The causes of the Russian Revolution of 1917 and indicate its significance in world History

In the nineteenth century, almost entire Europe was going through important social, economic and political transformation.

Unlike France and England, whit was republic and constitutional monarchy respectively, Russia was still under the autocratic rule of the Czars.

Though serfdom was abolished in 1861, there had been no improvement in the condition of peasants. They had meager holdings of land with no capital to develop that. For decades, they had to pay heavy redemption dues for their meager holdings. During those days, it was the land hunger of peasants which was a major social factor in the Russian society.

In the second half of the nineteenth century, industrialization began in Russia. It was already very late and then, it developed at a fast speed. Most of the investment came from foreign countries; the foreign investors were interested in quick profits showing no concern for the conditions of workers.

There was a clear cut gap between the Russian investors with insufficient capital and the foreign investors. Russian capitalists, have, reduced workers’ wages. Whether the factory was owned by foreigners or Russians, the workers were the worst victims, their condition being horrible. Deprived of political rights with no means of gaining any kind of reforms, literally they had, in the words of Marx, ‘nothing to lose but their chains’.

The reign of Czars was outdated, unsuitable to modern times. They believed in the divinity of kings. The nobility and the upper class of the clergy were the only people supporting the Czar Nicholas II, in whose reign the Revolution occurred. The bureaucracy was insufficient and its members were only from the privileged classes.

There was built a large empire, including diverse nationalities, by the Russian Czars. In all the conquered parts of the empire they imposed the Russian language and culture, belittling the people’s own language and culture. Russia’s imperialist expansion brought her into conflicts with other imperialist forces. The wars only exposed the hollowness of the Christ state.

Many peasant rebellions in Russia were suppressed before the nineteenth century. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century after failure of every attempt at gradual improvement, there began a movement ‘going to the people’ when intellectuals started preaching their ideas to the peasants.

After industrialization began in Russia, workers’ organizations were set up. In 1883, the Russian Social Democratic Party was formed by George Plekhanov but was soon split into Mensheviks, the minority and Bolsheviks, the majority. In 1904, a war had broken out between Russia and Japan. The Russian army had suffered reverses in the war. This strengthened the revolutionary movement in Russia.

On January 9th, 1905, a mass of peaceful workers with their wives and children was fired at St. Petersburg while on its way to the Winter Palace to present a petition to the Czar. More than a thousand of them were killed and thousands of others were wounded. This is known as ‘Bloody Sunday’. This shocking news provoked unprecedented disturbances throughout Russia.

Even sections of the army and the navy revolted. A new form of organization developed in this revolution which proved decisive in the upheaval of 1917. This was the ‘Soviet’, or the council of workers’ representatives. Though in October, the Czar issued his manifesto of constitutional monarchy, he soon relented into his old ways. There remained no hope for gradual reform.

The 1905 revolution aroused people and prepared people for revolution in 1917, drawing soldiers, even non-Russian. Bringing Russian into the First World War, Czar tried to satisfy his imperial ambitions by annexing Constantinople. This proved fatal hammering the last nail in the coffin of the Russian autocracy. Corruption was at its peak, there was complete shortage of food.

The Russian army was in dire state, this condition was ripe for a revolution. Lenin, in his ‘the fundamental law for successful revolution’, has included two conditions- the people should fully understand that revolution is necessary and be ready to sacrifice their lives for it; the existing government should be in a state of crisis to make it possible for it to be overthrown rapidly.

On 12 March, 1917, St. Petersburg fell into the hands of the revolutionary and the Czar soon gave up his throne. This was the February Revolution (acc. to the Old Russian Calendar). The provisional government lost the support of people as it didn’t implement their demands of peace, land to the Killer, control of industry by workers and equal status to non-Russians. This government collapsed and on November 7 an All-Russian Congress of Soviets assumed full power. This is known as October Revolution (acc to the Old Russian Calendar).

The first achievements of the Russian Revolution were the overthrow of autocracy and the destruction of the aristocracy and the power of the church. The Czarist Empire was transformed into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR). Its policies were to be directed to the realization of the old socialist ideal, ‘from each according to his capacity, to each according to his need’.

Private property as the means of production was abolished and the motive of private profit eliminated from the system of production. Economic planning by the state was adopted to build a technologically advanced economy at fast rate in order to eliminate inequalities in the society.

As there was no unearned income, work became an essential requirement for every person. The right to work became a constitutional right and it was the duty of the state to provide employment to every individual. Education of all people was given priority. Equal status was given to all nationalities in the USSR. The republics formed by the nationalities were given autonomy by the constitution to develop their language and culture.

The Soviet Union became a major power in the world within a few years of the revolution. Its social and economic system was hailed as the beginning of a new civilization. This Revolution was the first successful revolution in history which proclaimed the building of a socialist society as its objective.

The Communist International or Commentary was formed for promoting revolutions on an international scale. The formation of communist parties in various countries of the world with the objective of bringing about revolution and following common policies was a major consequence of the Russian revolution.

Despite the division of the socialist movement into two sections-socialist and communist and differences between them on the methods of bringing about socialism and about the concept of socialism itself, socialism became one of the most widely held ideologies within a few decades after its emergence. Its spread and influence was a very significant thing after the First World War.

It also promoted internationalism; self interest took a back-seat. Many problems, earlier considered national, were looked upon as international problem. The whole world united in a sense. The fundamental principles of socialist ideology-universality and internationalism were accepted to a great extent. Socialist all over the world organised to put an end to imperialism.

The USSR was being looked upon as a friend of those countries struggling for independence as it was the first country in Europe to openly support the cause of independence of all nations from foreign rule. The USSR had annulled the unequal treaties imposed by the Czar on China. The Russian Revolution also influenced the independence movements gradually broadening the objectives of independence to include social and economic equality through planned economic development.