FEBRUARY Revolution 1917 is one of the three most important milestones in the history of the successful Great October Socialist Revolution 1917. The first significant marker is the 1905 Revolution, which is usually called as the dress rehearsal for the socialist revolution. The second is the February Revolution in 1917, with the final one being the successful October Revolution. While the 1905 Revolution did not succeed, the February Revolution 1917 was a successful bourgeois-democratic revolution, which provided the stepping stone for the successful socialist revolution in October.

The 1905 Revolution though unsuccessful, won some important concessions from the Tsar and substantially changed the political landscape in Russia. The experiences of 1905 taught important lessons to the Russian social democrats and helped them evolve suitable strategies for the subsequent revolutions in 1917.

Lecturing about the 1905 Revolution in early January 1917, Lenin had stated that its historic significance was the awakening of the tremendous masses of the people to political consciousness and revolutionary struggle. He confidently stated that the lull in the revolutionary movement would be soon broken during that period of imperialist war. He had predicted that 'Europe is pregnant with revolution', and that the predatory war would lead to popular uprisings under the leadership of the proletariat, which will end with the victory of socialism.

Even while exuding such optimism, Lenin did not think that his words would turn prophetic so soon, within a few days in Russia. As the seething discontent among the workers and people of Russia plunged the country into a new revolutionary situation, days after Lenin's lecture, Russia was once again on the boil.

The year 1917 started with the strike of January 9. Workers struck work and organised demonstrations in all major cities like Petrograd, Moscow, Baku and Nizhni-Novgorod. In Moscow, about one-third of the workers took part in the strike, while it was the biggest strike Petrograd had seen in the entire period of the war (till then). The idea of general strike was once again daily gaining ground.

On February 14, Mensheviks proposed that a procession of workers to the State Duma be organised on the day of its opening. Bolsheviks disagreed and proposed that instead of marching to the Duma, the workers should organise a demonstration. The working-class masses followed the Bolsheviks. On February 18, 1917, a strike broke out at the Putilov Works in Petrograd demanding higher wages and the rehiring of sacked fellow-workers. On February 22, the Putilov management responded by a lock-out. On the same day, workers of most of the big factories went on strike. Thousands of angry workers rallied on the streets. Their anger added to the rage of the thousands of working-class women who were queuing for a meagre ration of bread. This combination proved very explosive. On International Women's Day, February 23 (March 8, but according to old Russian calendar it is February 23), at the call of the Petrograd Bolshevik Committee, working women came out onto the streets demonstrating against hunger, war and tsardom. The working class of Petrograd supported this demonstration by a city-wide strike. The call for general political strike took the shape of a political demonstration against the tsarist system.

On February 24, 200,000 workers – more than half of the Petrograd working-class – were on strike. There were massive factory meetings and demonstrations. The revolution had begun. By February 25, the whole of working-class Petrograd had joined the revolutionary movement. Demonstrations and clashes with the police took place everywhere. Workers rallied with banners bearing the slogans: 'Down with the tsar!' 'Down with the war' and 'We want bread'. On the morning of February 26, the strike movement took up the character of an uprising. Workers disarmed the police and armed themselves. Rattled by the fast moving developments and the building up revolutionary upsurge, on February 25, the tsar gave orders to General Khabalov to put a stop to the disorders in the capital within a day. General Khabalov, commander of the Petrograd military area, threatened the workers stating that they would be sent to the war front if they do not return to work by February 28. The workers were unmoved by these threats. On February 26, the 4th Company of the Reserve Battalion of the Pavlovsky Regiment was ordered to fire upon the workers and suppress the revolutionary ferment. Open fire they did, but not on the workers. The army men turned to the workers' side and opened fire upon the squads of mounted police who were forcibly trying to disperse the workers. This was a turning point.

The patient Bolshevik work among the army, both at the rear and front, paid off. Working women too joined these efforts by addressing directly to the soldiers and calling upon them to help the people to overthrow the hated tsarist autocracy. As a result of these efforts, soldier battalions slowly started shifting sides. The workers and soldiers who had risen in revolt arrested tsarist ministers and generals and freed revolutionaries from jail. This decided the fate of the tsarist autocracy. With the spread of the news of the victory of the revolution in Petrograd, workers and soldiers everywhere began to depose the tsarist officials. The February bourgeois-democratic revolution was thus won.

The success of the February revolution was a result of the patient agitation and propaganda work done by the Bolsheviks, particularly during the war years. The worker Bolsheviks in the factories and the barracks provided decisive leadership to the strikers and demonstrators. Commenting on the February revolution, Lenin stated: “The revolution was made by the proletariat. The proletariat displayed heroism, it shed its blood; it swept along with it the broadest masses of the toiling and poor population”.

The quick success of the February revolution, according to Lenin is only due to “the fact that as a result of an extremely unique historical situation, absolutely dissimilar currents, absolutely heterogeneous class interests, absolutely contrary political and social strivings have merged, and in a strikingly 'harmonious' manner. Namely, the conspiracy of the Anglo-French imperialists, who impelled Milyukov, Guchkov and Co. to seize power for the purpose of continuing the imperialist war, for the purpose of conducting the war still more ferociously and obstinately, for the purpose of slaughtering fresh millions of Russian workers and peasants in order that the Guchkovs might obtain Constantinople, the French capitalists Syria, the British capitalists Mesopotamia, and so on. This on the one hand. On the other, there was a profound proletarian and mass popular movement of a revolutionary character (a movement of the entire poorest section of the population of town and country) for bread, for peace, for real freedom”.

Lenin stated that the new class of capitalist landlords and bourgeoisie who had been long ruling the country economically needed a 'first blow to bring tsarism to the ground'. This was done by the February revolution and paved way for their assumption of political power. Side by side, the February revolution also led to the formation of the Soviets of workers and soldiers deputies – 'as yet undeveloped and weak workers government', expressing the interests of the workers and poor of the society.

This led to dual power – a contradiction between the provisional government led by the bourgeoisie and the Soviets of the workers and soldiers deputies who had led the revolution. This contradiction was finally resolved with the overthrow of the bourgeoisie provisional government through the successful socialist revolution in October 1917.