Events of October 1917 and their consequences. October Revolution: a chronology of events. Contemporaries about the revolution

October Revolution(full official name in USSR - Great October Socialist Revolution, alternative names: October coup, Bolshevik coup, third Russian revolution listen)) is a stage of the Russian revolution that took place in Russia in October of the year. As a result of the October Revolution, the Provisional Government was overthrown, and a government formed by the II Congress of Soviets came to power, in which the Bolshevik party received the majority shortly before the revolution - the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party (Bolsheviks), in alliance with part of the Mensheviks, national groups, peasant organizations, some anarchists and a number of groups in the Socialist Revolutionary Party.

The main organizers of the uprising were V. I. Lenin, L. D. Trotsky, Ya. M. Sverdlov and others.

The government elected by the Congress of Soviets included representatives of only two parties: the RSDLP (b) and the Left Social Revolutionaries, the rest of the organizations refused to participate in the revolution. Later they demanded that their representatives be included in the Council of People's Commissars under the slogan of a "homogeneous socialist government," but the Bolsheviks and Socialist-Revolutionaries already had a majority at the Congress of Soviets, allowing them not to rely on other parties. In addition, relations were spoiled by the support of the "compromising parties" of the persecution of the RSDLP (b) as a party and its individual members by the Provisional Government on charges of high treason and armed rebellion in the summer of 1917, the arrest of L. D. Trotsky and L. B. Kamenev and leaders of the Left Socialist-Revolutionaries, put on the wanted list of V. I. Lenin and G. E. Zinoviev.

There is a wide range of assessments of the October Revolution: for some, it is a national catastrophe that led to the Civil War and the establishment of a totalitarian system of government in Russia (or, conversely, to the death of Great Russia as an empire); for others - the greatest progressive event in the history of mankind, which made it possible to abandon capitalism and save Russia from feudal remnants; Between these extremes there are a number of intermediate points of view. Many historical myths are also associated with this event.

Name

S. Lukin. It's done!

The revolution took place on October 25, according to the Julian calendar, which was adopted in Russia at that time. And although already in February of the year the Gregorian calendar (new style) was introduced and the first anniversary of the revolution (like all subsequent ones) was celebrated on November 7, the revolution was still associated with October, which was reflected in its name.

Name " October Revolution» meets from the first years Soviet power. Name Great October Socialist Revolution established itself in the Soviet official historiography by the end of the 1930s. In the first decade after the revolution, it was often called, in particular, October coup, while this name did not carry a negative meaning (at least in the mouths of the Bolsheviks themselves), but, on the contrary, emphasized the grandiosity and irreversibility of the "social revolution"; this name is used by N. N. Sukhanov, A. V. Lunacharsky, D. A. Furmanov, N. I. Bukharin, M. A. Sholokhov. In particular, the section of Stalin's article, dedicated to the first anniversary of October (), was called About the October Revolution. Subsequently, the word "coup" became associated with a conspiracy and an illegal change of power (similar to palace coups), and the term was withdrawn from official propaganda (although Stalin used it until his last works, written already in the early 1950s). On the other hand, the expression "October coup" began to be actively used, already with a negative connotation, in literature critical of Soviet power: in emigre and dissident circles, and since perestroika, in the legal press.

background

There are several versions of the causes of the October Revolution:

• version of the spontaneous growth of the "revolutionary situation"
• version of the purposeful action of the German government (See Sealed wagon)

Version of the "revolutionary situation"

The main prerequisites for the October Revolution were the weakness and indecisiveness of the Provisional Government, its refusal to implement the principles proclaimed by it (for example, the Minister of Agriculture V. Chernov, the author of the Socialist Revolutionary program for land reform, defiantly refused to carry it out after he was told by his government colleagues that expropriation landowner lands damages the banking system, which credited the landlords on the security of land), dual power after the February Revolution. During the year, the leaders of the radical forces led by Chernov, Spiridonova, Tsereteli, Lenin, Chkheidze, Martov, Zinoviev, Stalin, Trotsky, Sverdlov, Kamenev and other leaders returned from hard labor, from exile and emigration to Russia and launched an extensive agitation. All this led to the strengthening of extreme left sentiments in society.

The policy of the Provisional Government, especially after the SR-Menshevik All-Russian Central Executive Committee of the Soviets declared the Provisional Government a "government of salvation", recognizing it as having "unlimited powers and unlimited power", brought the country to the brink of disaster. The smelting of pig iron and steel fell sharply, and the extraction of coal and oil was significantly reduced. The railway transport came to an almost complete breakdown. There was a sharp lack of fuel. In Petrograd, there were temporary interruptions in the supply of flour. Gross industrial output in 1917 decreased by 30.8% compared to 1916. In autumn, up to 50% of enterprises were closed in the Urals, Donbass and other industrial centers, 50 factories were stopped in Petrograd. There was massive unemployment. Food prices rose steadily. The real wages of workers fell by 40-50% compared with 1913. The daily expenditure on the war exceeded 66 million rubles.

