The Russian Revolution
Flag of the Czar
Flag of the Soviet Union
Ohio Performance Standards
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Content Standards:
15. The consequences of World War I and the
worldwide depression set the stage for the
Russian Revolution, the rise of totalitarianism,
aggressive Axis expansion and the policy of
appeasement, which in turn led to World War II.
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS:
1. How did the Russian Revolution contribute to
instability in Europe during and after WWI?
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The Land
• Russia is the largest country
in the world. It is 6,200
miles from east to west.
(New York to California is
3000 miles).
• The Ural Mountains run
north-south mark the
boundary between Europe
and Asia. On the western
side, the land is part of the
European Plain.
• On the eastern Asian side, a
large plain gives way to
drier, more mountainous
land.
Climate
• Russia is cold! In all of
Russia there is only one
major ocean port that is open
year round: St. Petersburg.
• St. Petersburg
Siberia
• Siberia, a huge area on the
Asian side, is one of the
coldest places on earth.
•
About half of the land of
Russia is too cold for people
to live in. The northern coast
is inside the Arctic Circle.
Population
• Total population: 146
million. (US has 310
million.)
• Over 75% of Russians
live in western,
European Russia.
• Moscow and St.
Petersburg are the
largest cities. Asian
Russia has a very small
population.
Reign
Name of the Monarch (Czar)
1613-1645
Czar Mikhail Feodorovich, founder of the Romanov dynasty
1645-1676
Czar Alexei Mikhailovich
1676-1682
Czar Feodor Alexeevich
1682-1696
Czar Ivan V (joint ruler with Peter I, the Great)
The Czars
• Czar is the Russian word for
King.
Czar Peter I, the Great, Emperor of All Russia
(From 1721 onwards, the Russian Czar was proclaimed
1696-1725
Emperor of All Russia. Czar Peter I became the first Emperor
of All Russia)
1725-1727
Catherine I, Empress of All Russia
1727-1730
Peter II, Emperor of All Russia
1730-1740
Anna Ivanovna, Empress of All Russia
1740-1741
Ivan VI, Emperor of All Russia
1741-1761
Elizabeth, Empress of All Russia
1761-1762
Peter III, Emperor of All Russia
1762-1796
Catherine II, the Great, Empress of All Russia
1796-1801
Paul I, Emperor of All Russia
1801-1825
Alexander I, Emperor of All Russia
1825-1855
Nicholas I, Emperor of All Russia
1855-1881
Alexander II, Emperor of All Russia
1881-1894
Alexander III, Emperor of All Russia
1894-1917
Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia
• From 1613 to 1917, the oldest
sons of the Romanov Dynasty
became czars of Russia.
• While other counties in
Europe gradually changed
from rule by a king
(monarchy) to rule by the
people (democracy), the
Russian czars held on to
absolute power.
Czar Nicholas II
• Czar Nicholas came to power in 1884 at the
age of 25. Like his father, Czar Alexander,
he completely controlled--and practically
owned—Russia.
• Peasants worked on farms but did not own
the land; workers produced goods but did
not share in the money: the Czar saw no
need for change. He led Russia into World
War I, and the army suffered several brutal
defeats by Germany in early 1915.
Nicholas II, Emperor of All Russia
1894-1917
• In September 1915, the Czar took control
of the Russian army, but he was no match
for the skilled German commanders, The
army fell apart; citizens demanded peace.
1917 February Revolution:
Strike, Mutiny, Abdication
In 1917 in St. Petersburg, the large industrial
city in western Russia, everything suddenly
changed: revolution!
Workers began to protest the lack of bread.
Women factory workers went on strike: they
refused to work and marched through the
streets.
Thousands of workers joined the strike, and
the Czar called in the army to fire on the
crowds.
The soldiers’ refusal to follow orders was
mutiny; many soldiers joined the striking
workers. Advisors convinced Nicholas to
abdicate, or give up the throne.
1917 October Revolution
Lenin and Communism
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After a temporary government was set
up, Vladimir Lenin violently seized
power. He led the Bolshevik
group that stressed a need for
revolutionary change in Russia.
He smashed the old systems and
created a government to give land to
peasants and power to workers.
There would be no rich or poor;
all power would be held in
common.
This belief in common work and
common benefit was called
Communism.
From Russia to Soviet Union
• Lenin organized Russia
into many workers’
councils called Soviets.
• All soviets were united in
the new country, the
Soviet Union, to be run by
workers, for workers.
• The Soviet Union (Union
of Soviet Socialist
Republics, or USSR) lasted
from 1917 to 1991.
Exit Ticket
1. What is a Czar?
2. What is the Romanov Dynasty?
3. Who is Czar Nicholas II?
4. Explain the 1917 February Revolution in
Russia. The 1917 October Revolution.
5. Explain the what is meant by the
phrase “From Russia to Soviet Union”.