February Revolution

The February revolution of 1917 in Russia was the first stage of the Russian Revolution. Its immediate result was the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II.

It occured largely as a result of disatisfaction with the way the Tsar was running the country, in particular Russia's ongoing involvement in the First World War. The regime that came into being was a largely liberal alliance of political reformers who wanted to instigate a democratically elected constituent assembly.

However pressure from the right (such as those behind the Kornilov Affair) and from the left, mainly the Bolsheviks put the liberal Provisional Government under a lot of strain. Ultimately the regime instigated by the February Revolution was usurped by the October Revolution.