All practical measures taken by the Provisional Government worked exclusively for the benefit of the financial sector. The provisional government resorted to money issue and new loans. In 8 months, it issued paper money worth 9.5 billion rubles, that is, more than the tsarist government in 32 months of the war. The main burden of taxes fell on the working people. The actual value of the ruble compared to June 1914 was 32.6%. The state debt of Russia in October 1917 amounted to almost 50 billion rubles, of which the debt to foreign powers amounted to more than 11.2 billion rubles. The country faced the threat of financial bankruptcy.

The provisional government, which did not have confirmation of its powers from any popular will, nevertheless, in a voluntaristic way, declared that Russia would "continue the war to a victorious end." Moreover, he failed to get the allies in the Entente to write off Russia's war debts, which reached astronomical sums. Explanations to the allies that Russia was not able to service this public debt, the experience of the state bankruptcy of a number of countries (Khedive Egypt, etc.) were not taken into account by the allies. Meanwhile, L. D. Trotsky officially declared that revolutionary Russia should not pay the bills of the old regime, and was immediately imprisoned.

The provisional government simply ignored the problem because the grace period on loans lasted until the end of the war. They turned a blind eye to the imminent post-war default, not knowing what to hope for and wanting to delay the inevitable. Wishing to postpone state bankruptcy by continuing an extremely unpopular war, they attempted to attack on the fronts, but their failure, emphasized by the "treacherous", according to Kerensky, surrender of Riga, caused extreme bitterness among the people. The land reform was also not carried out for financial reasons - the expropriation of landlords' lands would have caused a massive bankruptcy of financial institutions that credited landlords on the security of land. The Bolsheviks, historically supported by the majority of the workers of Petrograd and Moscow, won the support of the peasantry and soldiers ("peasants dressed in overcoats") through a consistent policy of agrarian reform and an immediate end to the war. In August-October 1917 alone, more than 2,000 peasant uprisings took place (690 peasant uprisings were registered in August, 630 in September, and 747 in October). The Bolsheviks and their allies actually remained the only force that did not agree to give up their principles in practice to protect the interests of Russia's financial capital.

Revolutionary sailors with the flag "Death to Bourgeois"

Four days later, on October 29 (November 11), an armed rebellion of junkers took place, including artillery pieces, which was also suppressed using artillery and armored cars.

On the side of the Bolsheviks, the workers of Petrograd, Moscow and other industrial centers, the land-poor peasants of the densely populated Chernozem region and Central Russia. An important factor the victory of the Bolsheviks was the appearance on their side of a considerable part of the officers of the former tsarist army. In particular, officers General Staff distributed between the warring parties almost equally, with a slight advantage among the opponents of the Bolsheviks (at the same time, on the side of the Bolsheviks there were more graduates of the Nikolaev Academy of the General Staff). Some of them were repressed in 1937 .

Immigration

At the same time, a number of workers, engineers, inventors, scientists, writers, architects, peasants, politicians from all over the world who shared Marxist ideas moved to Soviet Russia to participate in the program of building communism. They took some part in the technological breakthrough of backward Russia and the country's social transformations. According to some estimates, the number of only Chinese and Manchus who immigrated to tsarist Russia due to favorable socio-economic conditions created in Russia by the autocratic regime, and then took part in building a new world, it exceeded 500 thousand people. , and for the most part they were workers who create material values ​​and transform nature with their own hands. Some of them quickly returned to their homeland, most of the rest were subjected to repression in the year

A number of specialists from Western countries. .

During civil war tens of thousands of internationalist fighters (Poles, Czechs, Hungarians, Serbs, etc.) who voluntarily joined its ranks fought in the Red Army.

The Soviet government was forced to use the skills of some immigrants in administrative, military and other posts. Among them are the writer Bruno Yasensky (shot in the city), administrator Bela Kun (shot in the city), economists Varga and Rudzutak (shot in the year), special services officers Dzerzhinsky, Latsis (shot in the city), Kingisepp, Eichmans (shot in the year), military leaders Joachim Vatsetis (shot in the year), Lajos Gavro (shot in), Ivan Strod (shot in), August Kork (shot in the year), head of Soviet justice Smilgu (shot in the year), Inessa Armand and many others. The financier and intelligence officer Ganetsky (shot in), aircraft designers Bartini (repressed in the city, spent 10 years in prison), Paul Richard (worked in the USSR for 3 years and returned to France), teacher Yanoushek (shot in a year), Romanian, Moldovan and Jewish poet Yakov Yakir (who ended up in the USSR against his will with the annexation of Bessarabia, was arrested there, left for Israel), socialist Henrich Erlich (sentenced to death and committed suicide in the Kuibyshev prison), Robert Eikhe ( shot in the year), journalist Radek (shot in the year), Polish poet Naftali Kon (twice repressed, after his release he left for Poland, from there to Israel), and many others.

