The February Revolution in Petrograd

Duma and Soviet claimed power from different social bases. Exam tip: understand space and legitimacy together.

Both food and labour problems were bringing people to the streets. Exam tip: write socio-economic crisis as connected.

During the First World War, transport and supply systems were disrupted, causing shortages of bread, fuel and other essentials in Petrograd. Rising prices, long queues and worsening living conditions turned workers’ and citizens’ discontent into strikes and demonstrations. Option B is the opposite of the historical situation: the crisis weakened, rather than strengthened, support for Tsarist rule. Exam tip: connect war, food shortages and popular protest when recalling the causes of the February Revolution.

Women turned everyday crisis into political protest. Exam tip: identify the link between household and public politics.

Workers and soldiers were challenging different bases of power. Exam tip: connect their combined effect with power crisis.

Duma suspension shows political crisis and soldiers' disobedience shows military crisis. Exam tip: connect both together.

Wages and working hours were key issues of labour unrest. Exam tip: connect workers' demands with living conditions.

The direct answer is A: the protest was now directly addressing the regime. A capital contains the main institutions of government, so moving toward power centres changes a protest from a local complaint into a political challenge. Step by step: people first expressed anger about bread, war and living conditions; they then moved near government institutions; this showed that they were demanding action from the ruling authorities themselves. B is wrong because the movement was not only about fields or land. C is wrong because the protests weakened, rather than demonstrated full support for, the Tsar. D is wrong because the statement says nothing about the end of the soviets, and the revolution led to competing centres of authority. The location of a protest helps reveal its target. Memory cue: protest near government buildings usually signals a direct political demand.

The direct answer is A: institutions of rule, the workers’ movement and military units were present together there. Petrograd was the capital and therefore contained important government offices, factories with organised workers and military forces. Step by step: war and shortages created anger; workers could organise strikes in the city; soldiers were present and could refuse orders or join the people; pressure in the capital therefore reached the state immediately. B is wrong because Petrograd was an important urban capital, not merely a small rural area. C is wrong because it was inside Russia. D is wrong because the city was affected by war, shortages and political crisis. The close presence of these groups made events in Petrograd especially powerful. Memory cue: in a capital, public protest can quickly become a crisis of government.

Soviets showed the desire for participation and representation. Exam tip: understand the difference between power change and representation.

The Provisional Government was not treated as final legitimacy. Exam tip: connect Constituent Assembly with democratic legitimacy.

The February Revolution involved both the weakening of the old authority and the rise of a new representative force. Repression could not stop the protests, and the formation of the Petrograd Soviet gave workers and soldiers an organised body through which they could express demands. These two developments happened together and revealed a transfer of political influence.

Option A is correct because it includes both parts of the situation: the old power was losing control, while a new representative institution was becoming stronger. The other choices contradict the events. The Tsar’s army did not simply become more loyal, the Duma did not turn into a palace, and the public did not withdraw all demands. The combination shows a major political transformation.

Soldiers were not merely sympathetic observers during the February Revolution. At first, the government expected the army to obey orders and suppress the strikes and demonstrations. However, many soldiers were themselves exhausted by war, affected by shortages, and connected with the protesting population. When soldiers refused to fire or joined the uprising, the government lost the practical means to enforce its authority in Petrograd. This directly weakened the Tsar’s control and helped make a transfer of power possible.

The correct choice is A because the soldiers’ mutiny stopped the repressive machinery from operating effectively. If the army had remained loyal and followed orders, the government might have tried to crush the movement. The other choices describe actions unrelated to the revolution: soldiers were not spectators, palace donors, or foreign traders. Their change of allegiance was therefore a decisive political and military development.

Women and soldiers both made the movement decisive. Exam tip: remember the role of ordinary people.

Petrograd’s physical layout helped shape the course of the February Revolution. Many industrial workers lived and worked in areas on the Neva’s right bank, including the Vyborg side. From there, strikes and demonstrations moved across bridges and toward important political and administrative centres. This shows that geography was not separate from class politics: the location of factories and workers influenced how protests spread through the city.

Option A is the best answer because it links the organisation of workers on the right bank with the movement of protest toward centres of power. The other choices wrongly place all groups in villages, confuse government buildings with workers’ settlements, or treat the Neva as if it ended political action. Urban space affected routes and gatherings, but it did not cause the revolution by itself. Social grievances and political crisis remained essential.

The February 1917 crisis was not merely a public protest in Petrograd. Soldiers refused orders to fire on demonstrators and many joined them, while opposition in the Duma and failures of the administration made Tsarist rule impossible to sustain. The Tsar's personal health or a good harvest were not decisive causes of the revolution. Exam tip: link popular unrest with the soldiers' mutiny and the breakdown of government authority.

February overthrew Tsarism but did not finally solve the power question. Exam tip: see February and October as linked phases.

The direct answer is A: discontent and courage were growing stronger than fear. Repeatedly remaining in the streets despite danger shows that people were no longer willing to return quietly to ordinary life. Step by step: shortages, war and harsh conditions created anger; repression created fear; however, continued demonstrations showed that anger and collective courage had become stronger than fear; this made the movement harder to stop. B is wrong because repeated protest does not show complete love for the Tsar. C is wrong because continued political action is the opposite of complete indifference. D is wrong because the protesters were demanding change at home, not asking for foreign rule. The important psychological point is collective confidence: when many people act together, individual fear can decrease. Memory cue: repeated protest despite repression signals rising courage and weakening authority.

The Soviet later became a major platform of power struggle. Exam tip: connect the February institution with October.

The movement first rose from people and then forms like Soviet and Provisional Government emerged. Exam tip: understand leadership in phases.

The February Revolution was a multi-level and multi-causal process. Exam tip: connect causes in the conclusion.