Failures of Alexander Kerensky, Chairman of the Russian Provisional
Government 1917
Contents
● War: July Offensive
● July Days
● Personality
● Worker Radicalisation
● Kornilov Affair
War: July Offensive
Kerensky was the Minister of War during June 1917 (Russia used a different calendar. The
July Offensive actually took place in June on Russian calendars), where the Russian army
attempted a large-scale offensive against Germany. Kerensky was the posterboy of this new
offensive, and involved in huge propaganda campaigns. He encouraged the middle class to
form shock battalions, but failed to convince the soldiers.
The offensive failed humiliatingly. Life and territory was lost to the Germans. This pushed
soldiers towards the Bolsheviks, as they felt cheated by the Provisional Government: one of
the original aims of the February Revolution was to end the war, not lose more life to it. The
new soldier support of the Bolsheviks contributed to the instability of the July Days.
Mistake: not withdrawing from the war, and instead making things worse
Worker Radicalisation
Life remained difficult under the Provisional Government, with many becoming disillusioned
with the ProvGov, and questioned its ability to serve the revolution. Inflation continued to
rise, wages remained low, and unemployment was rising.
The workers wanted the next stage of the revolution, but the moderate Mensheviks and SRs
in the government and Soviet wanted to wait. They thought it was still important to have a
parliamentary middle-class, in order to continue the war economy. Thus, they were
appeasing the desires of the middle class, not the workers.
The Bolsheviks offered an alternative. Lenin’s April Theses had directly called for the global
socialist revolution, including taking the revolution further in Russia. This increased support
for the Bolsheviks.
Mistake: favouring the interests of the middle class and pushing the working class
towards further revolution
Personality
Kerensky’s personality somewhat let him down towards the end of his time in power. He
enjoyed how much praise he was getting, and when likened to Napoleon, he embraced this -
somewhat arrogantly. He had photos of himself printed on thousands of postcards. He
adopted a self-important air, and moved into the Winter Palace.
Lenin, by contrast, appeared much more connected to the working class when he returned in
April. Lenin’s April Theses was gripping.
Mistake: creating a personality which wouldn’t suit the sentiment of those who
allowed him power (the workers)
July Days
Government 1917
Contents
● War: July Offensive
● July Days
● Personality
● Worker Radicalisation
● Kornilov Affair
War: July Offensive
Kerensky was the Minister of War during June 1917 (Russia used a different calendar. The
July Offensive actually took place in June on Russian calendars), where the Russian army
attempted a large-scale offensive against Germany. Kerensky was the posterboy of this new
offensive, and involved in huge propaganda campaigns. He encouraged the middle class to
form shock battalions, but failed to convince the soldiers.
The offensive failed humiliatingly. Life and territory was lost to the Germans. This pushed
soldiers towards the Bolsheviks, as they felt cheated by the Provisional Government: one of
the original aims of the February Revolution was to end the war, not lose more life to it. The
new soldier support of the Bolsheviks contributed to the instability of the July Days.
Mistake: not withdrawing from the war, and instead making things worse
Worker Radicalisation
Life remained difficult under the Provisional Government, with many becoming disillusioned
with the ProvGov, and questioned its ability to serve the revolution. Inflation continued to
rise, wages remained low, and unemployment was rising.
The workers wanted the next stage of the revolution, but the moderate Mensheviks and SRs
in the government and Soviet wanted to wait. They thought it was still important to have a
parliamentary middle-class, in order to continue the war economy. Thus, they were
appeasing the desires of the middle class, not the workers.
The Bolsheviks offered an alternative. Lenin’s April Theses had directly called for the global
socialist revolution, including taking the revolution further in Russia. This increased support
for the Bolsheviks.
Mistake: favouring the interests of the middle class and pushing the working class
towards further revolution
Personality
Kerensky’s personality somewhat let him down towards the end of his time in power. He
enjoyed how much praise he was getting, and when likened to Napoleon, he embraced this -
somewhat arrogantly. He had photos of himself printed on thousands of postcards. He
adopted a self-important air, and moved into the Winter Palace.
Lenin, by contrast, appeared much more connected to the working class when he returned in
April. Lenin’s April Theses was gripping.
Mistake: creating a personality which wouldn’t suit the sentiment of those who
allowed him power (the workers)
July Days
