The+Provisional+Government.+How+Effective?

How Effective was the Provisional Government and How Did It Collapse



Key Terms

On March 2, 1917 Tsar Nicholas’ abdicated and the formation of the Provisional Government was established. There were two new revolutionary bodies that took control of Russia until October 1917; the Provisional Government and the Petrograd Soviet of Workers’ and Soldiers’ Deputies. Nonetheless, Russia had already underwent one revolution in 1905, where the Dumas were set up, and another in March 1919. Therefore, the Provisional Government already had expectations to meet and surpass. They were faced with numerous obstacles such as satisfying a divided unhappy population, lack of support from the army, conflicts within their setup and system, and Bolshevik successes.
 * Alexander Kerensky || leader of the Provisional Government ||
 * Provisional Government || an emergency government setup when a political void has been created by the collapse of a very large government ||
 * April Crisis || Minister on [|Foreign] Affairs, sent a diplomatic note to allies [|about] [|national] aspiration "to finish the [|World] War by a convincing [|victory]", in this connection the next task was "to repulse attacks of enemy, which invaded the limits of our native [|land]". On April 20 the information about this note got into newspapers, this caused 100-thousand anti-war demonstration in Petrograd ||
 * July Days || when soldiers and industrial workers engaged in spontaneousdemonstrations against the Russian Provisional Government. The Bolsheviks tried to provide leadership to the demonstrations ||
 * Demonstrations || a public meeting or march protesting against something or expressing views on a political issue ||
 * Octobrist || a member of the moderate party in the Russian Duma that supported Tsar Nicholas II's reforming manifesto of October 30, 1905 ||
 * Marxist || the political and economic theories of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, later developed by their followers to form the basis for the theory and practice of communism ||
 * Leninsist || Marxism as interpreted and applied by Lenin ||

Russia was already suffering from a stagnating war of the beginning of 1917 and famine. The war had cost Russia millions of lives. This impacted the working force and therefore the economy. In addition, the war had exhausted Russia of her resources and supplies. Food had to be rationed and instead of focusing on reviving the economy, the working class was designated to tend to the war industry. When the Provisional Government came into power, the peasants, working class, and army were hoping for a change. However, the population was divided and the generals and nationalists pushed to continue the war, especially Prince George Lvov, a wealthy aristocratic landowner and leader of the Provisional Government. The government was confident in conducting the war and achieving victory with a liberal regime and refreshed “public confidence”. They were against signing a separate peace with Germany. Despite their confidence, Russia did not do any better in the war and faced a very discontent population. The army lost motivation to fight as well. They deserted, mutinied and participated in demonstrations in July, which was also known as the July Days. Due to Russia’s situation and the Provisional Government’s inability to redeem the nation, they lost support from the majority (i.e. peasants, working class and army) and this was a contributing factor to its failure later that year.

A major factor that resulted in the new government’s downfall was its system and setup itself. The initial principle of the provisional government was that it would be a temporary government. It would pave the way for the setup of an elected permanent government and a constitution to be written up. In other words, it assumed responsibility of the country only for the time being. Its Minister of War and Navy even proclaimed that, “the Provisional Government has no real force at its disposal and its decrees are carried out only to the extent that it is permitted by the Soviet of workers’ and Soldiers’ Deputies.”[1] This provided people to lose trust in the government and not treat the government seriously. Also, its impermanency was a reason to avoid making decisions and responsibility for some failures. However, during the 8 months of its life, the government did issue reforms and policies in which some were unfavorable and other were just self-inflicting. An example of the latter is the removal of restrictions on the right to free speech, press, unions, assembly and strikes. This increased opposition and spread aggression. The government’s policies did not respond well to the peasantry, working classes, army and nationalists’ expectations and hopes. They pushed for efforts of employers to restore discipline, denied a rise in wages, improvements in security, employment and living and working conditions. The peasantry hoped for benefits in land reforms and a democratic republic but was suppressed by armed forces, treated unsympathetically, and grain producers were prohibited from incentives.

