Chapter 28 - World War I (Section Four)

Same as the others.

World War I proved to be the breaking point of czarist rule in ______.

^ Russia

What were the three reasons the Russians hated Czar Nicholas II?

1. His political incompetence.
2. How he simped for his wife, Alexandra.
3. His reliance on the healer, Grigori Rasputin.

Petrograd = ?

The Russian name given to St. Petersburg.

What happened on March 8th, 1917?

Hundreds of thousands of Russians gathered in the streets demanding food and an end to the war.

The troops the government ordered to put down the March riots did what?

Refused to open fire on the crowds (and many joined the protesters).

The March Revolution = ?

A spontaneous uprising of working people and soldiers. It took place without the leadership of revolutionary intellectuals.

Provisional Government = ?

After Czar Nicholas II’s abdication, the political authority passed into the hands of a temporary central government.

Alexander Kerensky = ?

A moderate socialist who served as the provisional government’s prime minister.

Three-Point Program = ?

What the Petrograd Soviets (workers and peasants belonging to different socialist groups) wanted.


1. Immediate peace.
2. The transfer of land to the peasants.
3. For factories to be controlled by workers.

Russia didn’t withdraw from the war. As a result, the provisional government was too preoccupied with war policy to carry out social reforms. What stemmed from this mistake?

The government lost much of its public support.

In 1903, after the __________ and the ___________ split into two factions, they began competing for control of Russia’s revolutionary movement.

^ Mensheviks

^ Bolsheviks

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin = ?

As the leader of the Bolshevik revolution, he urged the Bolshevik revolutionaries to form plans to topple the provisional government.

Lenin’s older brother was ________ for his involvement in the failed assassination attempt against Czar Alexander III.

^ Executed

Lenin was exiled to _______ for his involvement in revolutionary activities.

^ Siberia

After Lenin’s release, he traveled to Germany, Great Britain, and Switzerland to do what?

Write revolutionary articles and keep a watchful eye on Russian politics.

After hearing the news of the March 1917 revolution, Lenin was sent home on a private ______ train. How did he get this train?

^ German

He promised Germany of Russia’s revocation from the war.

What was Lenin’s slogan?

“Peace, Land, and Bread.”

In the summer of 1917, several demonstrations against the provisional government broke out across Russia. What did the government do in an attempt to resolve this?

These demonstrations were blamed on the Bolsheviks and the government issued arrest warrants for all Bolshevik leaders.

In November of 1917, the Bolsheviks staged what in Petrograd?

They staged a coup d’etat and overthrew the provisional government.

In what ways did the Bolsheviks lay the foundation of a socialist state?

1. Ending private ownership of property.
2. Distributing land among the peasants.
3. Giving workers control of factories and mines.

Communism = ?

The political viewpoint (based on the ideas of Marx and Lenin) the Bolsheviks adopted.

The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk = ?

Ended Russia’s participation in the war (which enabled Germany to start funneling their troops into the war effort on the Western Front).

During the 1918 civil war in Russia, who fought who?

The Reds/Communists fought the Whites/their political opponents—the royalists, liberal democrats, and moderate socialists.

The Whites received military aid from who and why?

The Allies and the United States; Because they promised to put Russia back in the war if they succeeded.

War Communism = ?

A policy the Communists imposed that involves taking direct control of industry and forcing peasants to send food into the starving cities.

Cheka = ?

Lenin’s secret police force that arrested anyone considered to be “an enemy of the revolution.”

Who won Russia’s civil war?

The Reds won, the Whites were defeated.

During the upheaval of the civil war, Lenin did what?

Took advantage of Russia’s weakened state to extend Communist control throughout the war-ravaged country.

Soviet Union = ?

Was established in 1922.