The Russian Revolution: A Study in Mass Mobilization

Revolutions in the Modern World

by John L.H. Keep

The revolution of 1917 in Russia was one of the major events of modern history. Sixty years after the Bolsheviks established the "proletarian dictatorship" over a war-ravaged country, Western historians are still debating the real reasons for their success, But while most historians have concentrated on the political battle in Petrograd and the events at the top, in this book Professor Keep investigates the experience of the ordinary Russian workers and peasants and looks at events in the distant provinces as well as in the capital.

Contrary to the prevailing Soviet interpretation, Professor Keep finds that the peasants, and not the industrial workers, were the main driving force in the revolutionary process, and he provides for the first time a critical analysis of Russia's "agrarian movement." The seismic changes in Russian society and the disintegration of the century-old social structure between the fall of the tsarist regime and the consolidation of Communist power in 1918 are examined. The author focuses particularly on those organizations which the people set up to advance their interests—bodies which initially expressed the people's hope for freedom and progress but which within months were brought under the authoritarian control of Lenin's party.

Based on the widest possible research, including recently published Soviet material as well as contemporary newspapers and memoirs, this book is a major contribution to our understanding of the Russian Revolution and provides for the first time a convincing and realistic account of the Bolshevik takeover.

Genres: History

614 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

John L. H. Keep is a professor emeritus in the History Department at the University of Toronto.