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80-511: Formally, the idea of holding the meeting was put forward by Alexander Kerensky . His proposal was formalized by resolution of the meeting of the Provisional Government No. 144 of July 27, 1917, in which the purpose of the meeting was defined as the unity of state power with all organized forces of the country in view of the exclusivity of the events experienced. The meeting was attended by about 2,500 people: 488 deputies of

160-474: A bloodless end. After the failed coup, Kornilov was removed from his position as Commander-in-Chief and incarcerated in the Bykhov Fortress alongside 30 other army officers accused of involvement in the conspiracy. General Aleksandr Krymov commanded the forces that moved towards Petrograd before being stopped. Krymov surrendered and, after meeting with Kerensky, killed himself by shooting himself in

240-591: A central role in the conspiracy. According to the British historian John Keegan , Kornilov was maneuvered by others into attempting the coup, but he does not say who those others were. An earlier historian, AJP Taylor , believed that Kerensky encouraged the coup until he realized that Kornilov intended to destroy both the Bolsheviks and any trace of democracy including Kerensky himself. The American historian Richard Pipes put forward another interpretation of

320-499: A communist system. The Russian army , war-weary, ill-equipped, dispirited and ill-disciplined, was disintegrating, with soldiers deserting in large numbers. By autumn 1917, an estimated two million men had unofficially left the army. Kerensky and other political leaders continued Russia's involvement in World War I, thinking that a glorious victory was the only way forward, and fearing that the economy, already under huge stress from

400-557: A conspiracy of counter-revolutionary forces for the preparation of the Kornilovism . Alexander Kerensky Alexander Fyodorovich Kerensky (4 May [ O.S. 22 April] 1881 – 11 June 1970) was a Russian lawyer and revolutionary who led the Russian Provisional Government and the short-lived Russian Republic for three months from late July to early November 1917 ( N.S. ). After

480-521: A fall. At 89, he was one of the last surviving major participants in the turbulent events of 1917. The local Russian Orthodox Churches in New York City refused to grant Kerensky burial rites because of his association with Freemasonry , and because they saw him as largely responsible for the Bolsheviks' seizure of power. A Serbian Orthodox Church also refused burial rites. Kerensky's body

560-625: A government led by Vladimir Lenin , to replace Kerensky's government. Kerensky fled Russia and lived the remainder of his life in exile. He divided his time between Paris and New York City. Kerensky worked for the Hoover Institution at Stanford University , California. Alexander Kerensky was born in Simbirsk (now Ulyanovsk ) on the Volga river on 4 May 1881 and was the eldest son in the family. His father, Fyodor Mikhailovich Kerensky,

640-630: A letter expressing support for Kornilov. Over the course of the next few days, as the Provisional Government tried to come up with a concrete plan to avert the oncoming attack, the Petrograd Soviet had taken measures to defend against Kornilov's advancing troops. One of these measures was the creation of the Committee for Struggle Against Counterrevolution on 11 September 1917 (28 August Old Style). Those participating in

720-655: A more unified form of government. The officers feared that ill-discipline amongst their troops accounted for the continued poor performance of the Russian Army in the war. They demanded the reintroduction of the death penalty on the front line as well as the abolition of the various soldiers' committees that had sprung up in the months following the Petrograd Soviet's Order Number 1 on 1 March 1917 ( O.S. 14 March). The officers, especially Kornilov, wanted to put an end to any signs of revolution in Russia, particularly in regard to

800-821: A revival in support and strength in the wake of the attempted coup. Kerensky released Bolsheviks who had been arrested during the July Days a few months earlier, when Vladimir Lenin was accused of being in the pay of the Germans and subsequently fled to Finland. Kerensky's plea to the Petrograd Soviet for support had resulted in the rearmament of the Bolshevik Military Organization and the release of Bolshevik political prisoners, including Leon Trotsky. Though these weapons were not needed to fight off Kornilov's advancing troops in August, they were kept by

