Changes

The war on the Eastern Front became bogged down in trench warfare. Russia endured hefty casualties, and it placed a great strain on its resources. Food supplies became scarce, and poverty spread across Russia. Essentially, the lives of most Russians became intolerable. The Tsarist government became very unpopular. A scandal also made the Tsar and his family hated by many. A Siberian holy man called Rasputin, gained great influence with the Tsar and his family, as he claimed to have the ability to heal the crown prince’s hemophilia. This brought him ‘immense power and prestige at Court,’ but it scandalized many.<ref>Figes, p. 31.</ref> By 1917, the Russian people were war-weary, and strikes became very common. The Tsar refused to enter into peace negotiations with the Central Powers, despite several defeats on the Eastern Front and ordinary people's suffering.

[[File:19170704_Riot_on_Nevsky_prosp_Petrograd.jpg|thumbnail|left|300px|Troops open fire on Russian protesters in 1917.]]

By February 1917, the situation was unbearable for the average Russian soldier and citizens. A series of strikes were staged in St. Petersburg, and the Tsar ordered the army to break the strikes. Instead, the army mutinied and began to fraternize with the strikers.<ref>Robert Service (2005). ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/067401801X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=067401801X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=1f1aedc66cb1d26dbbb2b33138bcf078 A history of modern Russia from Nicholas II to Vladimir Putin]''. Harvard University Press</ref> The authority of the Tsar ebbed away, and he was forced to abdicate. A Provisional Government that claimed to represent the workers and the peasants took power. This became known as the October Revolution.<ref>, Malone, Richard (2004). ''Analyzing the Russian Revolution''. Australia: Cambridge University Press. p. 67.</ref>

Lenin organized his Bolshevik forces and decided to stage a revolt that would seize Petrograd's power (formerly known as St Petersburg). On the night of October, they seized the Winter Palace and ousted the Provisional Government. The event became known as the October Revolution. The next day the world was amazed to hear of the first Communist government in history. However, only after a brutal civil war resulted in millions of deaths that the Communist were able to take full control of Russia.

Many factors caused the Russian Revolution. The autocratic Tsarist regime was unwilling to change with their society. The Regime's repressive policies and scandals further undermined its legitimacy. However, this did not make the Russian Revolution inevitable. The catalyst for the revolution was the First World War. It accentuated the tensions in Russian society and unleashed forces that the Romanov regime could not control. The suffering people and the common soldiers grew impatient and demanded immediate change and, above all, peace. The failure of the Tsarist regime to end the war resulted in the collapse of the Romanov Dynasty.

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