Holiday

Main article: Anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution

Contemporaries about the revolution

Our children and grandchildren will not even be able to imagine the Russia in which we once lived, which we did not appreciate, did not understand - all this power, complexity, wealth, happiness ...

• October 26 (November 7) - birthday of L.D. Trotsky

Notes

1. MINUTES of 1920 August 11-12 days judicial investigator for especially important cases at the Omsk District Court N. A. Sokolov in Paris (in France), in the order of 315-324 Art. Art. mouth corner. court., examined three issues of the newspaper “Obshchee Delo” provided for investigation by Vladimir Lvovich Burtsev.
2. Russian National Corpus
3. Russian National Corpus
4. I. V. Stalin. The logic of things
5. I. V. Stalin. Marxism and questions of linguistics
6. For example, the expression "October Revolution" is often used in the anti-Soviet magazine "Posev":
7. S. P. Melgunov. Golden german key of the Bolsheviks
8. L. G. Sobolev. Russian revolution and German gold
9. Ganin A.V. On the role of officers of the General Staff in the civil war.
10. S. V. Kudryavtsev Liquidation of "counter-revolutionary organizations" in the region (Author of Candidate of Historical Sciences)
11. Erlikhman V.V. "Loss of population in the XX century". Reference book - M .: Publishing house "Russian panorama", 2004 ISBN 5-93165-107-1
12. Cultural Revolution Article on rin.ru
13. Soviet-Chinese relations. 1917-1957. Collection of documents, Moscow, 1959; Ding Shouhe, Yin Xu Yi, Zhang Bozhao, The Impact of the October Revolution on China, translated from Chinese, Moscow, 1959; Peng Ming, History of Sino-Soviet Friendship, translated from Chinese. Moscow, 1959; Russian-Chinese relations. 1689-1916, Official documents, Moscow, 1958
14. Border clearances and other forced migrations in 1934-1939.
15. "Great Terror": 1937-1938. Brief chronicle Compiled by N. G. Okhotin, A. B. Roginsky
16. From among the descendants of immigrants, as well as local residents who originally lived on their historical lands, as of 1977, 379 thousand Poles lived in the USSR; 9 thousand Czechs; 6 thousand Slovaks; 257 thousand Bulgarians; 1.2 million Germans; 76 thousand Romanians; 2 thousand French; 132 thousand Greeks; 2 thousand Albanians; 161 thousand Hungarians, 43 thousand Finns; 5 thousand Khalkha Mongols; 245 thousand Koreans, etc. For the most part, these are the descendants of the colonists of tsarist times, who have not forgotten native language, and residents of the border, ethnically mixed regions of the USSR; some of them (Germans, Koreans, Greeks, Finns) were subsequently subjected to repressions and deportations.
17. L. Anninsky. In memory of Alexander Solzhenitsyn. Historical magazine "Rodina" (RF), No. 9-2008, p. 35
18. I.A. Bunin "Cursed Days" (diary 1918 - 1918)

On November 7, 1917 (October 25 according to the Julian calendar), an event occurred, the consequences of which we are still observing. The Great October Socialist Revolution, as it was called in Soviet historiography, changed Russia beyond recognition, but did not stop there. She shook the whole world, reshaped political map and for many years became the worst nightmare of the capitalist countries. Even in remote corners, their own communist parties appeared. The ideas of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, with certain changes in some countries, are still alive today. Needless to say, the October Revolution was of tremendous importance for our country. It would seem that such a grandiose event in the history of Russia should be known to everyone. However, statistics show otherwise. According to VTsIOM, only 11% of Russians know that the Bolsheviks overthrew the Provisional Government. According to the majority of respondents (65%), the Bolsheviks overthrew the tsar. Why do we know so little about these events?

History, as you know, is written by the winners. The October Revolution became the main propaganda weapon of the Bolsheviks. The events of those days were carefully censored by the Soviet government. In the USSR, disgraced politicians were mercilessly deleted from the list of the creators of the October Revolution (Trotsky, Bukharin, Zinoviev, etc.), and the role of Stalin during his reign, on the contrary, was deliberately exaggerated. It got to the point where Soviet historians turned the revolution into a real phantasmagoria. Today we have all the data for a detailed study of this period and everything that preceded it. On the eve of the centennial anniversary of the October Revolution, it's time to refresh your memory or learn something new. To understand how everything really happened, we will restore the chronology of the events of 1917.

