Russia

The February 1917 Revolution

– Why did Nicholas II Fall
from Power?

These icons indicate that teacher’s notes or useful web addresses are available in the Notes Page.

This icon indicates that the slide contains activities created in Flash. These activities are not editable.
For more detailed instructions, see the Getting Started presentation.
11 of
of 23
23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006
 Learning objectives
What we will learn in this presentation:
Learning objectives

The state of Russia in 1914.

The effects of the First World War on

Russia – the causes of unrest.

Tsar Nicholas’s reaction to the unrest.

Why the tsar abdicated and how the

Provisional Government took power.

22ofof23
23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006
The effects of World War I on Russia

Food prices were

increasing rapidly as food
supplies needed to go to
the soldiers at the front.

Rations of food went

down as each month
passed and this led to
discontent in the towns,
cities and countryside.

Peasants began to hide

surplus food and were then
tortured and killed by the
army as a punishment.
3 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006
Was the Russian army ready for the war?

A wave of patriotism and support for the tsar as ‘our Holy

Father’ spread across Russia at the start of the war. By the
end of 1914 there were 6.5 million soldiers in the Russian
army. In 1915 Nicholas assumed supreme command of the
army – which meant he wasn’t in Russia.

But there were only four million rifles,

not all of which had any bullets. A
soldier would have to wait for the man
in front of him to be killed, and then he
would take his rifle from him.

What effect do you think this news had on

people in Russia?
4 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006
Bad news!

Russian newspapers were heavily censored and

couldn’t have printed anything against the
government. But if they hadn’t been, you would
certainly have seen headlines like those on the
following slides appearing as the months went on.

5 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

Bad news!

December 1916

Russian Officers Murder Lecherous Monk

Noble supporters of the

tsar murder the drunken,
lecherous monk who has
influenced the tsarina and
brought shame on the tsar.

What effect do you think news of events such as this would

have on the way people felt about the government?

6 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

Bad news!

1914
Russian Troops Suffer Disastrous
Defeat at Battle Of Tannenberg

Russian troops have been forced out of

Poland. Polish refugees are making the
food shortage situation even worse.

What effect do you think news of events such as this would

have on the way people felt about the government?

7 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

Bad news!

Heroic soldier returns to see his

home destroyed.

A soldier’s home was destroyed and his

family killed by government forces, it was
reported yesterday. The family withheld
food to prevent his little sister from
starving to death.

What effect do you think news of events such as this would

have on the way people felt about the government?

8 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

Bad news!

February 1917

Bread queues lengthen in Petrograd

People queuing for

hours, yesterday, for a
loaf of bread. When
they find that there is
none left they starve for
another day.
What effect do you think news of events such as this would
have on the way people felt about the government?

9 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

Bad news!

30,000 men locked out of the Pitilov

Steel Works for asking for a pay rise

Sacked Petrograd steel workers have

been demonstrating in the streets after
being locked out of work for going on
strike. Their families starve in bread
queues that have no bread.

What effect do you think news of events such as this would

have on the way people felt about the government?

10 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

Revolutionaries

February 1917
Revolutionary Ideas Spreading
Among the People
Revolutionary ideas being
spread by soldiers and workers
distributing leaflets
encouraging people to rebel
against the tsar. Soldiers are
deserting from the army in their
thousands.
What effect do you think news of events such as this would
have on the way people felt about the government?

11 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

The tsar’s response

On 26 February 1917 there were massive street

demonstrations in Petrograd. How do you think Nicholas
responded to the worsening situation?

The riots are getting out

of hand, I don’t think I
can control them.

You are exaggerating! Don’t

panic, just use the troops to
put the riots down.
Rodzyanko, chairman of the Tsar Nicholas II,
State Duma, in Petrograd. commanding the Russian
Army from Mogilev.
12 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006
The tsar’s response

The soldiers refused to fire on the

crowds. The chairman of the Duma told
Nicholas that a change of government
was needed. The crowd were refusing to
disperse and they could not be
controlled.
© David King Collection

Which of these things would you have done if you were

Nicholas II, and why would you have done this?

Order the Return to Give the crowd

troops to fire Petrograd and some of their
on the crowds take control demands

13 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

The tsar’s response

Order the
troops to fire
on the crowds?

Nicholas was not a cruel man. He knew that the people

were genuinely suffering. He was also realistic enough
to realize that the troops would probably not have
obeyed the orders, so he did not make this choice.

14 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

The tsar’s response

Return to
Petrograd and
take control?

This would probably have been the sensible thing to do

if he’d done it on the 26 February. Nicholas might have
been able to restore some order and show himself to
the people as a concerned leader.

15 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

The tsar’s response

Give the crowd

some of their
demands?

This was almost impossible. Their simply wasn’t

enough food to go around, and even if there was, there
weren’t good enough methods of distribution. Nicholas
also didn’t want to be seen to be giving in.

But Nicholas didn’t do any of these things. Look at the

next slide to see the decision that he made.
16 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006
The tsar’s response

I’m not having The Result?

the Duma or the On the 26 February
people telling the members of the
me what to do. Duma disobeyed the
tsar and met anyway.

Mr 25,000 troops mutinied

Rodzyanko, and marched towards
chairman of the Tauride Palace
the Duma: I’m where the Duma was
going to close meeting, not to attack
you down and the Duma but to support
rule by it in its stand against the
myself. tsar.
© David King Collection
The Russian Revolution had begun.
17 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006
Nicholas II attempts to return

Nicholas tried to return to Petrograd by train to take control

of the situation on 2 March. A group of army generals
stopped the train and told him it wasn’t safe for him to
return as the troops might fire on him. They said he would
have to give up power and hand it over to his son Alexi.
Nicholas said Alexi was too ill and suggested his own
brother the Grand Duke Michael.

The generals refused and so the tsar abdicated (gave up

his power).

The Romanov Dynasty, which had

lasted for over 400 years in Russia,
had come to an end in a few days.
18 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006
Why did the tsar fall from power?

Below are some reasons why Nicholas fell from power in

February 1917. Rearrange them into order of importance
and then add evidence to back up each one.

19 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006

Quiz

20 of 23 © Boardworks Ltd 2006