The Russian Revolution refers to two linked upheavals in 1917 that ended over three centuries of Romanov rule and reshaped twentieth-century geopolitics. The February Revolution (March in the Gregorian calendar) was triggered by wartime food shortages, military defeats in World War I, and mass strikes in Petrograd. It forced the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II on 2/15 March 1917 and produced a dual-power arrangement between a liberal Provisional Government led successively by Prince Lvov and Alexander Kerensky, and the Petrograd Soviet of workers' and soldiers' deputies.
The October Revolution (7 November Gregorian) saw the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, led by Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky, seize key installations in Petrograd and depose the Provisional Government. The new Council of People's Commissars issued the Decree on Peace and Decree on Land, nationalised industry, and in March 1918 signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with the Central Powers, ceding large territories to exit World War I.
The seizure of power ignited the Russian Civil War (1918–1922) between the Bolshevik "Reds" and a fragmented coalition of "Whites" supported by Allied expeditionary forces from Britain, France, the United States, and Japan. Victory by the Reds led to the formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in December 1922.
For IR and Model UN purposes, the revolution is foundational to several enduring themes:
- The emergence of Marxism-Leninism as a state ideology and rival to liberal capitalism.
- The principle of self-determination as wielded by both Lenin and Woodrow Wilson, shaping post-WWI settlements.
- The origins of Soviet diplomacy, including the Comintern (founded 1919) and later the Cold War order.
- Debates over revolutionary legitimacy, recognition of new regimes, and great-power intervention in civil conflicts.
The dates are often cited in both Julian ("Old Style") and Gregorian calendars because Russia only adopted the latter in February 1918.
Example
In 1917, the Bolsheviks under Lenin overthrew Kerensky's Provisional Government in Petrograd, an event delegates often cite when debating the legitimacy of revolutionary regimes at Model UN historical crisis committees.
Frequently asked questions
Russia used the Julian calendar until February 1918. The 'February' and 'October' revolutions occurred in March and November by the Gregorian calendar used in the West.
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