Chapter 443 Russian Earthquake
As the Russian government began to purge capitalists to a certain extent, it inevitably affected the factories in St. Petersburg and surrounding cities.
According to incomplete statistics from the Russian government, this purge affected hundreds of Russian capitalists, and hundreds of factories were affected.
This has also affected the jobs of at least tens of thousands of Russian workers. After all, their bosses behind the scenes have been arrested. Who will pay them wages and let them continue to work?
For Russian workers who already had enough to eat, whoever caused them to lose their jobs was their enemy.
Those capitalists who have been purged or affected are also looking for ways to solve the current difficulties they are encountering.
For these people, the weapon they can use is these workers who are dissatisfied because the factory has stopped operating.
Speaking of this, we have to mention the Russian Duma, which is the Russian State Duma established since the 1905 revolution.
The Russian State Duma is similar to the British House of Commons, but the current power of the State Duma is not very great. Tsar Nicholas II still holds the power to appoint cabinet ministers, and the government does not need to answer to the State Duma.
However, no one can deny that united workers' groups can indeed have a great influence on the government.
Didn’t Nicholas II also couldn’t bear the pressure of workers’ demonstrations before, so he established the State Duma to quell the workers’ anger?
As long as the workers in these factories can be used rationally and the government and Nicholas II are forced to give up the purge of capitalists, the big capitalists in St. Petersburg can escape this crisis.
It is precisely because of the pressure from the Russian government that European capitalists and political parties actually have a common goal, which is to achieve their own goals by promoting workers' demonstrations.
Adhering to the principle that the enemy of the enemy is one's ally, in just a few days, the big capitalists in St. Petersburg united with the workers' parties, intending to incite a large-scale demonstration against the Russian government and Tsar Nicholas II. Apply pressure.
Ironically, many workers' parties were originally established to fight against factory owners and capitalists who exploited the working class.
Two seemingly rival forces have joined together. Although it goes against their respective interests, we have to admit that this is an extremely large interest group.
Starting on October 22, 1916, large-scale demonstrations broke out in various streets of St. Petersburg. Workers held high banners saying "Please give us our jobs" and "We just want to survive", and started the vigorous demonstration.
At the same time, a small number of unaffected workers also began a general strike. Hundreds of thousands of workers in St. Petersburg gathered together just to convey their wishes to the government and the Czar.
On the afternoon of October 22, news of the general strike in St. Petersburg reached the ears of Tsar Nicholas II.
At this time, Nicholas II was handling military affairs in his palace. Nicholas II also cherished this hard-won hour to deal with military affairs. Sitting next to him was his queen and Rasputin. It is recommended that military affairs be handled hastily.
Nicholas II couldn't help but frowned when he heard that the Prime Minister came to report the parade in St. Petersburg.
"Your Majesty, those damn workers were instigated by the capitalists and the reactionary parties behind them. We cannot tolerate this demonstration, otherwise those capitalists and reactionary parties will intensify their demands for more. I have already calculated that the empire will soon win this In war, no clown can shake the empire in the slightest." Before Nicholas II could give any advice, Rasputin beside him couldn't wait to say.
As a complete stickman, Asputin is very obsessed with the feeling that power brings to him.
Relying on the trust of Nicholas II and his wife, Rasputin handled most of Russia's government and military affairs. It was Rasputin's opinion to even pass the blame to frontline commanders and capitalists.
For Rasputin, it was important to ensure the stability of Nicholas II's position. After all, as long as Nicholas II and his wife were alive, he could rely on Nicholas II and his wife to control the power of the entire Russia.
As for the impact his decision would have on Russia, Rasputin actually didn't care, and he was completely unaware of it.
It is better to expect Nicholas II to show his prowess in the military than to expect an uneducated magician to understand the principles of governance and military affairs.
Queen Alexandra also nodded, fully supporting Rasputin's decision to suppress the demonstration forcefully.
Nicholas II had not never used force to suppress demonstrations, and naturally he would not have any objections.