How 1917 began

First World War(1914-1918) became the main reason for the spread of revolutionary sentiment throughout Europe. By the end of the war, 4 empires fell at once: the Austro-Hungarian, German, Russian and a little later the Ottoman.

In Russia, war was not understood either among the people or in the army. And even the government could not clearly state its goals to its subjects. The initial patriotic impulse against the background of the spread of anti-German sentiment quickly faded away. Constant defeats at the front, retreat of troops, huge casualties and growing food crisis caused popular discontent, which led to an increase in the number of strikes

By the beginning of 1917, the state of affairs in the state had become catastrophic. All sections of society, from ministers and members of the imperial family to workers and peasants, were dissatisfied with the policies of Nicholas II. The fall of the king's authority was accompanied by political and military miscalculations on his part. Nicholas II completely lost touch with reality, relying on the unshakable faith of the Russian people in the good tsar-father. But the people no longer believed. Even in remote provinces, everyone knew about the detrimental effect on the imperial couple of Rasputin. In the State Duma, the tsar was directly accused of treason, and the relatives of the autocrat seriously thought about eliminating Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, who constantly interfered in state affairs. Under such conditions, radical left parties launched their agitation activities everywhere. They called for the overthrow of the autocracy, the end of hostilities and fraternization with the enemy.

February Revolution

In January 1917, a wave of strikes swept across the country. In Petrograd (St. Petersburg in 1914-1924) more than 200 thousand people went on strike. The government reacted to everything sluggishly. On February 22, Nikolai left for the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief in Mogilev.

On February 17, in response to interruptions in food supplies, a strike began at the Petrograd Putilov factory. The workers came out with slogans: "Down with the war!", "Down with the autocracy!", "Bread!". Popular unrest intensified, the strikes became larger and larger. Already on February 25, not a single enterprise was working in the capital. The reaction of the authorities was slow, the measures were taken very late. Everything looked as if the officials were deliberately inactive. In this situation, sincere surprise is caused by the words of Nikolai, who wrote from the Headquarters: "I command you to stop the unrest in the capital tomorrow." Either the king was really so ill-informed and naive, or the government underestimated the situation, or we are dealing with treason.

Meanwhile, the Bolsheviks (RSDLP (b)) actively agitated the Petrograd garrison, and these actions were successful. On February 26, the soldiers began to go over to the side of the rebels, which meant only one thing - the government lost its main protection. Do not forget that the February Revolution was made by all segments of the population. Here, the parties that were part of the State Duma, and aristocrats, and officers, and industrialists tried their best. The February revolution was general or bourgeois, as the Bolsheviks would later call it.

On February 28, the revolution won a complete victory. The tsarist government was removed from power. The leadership of the country was taken over by the Provisional Committee State Duma headed by Mikhail Rodzianko.

March. Abdication of Nicholas II

First of all, the new government took care of the problem of Nikolai's removal from power. No one had any doubts that the emperor must be persuaded to abdicate. On February 28, having learned about the events that had taken place, Nikolai went to the capital. The revolution, which quickly spread throughout the country, met the monarch on the way - the rebellious soldiers did not let royal train to Petrograd. Nicholas did not take any decisive steps to save the autocracy. He only dreamed of reuniting with his family, which was in Tsarskoye Selo.

The deputies of the Duma went to Pskov, where the tsar's train was forced to turn. On March 2, Nicholas II signed a manifesto on his abdication. Initially, the Provisional Committee intended to preserve autocracy by transferring the throne to the young Tsarevich Alexei under the regency of his younger brother Nicholas, but this could cause another explosion of discontent and the idea had to be abandoned.

Thus fell one of the most powerful dynasties. Nicholas went to Tsarskoe Selo to his wife and children. Last years the lives of the imperial family were spent in captivity.

At the end of February, simultaneously with the creation of the Provisional Committee of the State Duma, the Petrograd Soviet of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies was formed - an organ of democracy. The creation of the Petrosoviet was initiated by the Social Democrats and Socialist-Revolutionaries. Soon such councils began to appear throughout the country. They were engaged in improving the conditions of the workers, regulating the food supply, arresting officials and policemen, and canceling royal decrees. The Bolsheviks continued to remain in the shadows. In the newly formed Soviets, they were inferior in number to representatives of other parties.

On March 2, the Provisional Government, formed by the Provisional Committee of the State Duma and the Petrograd Soviet of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies, began its work. A dual power was established in the country.

