforms that were introduced by the Bolsheviks, as well as the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly and the signing of the treaty of Brest-Litovsk. -
Tsar Nicholas is Killed
A Bolshevik newspaper lied about the death of the Tsar, and that his family had been sent to a safe place. The entire royal family had been murdered. The Bolsheviks were afraid to acknowledge this in case it lost them sympathy. After the Tsar’s abdication, he and his family had been allowed to live at a Royal Palace. However, this was close to Petrograd, and the PG was afraid the royal family was so unpopular that they'd be attacked by locals. They were then moved to Tobolsk, Siberia. -
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Red Terror
The Cheka was used to remove opponents of the Bolshevik regime, and to shoot army deserters. Members of other political parties were arrested and removed from political activities. Following on from an attempted assassination of Lenin in 1918, the Red Terror began, in which those suspected of working against the revolution were arrested, tortured and executed. Many victims were peasants and workers, as well as princes, priests, merchants, traders and even children. -
Kronstadt Mutiny
There was a rebellion of sailors at the naval base of Kronstadt against the Bolshevik government. Thousands protested at events in Russia, and objected to the way the communist party was taking power away from the Soviets. They believed new elections should be held, and freedom of speech should be granted to workers and peasants, alongside freedom of assembly and trade unions, as well as peasants’ associations. They said all political prisoners belonging to socialist parties should be set free. -
The NEP
The NEP replaced war communism, and was introduced in March, following the Kronstadt mutiny. It was primarily intended to meet Russia’s urgent need for food. The peasants had to be persuaded to produce enough food, as force had not worked. Lenin felt that the new policy would give Russia some breathing space after a period of almost 8 years’ war. There were some hard-line communists who felt they were betraying the revolution by reverting back to capitalism. The NEP faded out from 1928-1931. -
Lenin's Death
On 25.05.22 Lenin had a stroke leaving him partially paralysed and temporarily unable to speak. This meant he could not take an active role in the government for some months. During the summer of 1922, Russia was ruled by a group of the leading Bolsheviks; Stalin, Zinoviev and Kamenev. He suffered a second stroke on the 15.12.22 and the third on the 09.03.23. This resulted in an almost complete loss of speech. He died in January '24, and had stopped contributing to Russian politics for a while. -
Stalin Removes Threats to his Succession
Stalin worked with Zinoviev and Kamenev, and, in 1925, they forced Trotsky to resign as Commissar of War. In 1926, Stalin worked with Bukharin against Zinoviev, Kamenev and Trotsky who, in 1927, were all expelled from the party. In 1929, Bukharin was pressured to resign, and during the purges he was executed.
Tomsky and Rykov were both dismissed and removed from the party, and Tomsky eventually committed suicide in 1936. Rykov was executed during the purges. -
The Grain Crisis 1927-8
There was a war scare in 1927 and this caused some peasants to hoard grain. Stalin viewed this as an attempt to force up the price of grain and sabotage the work of the Bolsheviks. He wanted to ensure adequate supplies for the workers in the cities. He stated that kulaks had to produce specific quotas of grain for 1928. The kulaks reduced production because they would not receive much money. The crisis convinced Stalin to tighten control on kulaks and collectivise agriculture. -
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Stalin is Leader
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Five Year Plans Introduced
The Five-Year Plans aimed to turn the USSR into an industrial power in a very short time, and those who criticised this pace were brushed off by Stalin. He stated that ‘those who lag behind are beaten’. Stalin’s motivation for rapid industrialisation was mainly his fear of invasion by nearby capitalist countries. Only a strong industrial economy could provide the wealth and modern weapons required to survive such an attack -
The First Five Year Plan
The first plan focused on heavy industry, such as coal, steel and iron. Newer industries, such as electricity, motor vehicles and chemicals, were also targeted, however consumer industries were neglected as they were not the priority. Newer factories and industrial centres were situated in eastern areas of the USSR, such as Kazakhstan. This kept them away from attacks by the West. Huge towns and cities were built from scratch, such as Magnitogorsk, which concentrated on iron and steel. -
The Stakhanovite Movement
Alexei Stakhanov, a miner, claimed that he had shifted 102 tonnes of coal in one night, - almost 15x the average amount per shift. He had two helpers who removed the coal while he worked, but the orchestrated plan encouraged others in the to work harder. ‘Shock brigades’ were formed in attempts to copy Stakhanov’s success. The Stakhanovites were rewarded with benefits, which attracted other workers. The campaign was dropped in the 1930s after coworkers became violent towards Stakhanovites. -
The Second Five Year Plan
At first, the second plan set targets for the increased production of consumer goods. Some of the mistakes of the first plan, such as overstating targets, were avoided. Rationing ended and work strikes were banned. This plan made use of technical expertise. There was huge growth in the coal and chemical industries. Improvements were made in transport, electricity and mineral mining, but oil production remained disappointing. The production of armaments trebled as the fear of war increased. -
The Show Trials
Stalin began by purging the opposition he had within the Communist Party, especially the ‘Old Bolsheviks’, such as Kamenev and Zinoviev. Along with 14 others, they were accused of organising Kirov’s murder and plotting to assassinate Stalin. Torture methods include sleep deprivation, forced standing and physical beatings. Victims confessed to their "guilt", making Stalin appear justified in his purging of the party. People confessed due to being threatened, or having their families threatened. -
The New Constitution of 1936
The new constitution was made to convince the world that the USSR was a free society. The USSR was now composed of 11 Socialist republics, and the old Congress of the Soviets became the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. It had two chambers; the Soviet of the Union and the Soviet of Nationalities. The Communist party kept control on the central government and the government of each Republic. Stalin held the posts of prime minister, the General Secretary, and Chairman of the Party’s Politburo. -
The Third Five-Year Plan
The third plan was launched in 1938, but was abandoned when Germany invaded the USSR in 1941. It concentrated on the production of household goods and luxury items, such as bicycles and radios. Heavy industry became the priority, once again, as war loomed into focus. Although armaments were produced in great numbers, there were issues in the steel and oil industries. -
Trotsky is Killed
In 1929, Trotsky was expelled from the USSR. In 1937, he settled in Mexico and he began writing articles attacking Stalin. In 1940, Trotsky was assassinated by a hitman. Now, anyone threatening Stalin’s succession of Lenin from the left or right wing was either dead or removed from the party, which meant Stalin was able to become the leader in 1928.