As for nationalities, they desired self-determination but only the Poles’ independence was recognized, in which the territory was behind German lines. The other nationalities were told to wait for decisions of the Constituent Assembly. Despite everything, the government had support of army commanders, government officials, the police, landowners and scholars. The representation in the government was a cross section of Russia’s ruling elite, Petrograd Soviets, Kadets and Octobrists. It consisted of members of the previous unsuccessful Dumas as well. Needless to say, it was an unbalanced representation and contained mixed political parties and opinions. The leaders themselves were incapable of maintaining stability and were not democratically elected; Lvov was appointed as Prime Minister by Milyukov, Kerensky and his army took over the government after the failed Kerensky Offensive, and Kornilov attempted a coup and was later appointed as Commander-in-Chief of the army. The Kornilov affair emphasized Kerensky’s lack of control and grip of the political stage. The combination of poor leadership, bias policies and reforms, inability to please the majority of the population, and limitations of the system and principles, the Provisional Government, in a sense, destroyed itself.

Bolshevik successes were a vital factor in the Provisional Government’s failure. They had superior leaders, precise timing, and skills to gain control and support. Lenin, its leader, was in exile but when he returned in April, smuggled in by the Germans, he issued the April Thesis. Most importantly, his policies won support of the working class, army and peasantry. He promised to grant the needs of the withering nation; peace, bread and land. He urged his supporters to withdraw from the provisional Government because it was middle class. Even though the Bolsheviks were a minority in most Soviets and only 40 Bolshevik delegates attended the First Russian Congress of Soviets, whereas 1600 representatives of the local Soviets were present, this benefitted them. They were able to neglect responsibility of the government’s failures and blame. Other significant leaders include Trotsky, Bukharin, Dzerzhinsky, Kamenev, Stalin, and Zinoviev. They worked together to get power and manipulate the population’s discontent. The Bolsheviks took advantage of riots and strikes. Furthermore they used the Petrograd Soviets as a means to gain power. In the end they adopted the Petrograd Soviets under their wing. Lenin made a reappearance in September and with Trotsky’s Red Guards, he took over key points of Petrograd and disposed the Provisional Government.

It can be concluded that the Provisional Government was able to serve its purpose as an impermanent governing system. It did not, nonetheless, pave a road for a democratically elected government. Russia’s internal problems in 1917 were a handful and only the correct response would have been able to have kept any government in control. Clearly the Provisional Government lacked this touch. Not only was it unable to imply secure control of the empire, since they were sharing power with the Petrograd Soviets, they faced conflicts within themselves. Their inaction and inefficiency caused their downfall and the took advantage of the situation. The buildup of impacts of events and the Bolsheviks’ upper hand led towards the Provisional Government’s failure. Marxist historians and Leninsists believe that Bolshevik successes were the core reason to the government’s disintegration but they had merely used the government’s inability to their advantage. The most significant factor was Lenin’s ability to educate and win support of the peasantry and working class. It is remarkable that the Bolsheviks had a revolution without bloodshed. To historians, it wasn’t a surprise that the Provisional Government did not last but that it had lasted that long.

[1] Evans, David and Jane Jenkins. Years of Russia and the USSR, 1851-1991. London; Hodder Murray, 2007: 206.

Bloom's Taxonomy Questions: What happened after the Provisional Government? Who was the key character of the Provisional Government? What factors would you change about the Provisional Government Why did the changes in the Provisional Government occur? What would happen if The Provisional Government did not end? Is there a better solution to The Provisional Government?

The Bolsheviks took over the government. The key character of the Provisional Government is Alexander Kerensky. I would change quite a few things. But the most important ones are, not sending the troops into war, pay more attention to the peasants and try to control the demonstrations better. It occurred because if not Alexander Kerensky will face many problems and angered citizens. Then there would be a lot more demonstrations At that time no, The Tsar was just killed and there was no one else to rule.

=Challenge Question:=

To what extent was the Provisional Government successful?

The Provisional Government was successful in a minimal extent in terms of keeping Russia under control. The peasants demonstrated and soldiers too. There was a food shortage in the cities due to the peasant's strikes.The people in the cities liked Alexander Kerensky and supported him to an extent. However the peasants wanted him dead. There were many casualties to this 8 month government. This is why it is unsuccessful and would've been better if Alexander paid more attention to the peasants. But underneath all these failures, the provisional government had some but very minimal successes. The provisional government lasted longer than what most people would expect. It gave the people hope at first. And it kept Russia being allies with England and France.

Unit Two-The Rise Of Communism Home Russia and The USSR