The Long-Term Cause Of The March Revolution Of 1917

The immediate cause of the abdication of the was the March revolution of 1917, which largely took place in Petrograd. Starting on the 7th of May with workers striking at the Putilov steel works and ending on the 15th of May with Tsar Nicholas II’s abdication, these 9 days of protest were vital in causing the Tsar to abdicate. The first few days of the revolution saw workers demonstrating in the street for better wages and conditions. On the 8th of March, workers were joined by thousands of socialist women protesting on International Women’s Day. By the 10th, over 250,000 workers were on strike, and the city of Petrograd was left with no transport or newspapers, and a terrible food shortage. The Tsar’s Cossacks refused to attack the strikers, so the Tsar was left with very little to defend his
Members of the Duma became increasingly concerned about the situation, and Michael Rodzianko telegrammed the Tsar, informing him of the situation in Petrograd. The Tsar responded by telling the Duma to stop meeting. He believed that the people were angry with the government, whereas they were actually discontented with the Tsar’s incompetence. On the 15th of March, 1917, the Tsar’s train was stopped by rebels whilst returning to Petrograd. After holding him hostage in his train carriage, the rebels forced him to abdicate. In addition to this, he also abdicated on behalf of his son, Alexei, who suffered from haemophilia. The throne was then passed to Nicholas’ brother, Michael, but he also abdicated fearing unpopularity. This ended over 300 years of Romanov rule, making Russia a republic. The Tsar and his family were imprisoned until July 1918, when they were all