Causes Of The 1917 Russian Revolution

A cause of the 1917 Russian Revolution was the Tsar's reign and the lives people lead beneath it. For over 300 years the Romanov family had been ruling Russia. But in the years leading up to the second revolution, unrest had been growing between the population and the tsarist leadership. The last Tsar family were autocrats and this left citizens unable to challenge their power. During those times the disparity of wealth between the rich and poor was significant. Statistics from 1897 showed that 82% of Russia's population made up the "peasant class" and a drastically smaller 12.5% was made up of nobles and royalty. The reason behind the large population of people living in poverty in Russia was due to there once being a lower class than the

Discontentment with their leader and the living conditions that the poor faced led to many protests throughout the year. The catalyst for the revolution was an initially peaceful protest on January 22nd. Despite the protesters non-violent intentions, they were met with force at the winter palace that resulted in dubbing it "Bloody Sunday". The January protest was led by a Russian Orthodox priest with a following of 150,000 people. They were asking Nicholas II for help, to improve their lifestyle with no political agenda such as overthrowing the monarchy. Regardless, the troops outside the palace opened fire on the protesters, however, the exact number of deaths is uncertain. When word of what happened spread through Russia, strikes and protests - some involving 400,000 people - spread quickly. The demands became more political, citizens demanding freedom of speech and an elected government. What had been a peaceful protest for better living conditions exploded into national outrage. Nicholas II's response to the protests was to issue the October Manifesto which promised a constitution. There was mixed reactions to the document but it convinced many protesters to return to work, weakening their numbers and bringing the revolution to an end the same year it begun. The 1905 revolution solidified that the majority of Russians were unhappy with their leadership which is how the Bolshevik party

The Bolshevik Party was founded after the split of Russia's Social Democrat Party and lead by Vladimir Lenin until his death in 1924. In the 1905 revolution their impact was weak with little more than 200 supporters. However, in the years leading up to 1917 they gained more appeal to the masses because of the ideas that Lenin proposed if the Bolsheviks came into power. One of their promises was to take Russia out of World War I and after Nicholas II's poor performance, many people were eager to withdraw. The Bolsheviks being willing to withdraw from the war made them popular with soldiers and their families. They also promised to redistribute land back to the peasant class and give them power in their local communities. These ideals to assist the poor and give them more status appealed to the two biggest social classes in Russia. This lead to the massive following that Lenin had behind him. The goal of the Bolsheviks was to attain power and Lenin's goal was to have Russia under their rule as quickly as possible. The Bolshevik pursuing power and gaining support after the Provisional Government had been established following Nicholas II's abdication links to the immediate effects of the