Czar Nicholas II Married to Czarina Alexandria who was unpopular because she was Lutheran instead of Russian Orthodox

x Became czar in 1894 and was the last Czar of Russia Was unprepared for the throne when his father died unexpectedly. Had four daughters (Olga, Tatiana, Marie, Anastasia) and a son named Alexis who had a rare blood disease. Nicholas lost popularity after the Revolution of 1905 and was forced to allow the formation of an elected congress (the Duma). He disagreed with many of their decisions and eventually disbanded them. While Nicholas cared very much about the people he ruled over, but he was weak and allowed others to influence him which led to his detachment of the needs of the ordinary Russian people. He was bullied by his mother, he was pressured to show power by his wife, and was manipulated by his adviser, Rasputin. During WWI, Germany attempted to overthrow Nicholas through Vladimir Lenin. On March 15, 1917 Nicholas gave up his throne in addition to passing the title over his sickly son Alexis. Nicholas and his family were then taken into custody by the Bolsheviks and killed in July of 1918.

Rasputin Siberian peasant who was a supposed holy man. He was actually a fraud. He became close to the family by taking care of Czar Nicholas son, Alexis. Alexis was afflicted with hemophilia, and Rasputin was able to stop bleeding and decrease his pain. This gained him favor with Alexandra and therefore Nicholas, making the rest of the Russian aristocracy uneasy. He manipulated Nicholas. He influenced Nicholas to replac some of the Czars best advisors with incompetent men. The uneasy aristocrats resented him and attempted to murder him. Because of his weakness to money, women, and power he was lured into a trap.

Revolution of 1905 Workers marched the Winter Palace to try and persuade Nicholas to withdraw from the War with Japan. Russia became involved because of their lack of a warm water or ice free port on the Pacific. Involvement in the war was very unpopular, so workers tried to persuade Nicholas to withdraw. Palace troops became alarmed and fired on the civilians killing or wounding several hundred people including women and children. The war led to the loss of popularity for Nicholas.

WWI and Russia Despite the unpopularity of the decision, Russia became involved in WWI with the formation of the Triple Entende with England and France. A political dissident named Vladimir Lenin began negotiating with the Germans and was given support to overthrow Nicholas in order to become the ruler of a socialist/communist government. The Bolsheviks, or the Communist Party eventually forced Nicholas to step down and took control of Russia. The Czar and his family were denied political asylum by England and were later killed.

The February Revolution The Downfall of the Romanovs During WWI Nicholas was forced to abdicate the Russian throne for himself and his son Alexis. The Bolsheviks took control of Russia forming a Communist government. Led to the murder of the Czar and his family.

Karl Marx Believed that there should be no private property and that all workers should be equal. Proposed that religion be used to control workers. His theories about society, economics, and politics (known as Marxism) hold that all societies progress through the class struggle. Conflict arises when an ownership class controls production and a lower class produces goods in order to benefit the wealthy. This tension would lead to destruction and implementation of a new Socialist system. Socialism would involve a working class governing the society creating a workers state. Socialism would then in turn be replaced by a stateless, classless society called communism.

Vladimir Lenin A political dissident in exile who was sponsored by the Germans to overthrow Czar Nicholas in order to create a socialist/communist government. Followed the teachings of Karl Marx. Used the slogan Peace, land, and bread to gain support. In addition, implemented the red flag with the sickle, hammer, and star. When leading the Bolsheviks, he took Russia out of WWI and seized all farms and industries. He hoped for a worldwide communist revolution but realized he needed strong and peaceful relationships with capitalist governments.

 Communist Party (Bolsheviks) Took the Czar into custody and eventually murdered them. Led by Vladimir Lenin who followed the teachings of Karl Marx. Were later called the Soviets who renamed the country the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)

Leon Trotsky Second in command to Vladimir Lenin while Lenin lived. Upheld the idea of a classless society. Was exiled by Josef Stalin and was later assassinated by him. Social Theorist and critic of Stalin. Led a failed struggle of the Left Opposition against the policies and rise of stalin in the 1920s and was removed from power, expelled from the Communist Party, deported, and assassinated following this failure. Was an early advocate of Red Army intervention against European Facism and also opposed Stalins non-aggression pact with Hitler in the late 1930s. After expulsion from the communist party, he became the head of Fourth International to oppose the rule of Stalin. His ideas form the basis of Trotskyism, a school of Marxist thought that opposes the theories of Stalinism.

Josef Stalin Eventual dictator of Russia who rewrote history to make himself seem like he had a larger part of the Revolutions that overthrew Czar Nicholas. Set up plans for the economy and production without looking at the needs of the market. Created a secret police called the KGB that instilled fear in the citizens of Russia. In addition, he broke up families and encouraged children to inform on their parents. He also controlled the media and spread mass propaganda. Premier of the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1953. He started as a revolutionary with the Bolsheviks. He used lower offices in order to collect more and more power after the death of Lenin and eventually put down all opposition groups of the Communist Party, including the one led by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky favored permanent revolution while Stalin favored Socialism.

The Proletariat From the Latin Proletarius meaning citizen of the lowest class Term used to identify a lower social class or the working class. Original definition identified members of the Proletariat as those who had no wealth other than their children.