8.3 The Russian Revolution

Collapse of Tsarism

By 1917, Tsar Nicholas II's regime was crumbling under WWI losses, food shortages, and inflation. The February Revolution forced his abdication, replaced by a weak Provisional Government sharing power with worker/soldier councils called soviets — a situation known as dual power.

Lenin and the Bolsheviks Seize Power

Vladimir Lenin, leader of the Bolsheviks, promised 'Peace, Land, and Bread' and returned from exile with German help. In the October Revolution, Bolsheviks overthrew the Provisional Government, seizing key sites in Petrograd with little resistance, establishing Soviet rule.

Civil War and Consolidation

Lenin signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (1918), exiting WWI at great territorial cost. A brutal Russian Civil War (1918–1921) pitted the Red Army (Bolsheviks) against the White Army (monarchists, liberals, foreign-backed forces). Bolshevik victory led to the creation of the USSR in 1922.

Key terms

February Revolution

1917 uprising that forced Tsar Nicholas II to abdicate, ending centuries of tsarist rule.

Dual Power

The period when the Provisional Government and the soviets both claimed authority in Russia.

October Revolution

Bolshevik seizure of power in 1917 under Lenin's leadership, overthrowing the Provisional Government.

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

1918 treaty in which Bolshevik Russia exited WWI, ceding large territories to Germany.

Russian Civil War

1918–1921 conflict between the Red Army (Bolsheviks) and White Army (anti-Bolshevik forces), won by the Reds.

Try an AP-style question

The February Revolution of 1917 resulted in…

1. Stalin's rise
2. the tsar's abdication
3. the end of WWI
4. Lenin's seizure of power