Loading subject…
Armistice
A formal agreement between warring parties to stop fighting, often to create a temporary truce while a peace treaty is negotiated.
Authoritarianism
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the consolidation of power in a single leader or small group, limited political pluralism, repression of dissent, and little to no accountability to the public.
Bolsheviks
Radical Marxist faction led by Lenin that split from the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1903, advocating a small, disciplined party of professional revolutionaries to seize power on behalf of the working class.
Coup d’état
A coup d'état is the sudden, illegal, and often violent seizure of power from a government by a small group of people, typically the military or other political elites.
Dual Authority
The system of parallel governance that existed in Russia between February and October 1917, in which the Provisional Government held formal legal authority while the Petrograd Soviet commanded the practical loyalty of soldiers and workers. This division of power weakened both bodies and created the political vacuum that the Bolsheviks exploited.
Duma
The Duma was the elected national parliament of Russia, created by the October Manifesto of 1905. It had limited powers and could be dissolved by the tsar. Nicholas II dissolved the first two Dumas when they challenged his authority, and the Fundamental Laws of April 1906 ensured the tsar retained a veto over all legislation.
Marxism-Leninism
Communist ideology emphasizing class struggle and revolution; Mao later adapted it to focus on peasants rather than industrial workers.
Propaganda
Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote a political cause or point of view. States use propaganda through media, education, and public events to shape public opinion.
Provisional Government
Temporary government formed after the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II in February 1917, intended to govern Russia until a democratically elected Constituent Assembly could be convened.
Vanguard Party
A small, tightly organised party of professional revolutionaries that leads the working class toward revolution. Developed by Lenin in What Is To Be Done? (1902), the vanguard party concept argued that the proletariat could not achieve revolutionary consciousness on its own and needed a disciplined elite to guide it. This became the organisational model for the Bolshevik Party.