April. Lenin in Petrograd

The dual power prevented the ministers of the Provisional Government from establishing order in the country. The arbitrariness of the Soviets in the army and at enterprises undermined discipline, led to lawlessness and rampant crime. The question of further political development Russia. This problem was approached reluctantly. The convocation of the Constituent Assembly, which was supposed to decide the future fate of the country, was scheduled only for November 28, 1917.

The situation at the front became catastrophic. The soldiers, supporting the decision of the Soviets, withdrew from the subordination of the officers. The troops had neither discipline nor motivation. However, the Provisional Government was in no hurry to end the devastating war, apparently hoping for a miracle.

The arrival of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin in Russia in April 1917 was a fundamental turning point in the course of the events of 1917. It was from this moment that the rapid increase in the size of the Bolshevik Party began. Lenin's ideas quickly spread among the people and, most importantly, were close and understandable to everyone.

April 4, 1917 Lenin announced the program of action of the RSDLP (b). The main goal of the Bolsheviks was the overthrow of the Provisional Government and the transfer of all power to the Soviets. Otherwise, this program was called "April Theses". On April 7, the theses were published in the Bolshevik newspaper Pravda. Lenin laid out his program simply and clearly. He demanded to stop the war, not to support the Provisional Government, to confiscate and nationalize the landlords' lands, to fight for the socialist revolution. In short: land - to the peasants, factories - to the workers, peace - to the soldiers, power - to the Bolsheviks.

The positions of the Provisional Government were further weakened after Foreign Minister Pavel Milyukov announced on April 18 that Russia was ready to wage the war to a victorious end. Thousands of anti-war demonstrations took place in Petrograd. Milyukov was forced to resign.

June July. No support for the Provisional Government!

With the arrival of Lenin, the Bolsheviks launched an active activity aimed at seizing power. To achieve their political goals, members of the RSDLP (b) willingly used the mistakes and miscalculations of the government

On June 18, 1917, the Provisional Government launched a large-scale offensive at the front, which at first was successful. It soon became clear, however, that the operation had failed. The army began to retreat, suffering huge losses. Large-scale anti-war demonstrations began again in the capital. The Bolsheviks accepted Active participation inciting anti-government sentiment.

In an attempt to restore order, the Provisional Government persecuted the RSDLP (b). The Bolsheviks were forced to go underground again. An attempt to eliminate his main political opponent, however, did not bring the desired effect. Power was slipping out of the hands of the ministers, and confidence in the Bolshevik Party, on the contrary, was growing stronger.

August. Kornilov rebellion

In order to stabilize the situation in the country, the new chairman of the Provisional Government, Alexander Fedorovich Kerensky, was endowed with emergency powers. To reinforce discipline, the the death penalty at the front. Kerensky also took steps to improve the economy. All his efforts, however, did not bear fruit. The situation continued to be explosive, and Alexander Fedorovich himself understood this very well.

To strengthen the position of his government, Kerensky decided to ally with the military. At the end of July, Lavr Georgievich Kornilov, popular in the army, was appointed Supreme Commander.

Determined to fight the radical left elements (mainly the Bolsheviks), Kerensky and Kornilov initially planned to unite their forces in order to save the Fatherland. But this never happened - the Prime Minister and the Commander-in-Chief did not share power. Everyone wanted to lead the country alone.

On August 26, Kornilov called on the troops loyal to him to move on the capital. Kerensky, simply cowardly, turned for help to the Bolsheviks, who had already firmly taken over the minds of the soldiers of the Petrograd garrison. There was no clash - the Kornilov troops never reached the capital.

The situation with Kornilov once again proved the inability of the Provisional Government to lead the state and the incompetence of Kerensky as a politician. For the Bolsheviks, on the contrary, everything turned out perfectly. The August events showed that only the RSDLP (b) was capable of leading the country out of chaos.

October. The triumph of the Bolsheviks

In September 1917, the agonizing Provisional Government entered the last phase of life. Kerensky continued to feverishly switch ministers and convened a Democratic Conference to determine the future composition of the government. In fact, it again turned out to be stupid demagogy and a waste of time. The Kerensky government, in reality, cared only about its own position and personal gain. Lenin very accurately expressed himself about those events: "Power lay underfoot, you just had to take it."

The interim government failed to solve a single problem. The economy was on the verge of complete collapse, prices were rising, food shortages were felt everywhere. The strikes of workers and peasants in the country developed into mass demonstrations, accompanied by pogroms and reprisals against representatives of the wealthy strata. Soviets of workers' and soldiers' deputies throughout the country began to go over to the side of the Bolsheviks. Lenin and Trotsky advocated an immediate seizure of power. On October 12, 1917, the Military Revolutionary Committee was created under the Petrograd Soviet - the main body for the preparation of a revolutionary uprising. Through the efforts of the Bolsheviks, about 30 thousand people were put under arms in a short time.

