It is true to say that the Bolsheviks did not seize power but rather picked it up. The process that ensured their seizure of power is known as the Russian Revolution. This brought an end to 300 years of rule by monarchical, the Romanov dynasty. "The Bolsheviks were too numerically weak to overthrow a properly run government. What they did have was ambition, determination and a strategy to rise to an empty seat of power" . They were eager to overthrow the monarchy and rose to power as a result of the revolution.

Nicholas II is historically noted for being the last Tsar of Russia. Known to his ministers as being an incredibly weak and easily lead autocrat, he was out of tune with the people he ruled. His unruly, opinionated wife Alexandra was said to dominate Nicholas and tell him what to do. This is obviously a factor which contributed to his downfall and the rise of the Bolsheviks to power. At the time of his coronation as King he said, "Let all know that I, devoting all my strength to the welfare of the people, will uphold the principle of autocracy as firmly and as unflinchingly as my late unforgettable father" . This is a unbelievable contradiction. It is true th

Allied with Britain, Russia's army was the biggest in the war with about 14 million soldiers being drafted by 1917. This did not stop them from being unprepared and inadequately qualified with one gun available for every three soldiers in training and three bullets a day for soldiers in battle. Russia began to suffer humiliating defeats and in 1915, the Tsar went to the front to take over as Commander in Chief of the armed forces. He left Alexandra behind to run the country, who was unpopular with the people because of her German background. She was under the influence of a wandering peasant holy man called Rasputin who took over the government and sacked many competent ministers and advisors. The new ministers that Rasputin appointed were not only incompetent but corrupt and this added to the popular discontent that swept Russia.

On October 25 the Winter Palace was stormed by the Bolsheviks and the Provisional Government succumbed to the pressure and gave in. The Provisional Government realised that they possessed no real power or support from the people and that there was no future for them as rulers of Russia.

Both the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks were followers and believers in Karl Marx (1818-83) a German who is known for being the father of Communism. He concluded that after hundreds of years of dictatorship one day the middle class would rise to power and this would only happen as a result of a revolution. He believed that only then would every one be equal. Marx noted that this would only happen in countries like Britain and Germany and not in Russia as it was a feudal country. It is somehow ironic that Russia was the first to fall to Communism.

A group who called themselves the Socialist Revolutionaries formed in Russia in 1900. Their leader Lenin ( a great intellect from serf stock ) decided that something must be done to overthrow the autocratic ruling that dominated Russia at the time. In 1903, the Social Revolutionaries split into two different groups, the Bolsheviks, meaning majority and the Mensheviks, meaning minority. Both parties believed in the need for a Russian revolution however, they disagreed on how this should be brought about. The Bolsheviks had a tightly controlled and disciplined party

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1507
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)