Provisional Government
The result of the happenings of the February Revolution was a fresh and different governance than that of the Tsar's. Tsar Nicholas passed his throne to Grand Duke Michael who effectively denied power until an elected Assembly could elect him into power. In place of a Tsar a 12 man executive was established led by Alexander Kerensky. The goal of the this transitional government was to provide on the responsibilities of the any good government that the Tsar's ignored and didn't act on.
"Inspired, in common with the whole people, by the belief that the welfare of our country must be set above everything else, I have taken the firm decision to assume the supreme power only if and when our great people, having elected by universal suffrage a Constituent Assembly to determine the form of government and lay down the fundamental law of the new Russian State, invest me with such power.
Calling upon them the blessing of God, I therefore request all the citizens of the Russian Empire to submit to the Provisional Government, established and invested with full authority by the Duma, until such time as the Constituent Assembly, elected within the shortest possible time by universal, direct, equal and secret suffrage, shall manifest the will of the people by deciding upon the new form of government."
This proclamation essentially established the Provisional Government.
Calling upon them the blessing of God, I therefore request all the citizens of the Russian Empire to submit to the Provisional Government, established and invested with full authority by the Duma, until such time as the Constituent Assembly, elected within the shortest possible time by universal, direct, equal and secret suffrage, shall manifest the will of the people by deciding upon the new form of government."
This proclamation essentially established the Provisional Government.
"The Russian people are suffering from economic fatigue and from disillusionment with the Allies! The world thinks the Russian Revolution is at an end. Do not be mistaken. The Russian Revolution is just beginning." - Alex Kerensky
Structure
Provisional GovernmentThe Provisional Government was headed by a 12 man executive. The second legislative half was the Russian Constituent Assembly. It was a very weak government due to extreme factionalism not agreeing on anything making policy change impossible.
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Petrograd SovietThe Soviet Petrograd was the biggest challenger of the Provisional Government. People began to realize the weakness of the government and started to place their trust in the Petrograd. The army, factories, and the railways were under the Soviet's control.
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Faults
The Provisional Government had many short comings in the eyes of the people. These short comings set up another revolution for the Bolsheviks. The point of this transitional stage government to was to fix and adjust the broken policies the Tsar's ignored.
Issue
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Russian's reaction
2. They allowed anyone to free speech giving the Bolsheviks an opportunity to sway the public. The government then arrested Bolshevik leaders making them look untrustworthy. 3. The Petrograd Soviet had more political power and influence than the actual government. 4. Peasants were still broke, hungry, and landless.As anarchy grew among the peasants, the government sent soldiers to quell the them, only making them looks worse and making the peasants angrier. |