At the nod of Nicholas II, the St. Petersburg garrison took action, surrounded large swaths of the marching crowd, and began to forcibly evacuate these people.
In order to prevent capitalists and reactionaries from fleeing St. Petersburg, under the order of Nicholas II, the entire city of St. Petersburg began to be under martial law. Without Nicholas II's order, no one was allowed to enter or exit at will.
In order to prevent anyone in the St. Petersburg garrison and police from being corrupted, Nicholas II decided to mobilize frontline troops and ordered all police to stay in the police station and not to act without orders.
You know, the situation of the St. Petersburg garrison is much worse than that of the frontline army, but there is no guarantee that any of these people have not been bribed by reactionaries and capitalists.
Not to mention the police. Like the workers, they enjoy the extremely high prices in St. Petersburg, and it is natural for them to be dissatisfied with the government.
After martial law was imposed in St. Petersburg, a large number of marchers were immediately frightened away.
You know, unless there is something particularly important and urgent, martial law will not be imposed in St. Petersburg.
As the capital of the empire, every martial law in St. Petersburg also means that a bloodshed will occur in St. Petersburg.
Workers only want to fight for their own rights, not to sacrifice their lives for those capitalists.
After Nicholas II lifted the table, he immediately scared off a large number of marchers.
After most of the workers who blindly followed the crowd were scared away, the majority were bribed by capitalists or wooed by political parties.
The number of these workers was small, less than 10,000 in total, and they were scattered throughout the streets of St. Petersburg.
Some of these people also wanted to retreat, but they soon discovered that it was already too late. A large number of troops have surrounded the streets of St. Petersburg, and they are facing the cold muzzles of guns.
"Sir, I'm afraid this is a mistake." The leading party member was about to beg for mercy and explain, but was interrupted by an oncoming bullet.
boom!
The bodies fell on the street. The sound of the collision was not loud, but it hit hard in the hearts of all those who participated in the parade.
Most of these demonstrations organized by capitalists and political parties were workers who were dissatisfied because of the loss of their jobs.
These people don't have any weapons, they just have blood dedicated to their own livelihood.
After the army took the initiative to open fire, the remaining marchers immediately became calm. People put down the banners in their hands and looked at the army with fear, waiting for their fate.
"Take them all away!"
Seeing that no one resisted, the leading commander nodded with satisfaction and ordered the soldiers to arrest everyone participating in the parade.
Not only those who participated in the demonstrations, but also some newspapers that had criticized the tsarist government, and factories and individuals involved in the demonstrations were all included in the arrest list.
It can be inferred from the fact that the army operated vigorously in St. Petersburg for several days that at least tens of thousands of people were arrested in this crackdown.
On October 25, 1916, the Russian government began mass executions of captured prisoners.
The tsarist government dealt with these people roughly, either providing the government with more useful clues or directly executing them.
Few people are not afraid of death, which has led to the arrest list being expanded again and again, even implicating a large number of people outside St. Petersburg.
Suddenly, the whole of St. Petersburg was in panic. The people did not even dare to leave their homes because the troops patrolling the streets might arrest them at any time.
Although the security environment in St. Petersburg has improved a lot, the Russians will soon face a very serious problem, that is, the food crisis.
Although he knew that the food crisis in St. Petersburg was more serious, Nicholas II had no idea of relieving these civilians.
For Nicholas II, not dealing with the workers in these demonstrations was already a liberal act. Taking the initiative to relieve these civilians would have to wait until the next life.
Nicholas II had no idea of winning over the people. After all, Russia had a population of 160 million, and it cost at least 160 million rubles to issue one ruble to each person. This was no small expense.
Nicholas II seems to think that no one will use his own funds to relieve the people, let alone these gray animals in Russia that will not feel sad if millions of people die.
As St. Petersburg entered martial law, although prices did not rise in a short period of time, the problem is that most people have lost their jobs.
I couldn't afford it before if I had money, but now I can't even afford it if I don't have the money. I can only watch the food in the sealed granaries being transferred to the palace, or being divided up by the high-ranking officials and nobles.
