On this day 94 years ago, armed citizens led by Vladimir Lenin in Petrograd Russia revolted. The attack was signaled from the battle cruiser Aurora. Their target was the official residence of the monarchy: the Winter Palace. Even though it took place in October (according to the Julian calendar) the November dates correspond with the Gregorian system (initiated in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII), which the Russian Orthodox Church was using at the time.
The uprising was preceded by a years of turmoil. The conditions were comparable to pre-revolutionary France in 1789. Russia's involvement in WWI only made things worse. No middle class existed, only rich and poor. The Czar, Nicolas II, was isolated and disconnected from reality. His advisors convinced him that he was beloved by the people. When peace marches started occurring in major cities, he showed that he did not love them. Protestors were killed routinely.
By 1917, a new, radical party had gained prominence: the Bolsheviks. They advocated a complete change, dissolving the royal government and implementing Karl Marx's idea of a utopian, workers' state. They elected bodies of representatives called Soviets, and cast off the local governments in dozens of small towns and cities. Seeing that the people were ready for action, Lenin returned from his exile in Switzerland. By November 7, he had amassed a make-shift army.
Contrary to later propaganda, the uprising was bloodless and not very exciting. The Winter Palace was poorly defended, and the revolutionaries were so illiterate, they had to force their prisoners to write their own arrest papers. However, the Czar and his family were not there. Nicolas had abdicated the throne in February after a similar uprising. Despite all attempts to flee the country, he and his entire family were captured. In his place, a Russian Providential Government had been established. The fall of the Winter Palace marked the end of this regime and sparked a brutal civi war that would last for the next five years. Czar loyalists (Whites) versus the Communists (Reds). Many Socialist and Marxist parties felt that Lenin had gone too far, and withdrew their support.
Meanwhile, the Western powers looked on with horror. Communist infiltrators were sneaking into worn-torn Germany and attempting to ignite the Revolution there as well. Dozens of gun battles erupted in the streets every month between the Freikorps and the revolutionaries. Munich fell to Red control for several days. The US, Britain, France, Austria and Prussia each sent a contingent of troops to help the Whites. These were condemned by Lenin as "interventionists." Yet, this combined alliance troubled the Reds. Their military was poorly equipped, badly trained and had almost no financial backing. They then realized that this alliance was bent on restoring the Czar to power. To prevent this, they executed the entire royal family.
The interventionists left when it was obvious that the cause was lost. Lenin came to power, establishing Moscow as his capitol. He immediately began a series of violent purges, executing thousands of "counter revolutionaries." This bloodbath was called the Red Terror, mainly inspired by several failed assassination attempts on Lenin's life. But he would not live to see the utopian dream come true. He died on January 21, 1924 of a stroke. His right hand man, Leon Trotsky, would not survive either. He was chased out of Russia and eventually killed in Mexico by agents of the Communist Party Secretary: Joseph Stalin. Thus, Russia's century of misery began under a new flag.
The bodies of the Czar would not be found for nearly 100 years. The KGB kept close tabs on anyone who questioned the official story of the Revolution. In 1979, Alexander Avdonin found the missing family, but could not dig them up until 1998. DNA testing confirmed it was the Romanov's grave, under a dirt road near the house where they'd been shot. Nicolas himself was declared a saint by the Orthodox Church.