On October 25, the rebels occupied the strategically important objects of Petrograd: the post office, telegraph office and railway stations. On the night of October 25-26, the Provisional Government was arrested in the Winter Palace. According to one of the Soviet legends, Kerensky, dressed in a woman's dress, fled the capital. Immediately after the seizure of power, the Bolsheviks held a congress of Soviets, at which they adopted the main documents - the “Decree on Peace” and the “Decree on Land”. All local power was transferred into the hands of the Soviets of Workers', Peasants' and Soldiers' Deputies. Kerensky's attempts to seize power with the help of the troops were not successful.

The events of October 25, 1917 were a natural end to the period of virtual anarchy in the country. The Bolsheviks proved by their deeds that only they could take control of the state. And even if you do not sympathize with the communists, it is worth recognizing that their superiority in 1917 was obvious.

What happened next, we all know very well. The Soviet state lasted a full 68 years. It lived the life of an average person: it was born in pain, matured and tempered in constant struggle, and, as a result, having grown old, fell into childhood and died at the dawn of the new millennium. But even after its defeat in Russia, the cause of Lenin still lives on in some places. And while we have not gone so far, continuing to live on the ruins of a major experiment of Vladimir Ilyich.

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Briefly about the date October 25, 1917

Officially in the Soviet Union, this ambiguously assessed event today was called - the day of the October Revolution of 1917, it was a holiday for the entire vast country and the peoples inhabiting it. It brought about a fundamental change in the social political situation,transformation of political and social attitudes on the position of peoples and each individual individually.

Today, many young people do not even know what year the revolution took place in Russia, but it is necessary to know about it. The situation was quite predictable and brewed for several years, then the significant main events of the October Revolution of 1917 took place, the table briefly:

What is the October Revolution in historical concept? The main armed uprising led by V. I. Ulyanov - Lenin, L. D. Trotsky, Ya. M. Sverdlov and other leaders of the communist movement in Russia.

The revolution of 1917 is an armed uprising.

Attention! The uprising was carried out by the Military Revolutionary Committee of the Petrograd Soviet, where, oddly enough, the Left Socialist-Revolutionary faction represented the majority.

The success of the coup was ensured by the following factors:

1. Significant level of popular support.
2. The provisional government was inactive and did not solve the problems of Russia's participation in the First World War.
3. The most significant political aspect compared to previously proposed extremist movements.

The faction of Mensheviks and Right Socialist-Revolutionaries could not organize more or less real option alternative movement in relation to the Bolsheviks.

A little about the causes of the October events of 1917

Today, no one refutes the idea that this fateful event practically turned not only the whole world upside down, but also radically changed the course of history for many decades to come. Far from being a feudal, bourgeois country striving for progress, it was practically turned upside down directly during certain events on the fronts of the First World War.

The historical significance of the October Revolution, which took place in 1917, is largely determined by the termination. However, as modern historians see it, there were several reasons:

1. The influence of the peasant revolution as a socio-political phenomenon as an aggravation of the confrontation between the peasant masses and the landowners who remained at that time. The reason is the “black redistribution” known in history, that is, distribution of land to the needy. Also in this aspect, the negative impact of the redistribution of land allotments on the number of dependents had an effect.
2. Working sections of society experienced significant city ​​government pressure on the inhabitants of rural areas, state power has become the main lever of pressure on the productive forces.
3. The deepest decomposition of the army and other power structures, where the majority of the peasants went to serve, who could not comprehend certain nuances of the protracted hostilities.
4. revolutionary fermentation of all sections of the working class. The proletariat at that time was a politically active minority, constituting no more than 3.5% of the active population. The working class was largely concentrated mainly in the industrial cities.
5. The national movements of the popular formations of imperial Russia developed and reached their climax. Then they sought to achieve autonomy, a promising option for them was not just autonomy, but a promising autonomy and independence from the central authorities.

To the greatest extent national movement became a provoking factor in the beginning of the revolutionary movement on the territory of a vast Russian Empire, which literally disintegrated into its component parts.

Attention! The combination of all causes and conditions, as well as the interests of all sections of the population, determined the goals of the October Revolution of 1917, which became driving force future uprising as a turning point in history.

Popular unrest before the start of the October Revolution of 1917.

Ambiguous about the events of October 17

The first stage, which became the basis and the beginning of world change historical events, which became a turning point not only in the domestic, but also on a global scale. For example, the assessment of the October Revolution, Interesting Facts which are both positive and negative impact on the social and political situation in the world.

