October Revolution

October Revolution
Part of the Russian Revolution, the Revolutions of 1917–1923 and the Russian Civil War
The Winter Palace of Petrograd, one day after the insurrection, 8 November
Date 7 November 1917 [O.S. 25 October] Location Petrograd, Russian Republic Result Bolshevik victory End of the dual power Dissolution of the Russian Provisional Government The Second Congress of Soviets proclaims itself as the supreme governing body of the country Kerensky's and Krasnov's failed attempt to retake the capital Election to Constituent Assembly held under Bolshevik pressure Beginning of the Russian Civil War
Belligerents
Bolsheviks Petrograd Soviet Red Guards Left SRs Anarchists[1]	Russian Republic
Commanders and leaders
Vladimir Lenin Leon Trotsky Joseph Stalin Lev Kamenev Vladimir Ovseenko Pavel Dybenko Yakov Sverdlov	Alexander Kerensky Pyotr Krasnov
Strength
10,000 red sailors 20,000–30,000 Red Guard soldiers Unknown number of workers (50,000 workers passed a resolution in favour of Bolshevik demand for transfer of power to the soviets)[2][3]	500–1,000 volunteer soldiers 1,000 soldiers of women's battalion
Casualties and losses
Few wounded Red Guard soldiers[4]	All imprisoned or deserted

The October Revolution,^[a] also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution^[b] (in Soviet historiography), October coup,^[5][6] Bolshevik coup,^[6] or Bolshevik revolution,^[7][8] was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment in the larger Russian Revolution of 1917–1923. It was the second revolutionary change of government in Russia in 1917. It took place through an insurrection in Petrograd (now Saint Petersburg) on 7 November 1917 [O.S. 25 October]. It was the precipitating event of the Russian Civil War. The initial stage of the October Revolution which involved the assault on Petrograd occurred largely without any human casualties.^[9][10][11]

The October Revolution followed and capitalized on the February Revolution earlier that year, which had led to the abdication of Nicholas II and the creation of a provisional government. The provisional government, led by Alexander Kerensky, had taken power after Grand Duke Michael, the younger brother of Nicholas II, declined to take power. During this time, urban workers began to organize into councils (soviets) wherein revolutionaries criticized the provisional government and its actions. The provisional government remained unpopular, especially because it was continuing to fight in World War I, and had ruled with an iron fist throughout mid-1917 (including killing hundreds of protesters in the July Days). It declared Russia as a republic on 1 September (O.S.; 14 September, N.S.) 1917.

Events came to a head in late 1917 as the Directorate, led by the left-wing Party of Socialist-Revolutionaries (SRs), controlled the government. The far-left Bolsheviks were deeply unhappy with the government, and began spreading calls for a military uprising. On 10 October 1917 (O.S.; 23 October, N.S.), the Petrograd Soviet, led by Leon Trotsky, voted to back a military uprising. On 24 October (O.S.; 6 November, N.S.), the government shut down numerous newspapers and closed the city of Petrograd in an attempt to forestall the revolution; minor armed skirmishes broke out. The next day, a full-scale uprising erupted as a fleet of Bolshevik sailors entered the harbor and tens of thousands of soldiers rose up in support of the Bolsheviks. Bolshevik Red Guard forces under the Military-Revolutionary Committee began the occupation of government buildings. In the early morning of 26 October (O.S.; 8 November, N.S.), the Winter Palace (the seat of the Provisional government located in Petrograd, then capital of Russia) was captured.

As the revolution was not universally recognized, the country descended into the Russian Civil War, which would last until late 1922 and ultimately lead to the creation of the Soviet Union. The historiography of the event has varied. The victorious Soviet Union viewed it as a validation of its ideology and the triumph of the working class over capitalism. On the other hand, the Western Allies, for various reasons, later intervened against the Bolsheviks in the civil war. The event inspired many cultural works and ignited communist movements globally. October Revolution Day was a public holiday in the Soviet Union, marking its key role in the state's founding, and many communist parties around the world celebrate it.

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