But no one dared to covet the team that transported food. The food transport team was not only guarded by a large number of soldiers, but also had patrol teams everywhere in the city. It was not something that unarmed workers could covet. But this is an opportunity for those political parties. After a large number of capitalists were purged, the workers in those factories were like rootless people. They had no ability to fight against the government, but they are indeed suffering from a life crisis.
Now, with only a small amount of food, you can quickly win these workers into your party and increase your strength.
Nicholas II may have looked down upon these workers, but for a reactionary party that was vigorously pursued by the government, the support of a large number of workers was life-saving, and at the same time it could better accomplish its own goals.
Speaking of these political parties in Russia, most of them have plans to overthrow the government. This is not surprising. For a decadent autocratic empire, there are already dragon slayers who are dissatisfied with the evil dragon and have the opportunity to kill him with one blow.
In fact, looking at all countries in the world, as long as they are human societies, they are inseparable from class gaps and vested interests.
The top management wants to squeeze the bottom level desperately and squeeze out all the value of the bottom level to serve themselves.
After the people at the bottom have been squeezed for a long time, warriors who want to slay the dragon will always be born, and there are often warriors who succeed in slaying the dragon.
But the problem is that neither a tribe nor a country can do without actual leaders.
Power will always blind people's hearts. When desire defeats reason, the dragon-slaying warrior will eventually turn into an evil dragon.
This kind of reincarnation happens in every country and every time. As long as humans exist, it is a topic that can never be avoided.
Starting from the end of October, the political party headed by the Workers' Alliance began to distribute part of the food to those workers who could not afford to eat. The price was that these workers had to sign a declaration of resistance to the Russian government.
In normal times, most workers would not sign such a declaration, even if they endured hunger.
Once seized by the government, the person who signed the name will not only bring disaster to himself, but also implicate the entire family and his relatives.
But it's different now. If there is no food relief, these workers and their families will really starve to death.
Starving to death now or being seized by the government in the future, I believe most smart people know how to choose.
Incited by these political parties, tens of thousands of workers signed a manifesto against the government and had no choice but to stand with these political parties.
As time entered early November 1916, the Great Purge launched by Nicholas II was successfully completed, and the previous order was restored in St. Petersburg.
The seizure of a large number of capitalists allowed Nicholas II and the Tsarist government to obtain a large amount of funds and supplies. The satisfied Nicholas II waved his hand and distributed a small amount of supplies to the people of St. Petersburg.
If this was just the beginning of a major purge, this might be able to win over some people. But alas, it's too late now. Except for the workers who resisted the government's declaration and were coerced by the political parties, it was impossible to return to their previous peaceful lives.
A crisis even more chaotic than the previous parade was about to break out, but Nicholas II, who was proud of it at this time, did not know it yet.
The failure of the previous demonstrations made the reactionaries clearly realize that it is impossible to make the government change its policies by relying on milder demonstrations alone.
Coupled with the previous dissatisfaction with Nicholas II's purge operation, and after careful consideration, the political party led by the Bolshevik Party decided to launch an armed uprising to forcefully overthrow this barbaric and cruel government.
On November 7, 1916, thousands of workers forcibly captured the arsenal in St. Petersburg and took away a large number of guns and ammunition in the arsenal.
Because the cleaning operation had just ended, Nicholas II and the Russian top brass were very satisfied with the results of the cleaning operation and had already relaxed their vigilance about the order in St. Petersburg.
This also resulted in the arsenal in St. Petersburg being guarded by only dozens of soldiers, and there was no patrol system.
After occupying the arsenal, large quantities of weapons were distributed to the workers. At the same time, a small number of the St. Petersburg garrison who were won over by the workers' parties also defected to the side of the insurgent workers and participated in this armed uprising together.
Tens of thousands of soldiers and workers marched toward the Winter Palace and various government departments, attracting large crowds.
Without any preparation by the Tsarist government, the uprising team quickly occupied the Winter Palace and various government departments, and arrested a large number of high-ranking Russian officials and generals.
Fortunately, Nicholas II was located in his palace outside St. Petersburg and did not live in the Winter Palace, otherwise he would have been arrested.