As usual, every significant event has objective and subjective reasons. The overwhelming majority of the population had a hard time experiencing wartime conditions, hunger and deprivation peace became necessary. What were the conditions in the second half of 1917:

1. Formed in the period from February 27 to March 03, 1917, the Provisional Government headed by Kerensky didn't have enough tools to solve all problems and questions without exception. The transfer of land and enterprises into the ownership of workers and peasants, as well as the elimination of hunger and the conclusion of peace, became an urgent problem, the solution of which was inaccessible to the so-called "temporaries".
2. The prevalence of socialist ideas among the general population, a noticeable increase in the popularity of Marxist theory, the implementation by the Soviets of the slogans of universal equality, the prospects for what the people expected.
3. The emergence of a strong opposition movement led by a charismatic leader, which was Ulyanov-Lenin. This party line at the beginning of the last century became the most promising movement for achieving world communism as a concept for further development.
4. In the conditions of this situation, they became as much as possible in demand radical ideas and the problems of society requiring a radical solution - the inability to lead the empire from the thoroughly rotten tsarist administrative apparatus.

The slogan of the October Revolution - "peace to the peoples, land to the peasants, factories to the workers" was supported by the population, which made it possible to radically change the political system in Russia.

Briefly about the course of events on October 25

Why did the October Revolution happen in November? The autumn of 1917 brought an even greater increase in social tension, political and socio-economic destruction was rapidly approaching its peak.

In the field of industry, the financial sector, transport and communication systems, agriculture a complete collapse.

Russian multinational empire broke up into separate nation-states, contradictions between representatives of various peoples and intra-tribal disagreements were growing.

Significant influence on the acceleration of the overthrow of the Provisional Government had hyperinflation, rising food prices Against the backdrop of lower wages, increased unemployment, a catastrophic situation on the battlefields, the war was artificially dragged out. Government of A. Kerensky did not submit an anti-crisis plan, and the initial February promises were practically abandoned.

These processes in the conditions of their rapid growth only increased influence leftist political movements throughout the country. These were the reasons for the unprecedented victory of the Bolsheviks in the October Revolution. The Bolshevik idea and its support by the peasants, workers and soldiers led to the deputy majority in the new state system - the Soviets in the First Capital and Petrograd. There were two directions in the plans for the Bolsheviks to come to power:

1. Peaceful diplomatically conditioned and legally confirmed the act of transferring power to the majority.
2. The extremist trend in the Soviets demanded armed strategic measures, in their opinion, the plan could only be implemented power grab.

The government, created in October 1917, was called the Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies. The shot of the legendary cruiser "Aurora" on the night of October 25 gave signal to start the assault Winter Palace which led to the fall of the Provisional Government.

October Revolution

October coup

Consequences of the October Revolution

The consequences of the October Revolution are ambiguous. This is the coming to power of the Bolsheviks, the adoption by the Second Congress of Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies of the Decrees on Peace, Land, the Declaration of the Rights of the Peoples of the Country. Was created Russian Soviet Republic, later the controversial Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed. In various countries of the world, pro-Bolshevik governments began to come to power.

The negative aspect of the event is also important - the protracted that brought more destruction crisis, famine, millions of victims. The collapse and chaos in a vast country led to economic destruction of the global financial system, a crisis that dragged on for more than a decade and a half. Its consequences fell heavily on the shoulders of the poorest segments of the population. This situation has become the basis for a decrease in demographic indicators, a lack of productive forces in the future, human casualties, and unplanned migration.

On the night of October 25, 1917, an armed uprising began in Petrograd, during which the current government was overthrown and power was transferred to the Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies. The most important objects were captured - bridges, telegraph, government offices, and at 2 am on October 26, the Winter Palace was taken and the Provisional Government was arrested.

V. I. Lenin. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

Background of the October Revolution

The February Revolution of 1917, met with enthusiasm, although it ended the absolute monarchy in Russia, very soon disappointed the revolutionary-minded "lower layers" - the army, workers and peasants, who expected it to end the war, transfer land to the peasants, ease working conditions for workers and democratic power devices. Instead, the Provisional Government continued the war, assuring Western allies in fidelity to their obligations; in the summer of 1917, on his orders, a large-scale offensive began, which ended in disaster due to the fall in discipline in the army. Attempts to carry out land reform and introduce an 8-hour working day in factories were blocked by a majority in the Provisional Government. The autocracy was not finally abolished - the question of whether Russia should be a monarchy or a republic, the Provisional Government postponed until the convocation of the Constituent Assembly. The situation was aggravated by the growing anarchy in the country: desertion from the army took on gigantic proportions, unauthorized "repartitions" of land began in the villages, thousands of landowners' estates were burned. Poland and Finland declared independence, nationally-minded separatists claimed power in Kyiv, and their own autonomous government was created in Siberia.

Counter-revolutionary armored car "Austin" surrounded by cadets at the Winter. 1917 Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

At the same time, a powerful system of Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies was formed in the country, which became an alternative to the organs of the Provisional Government. Soviets began to form during the 1905 revolution. They were supported by numerous factory and peasant committees, militia and soldiers' councils. Unlike the Provisional Government, they demanded an immediate end to the war and reforms, which found increasing support among the embittered masses. The dual power in the country becomes obvious - the generals in the person of Alexei Kaledin and Lavr Kornilov demand the dispersal of the Soviets, and the Provisional Government in July 1917 carries out mass arrests of deputies of the Petrograd Soviet, and at the same time, demonstrations are taking place in Petrograd under the slogan "All power to the Soviets!"

Armed uprising in Petrograd

The Bolsheviks headed for an armed uprising in August 1917. On October 16, the Bolshevik Central Committee decided to prepare an uprising, two days after that, the Petrograd garrison declared disobedience to the Provisional Government, and on October 21, a meeting of representatives of the regiments recognized the Petrograd Soviet as the only legitimate authority. From October 24, detachments of the Military Revolutionary Committee occupied key points in Petrograd: railway stations, bridges, banks, telegraphs, printing houses and power stations.

The Provisional Government was preparing for this station, but the coup that took place on the night of October 25 came as a complete surprise to him. Instead of the expected mass demonstrations of the regiments of the garrison, detachments of the working Red Guard and sailors Baltic Fleet they simply took control of key facilities - without firing a shot, putting an end to the dual power in Russia. On the morning of October 25, only the Winter Palace, surrounded by detachments of the Red Guard, remained under the control of the Provisional Government.

At 10 a.m. on October 25, the Military Revolutionary Committee issued an appeal in which it announced that all "state power had passed into the hands of an organ of the Petrograd Soviet of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies." At 21:00, a blank shot from the gun of the Baltic Fleet cruiser "Aurora" signaled the start of the assault on the Winter Palace, and at 2:00 am on October 26, the Provisional Government was arrested.

Cruiser Aurora". Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

On the evening of October 25, the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets opened in Smolny, proclaiming the transfer of all power to the Soviets.

On October 26, the congress adopted the Decree on Peace, inviting all belligerent countries to start negotiations on concluding a general democratic peace, and the Decree on Land, according to which the landed estates were to be transferred to the peasants, and all subsoil, forests and waters were nationalized.

The congress also formed the government, the Council people's commissars headed by Vladimir Lenin - the first supreme body of state power in Soviet Russia.

On October 29, the Council of People's Commissars adopted a Decree on an eight-hour working day, and on November 2, a Declaration of the Rights of the Peoples of Russia, which proclaimed the equality and sovereignty of all the peoples of the country, the abolition of national and religious privileges and restrictions.

On November 23, a decree "On the destruction of estates and civil ranks" was issued, proclaiming the legal equality of all citizens of Russia.

Simultaneously with the uprising in Petrograd on October 25, the Military Revolutionary Committee of the Moscow Council also took control of all the important strategic objects of Moscow: the arsenal, the telegraph, the State Bank, etc. However, on October 28, the Public Security Committee, headed by the chairman of the city Duma Vadim Rudnev, The support of the junkers and Cossacks began military operations against the Council.

Fighting in Moscow continued until November 3, when the Committee of Public Security agreed to lay down their arms. The October Revolution was immediately supported in the Central Industrial Region, where the local Soviets of Workers' Deputies had actually established their power, in the Baltic States and Belarus, Soviet power was established in October - November 1917, and in the Central Black Earth Region, the Volga region and Siberia, the process of recognizing Soviet power dragged on until the end of January 1918.

Name and celebration of the October Revolution

Because in 1918 Soviet Russia switched to the new Gregorian calendar, the anniversary of the uprising in Petrograd fell on November 7th. But the revolution was already associated with October, which was reflected in its name. This day became an official holiday in 1918, and starting from 1927, two days became holidays - November 7 and 8. Every year on this day, demonstrations and military parades took place on Red Square in Moscow and in all cities of the USSR. The last military parade on Moscow's Red Square to commemorate the anniversary of the October Revolution was held in 1990. Since 1992, it has become a working day in Russia on November 8, and in 2005 a day off on November 7 was also canceled. Until now, the Day of the October Revolution is celebrated in Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Transnistria.