But the uprising team that occupied the Winter Palace and government departments actually controlled the vast majority of St. Petersburg.
The control of the capital was a huge blow to Nicholas II and Russia. If not handled well, such rebellions may break out everywhere in Russia.
On the one hand, Nicholas II urgently recalled the troops that had just evacuated from St. Petersburg, and on the other hand, he urgently requested help from Britain, France and Australasia.
When Arthur received news of the outbreak of the Russian rebellion, it was already November 8.
The news of civil strife in Russia is not good news for the Allied Powers. It means that Russia is almost 100% about to withdraw from this war.
No matter which side wins the civil strife, the Russian authorities have no energy left to fight this war.
Without the restraint of Russia, the Germans fighting on a single line were not weaker than the British and French coalition forces, and they even had the ability to help the already endangered Austro-Hungarian Empire.
In order to ensure the domestic stability of Russia as much as possible, and at the same time weaken the strength of the Soviet Union that would be established in the future, Arthur made a prompt decision and ordered the intelligence personnel in Russia to rescue Nicholas II and his family as much as possible, at least to rescue people like Crown Prince Allel. Only direct heirs to the throne like Keshe can ensure the continued existence of the Russian monarchy.
The Tsarist Russian Empire ruled by the Romanov dynasty was an ally of Australasia, but Russia controlled by the uprising forces had nothing to do with Australasia.
The countries established by these parties can easily influence the Russian people in Australasia, and at the same time, the Entente and Australasia will lose a major ally.
According to the historical trend of Russia after the uprising, at that time, Russia and the United States jointly destroyed the colonial system that Britain and France had maintained for hundreds of years, and the two top powers, Britain and France, stepped down from their altars.
For a country as large as Australasia, which also has a large number of colonies and territories, the collapse of the colonial system is not good news.
Therefore, it became necessary to weaken the strength of this yet-to-be-established country as much as possible.
On November 9, 1916, a mighty uprising team surrounded the palace where Nicholas II was staying.
This palace is guarded by thousands of soldiers, which is enough to ensure the safety of Nicholas II in peacetime.
But now faced with the siege of tens of thousands of people, Nicholas II could only hope for the support of allies and the return of frontline troops.
What worried Nicholas II still happened. The defenders in the palace also mutinied. Although the mutiny was unsuccessful, it greatly weakened the combat effectiveness of the defenders.
After two days of siege, the palace was finally captured by the rebels. Nicholas II and the royal family were captured by the rebels with pale faces.
Although the Russian uprising was a complete success, the current situation in Russia at this time was not as smooth as it seemed.
First of all, there are still two factions within the Russian rebel army. The more powerful one was the working class alliance composed of the Bolsheviks and other workers' parties.
This faction advocates the establishment of a completely republican and democratic government and withdrawal from the monarchy that has existed in Russia for thousands of years.
The other faction is dominated by Russia's big landowners and big capitalists. Because the capitalists have been weakened to a certain extent before, this faction is relatively weak compared to the working class.
But the bourgeoisie is more afraid of the working class than it is of the previous tsarist government, because workers and the bourgeoisie are naturally antagonistic, capital equals exploitation, and it was in order to resist exploitation that the workers launched an uprising.
Because they are afraid that the working class will liquidate themselves in the future, the bourgeoisie opposes the abolition of the monarchy and advocates the establishment of a constitutional monarchy, the transfer of power to parliament, and fair competition for all political parties.
The proposals of the bourgeoisie were quickly opposed by the working class. Most of the bourgeoisie are big aristocrats and big capitalists. Although they are weaker, their capital is much stronger than that of the working class.
If the competition is only in parliament, as long as the bourgeoisie is willing to spend money, it is impossible for the working class to compete with the bourgeoisie.
This is also equivalent to handing over power to the bourgeoisie, which not only violates the original intention of the working class to launch an uprising, but also violates the desire of some workers' alliance parties to gain power.
A two-in-one chapter of 5,400 words. Please vote for me and support me!
(End of chapter)