880-658: A stroke in February 1946, and he remained there until her death on 10 April 1946. Kerensky then returned to the United States, where he spent the rest of his life. Kerensky eventually settled in New York City, living on the Upper East Side on 91st Street near Central Park but spent much of his time at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University in California, where he both used and contributed to

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960-549: A subdivision of the 2nd company of the First Petrograd Women's Battalion , also known as The Women's Death Battalion, was willing to fight for the government against the Bolsheviks, but this force was overwhelmed by the numerically superior pro-Bolshevik forces, defeated, and captured. The Bolsheviks overthrew the government rapidly by seizing governmental buildings and the Winter Palace. Kerensky escaped

1040-531: A telegram informing him of his dismissal and ordering him to return to Petrograd. The telegram did not impede Kornilov's progress towards Petrograd as intended, but instead most likely hastened his troops' advance as Kornilov, after reading the message, assumed that Petrograd had fallen under the control of the Bolsheviks. Kornilov had the support of the British military attaché , Brigadier-General Alfred Knox , and Kerensky accused Knox of producing pro-Kornilov propaganda. Kerensky also claimed Lord Milner wrote him

1120-446: A victory outside of continuing Russia's obligations towards its allies. Russia's continued involvement in the war was not popular among the lower and middle classes, and especially not popular among the soldiers. They had all believed that Russia would stop fighting when the Provisional Government took power, and subsequently felt deceived. Furthermore, Vladimir Lenin and his Bolshevik party were promising "peace, land, and bread" under

1200-440: Is that the right believed that Kerensky had turned against Kornilov. Thus, the opinions regarding this affair further perpetuated separation between the right and left political parties. When discussing the events that led up to the affair, Steinberg analyzes the involvement of former Provisional Government minister Vladimir Nikolaevich Lvov . Prior to the affair taking place, Lvov identified himself to Kornilov as an "emissary for

1280-596: The Central Powers riposted with a strong counter-attack. The Russian army retreated and suffered heavy losses, and it became clear from many incidents of desertion, sabotage, and mutiny that the army was no longer willing to attack. The military heavily criticised Kerensky for his liberal policies, which included stripping officers of their mandates and handing over control to revolutionary-inclined "soldier committees" ( Russian : солдатские комитеты , romanized :  soldatskie komitety ) instead; abolition of

1360-657: The February Revolution of 1917, he joined the newly formed provisional government, first as Minister of Justice , then as Minister of War , and after July as the government's second Minister-Chairman . He was the leader of the social-democratic Trudovik faction of the Socialist Revolutionary Party . Kerensky was also a vice-chairman of the Petrograd Soviet , a position that held a sizable amount of power. Kerensky became

1440-650: The First World War and the economic effects of the fighting on Russian society. The unrest felt by the Russian people reached a peak with the Kerensky Offensive on 15 July 1917 ( O.S. 1 July). Kerensky's offensive was meant to boost the morale of the troops and reignite support for Russia's participation in the war. The offensive ended up having the opposite effect. Troops and workers became frustrated with Russia's continued involvement, which led to

1520-540: The Progressive Bloc , which included several socialist parties, Mensheviks , and Liberals – but not Bolsheviks . He was a brilliant orator and skilled parliamentary leader of the socialist opposition to the government of Tsar Nicholas II . Kerensky was an active member of the irregular Freemasonic lodge, the Grand Orient of Russia's Peoples , which derived from the Grand Orient of France . Kerensky

1600-487: The Russian Provisional Government headed by Aleksander Kerensky and the Petrograd Soviet of Soldiers' and Workers' Deputies. The exact details and motivations of the Kornilov affair are unconfirmed due to the general confusion of all parties involved. Many historians have had to piece together varied historical accounts as a result. Following the February Revolution of 8–16 March 1917 ( O.S. 23 February – 3 March),

1680-526: The Russian monarchy fell from power, and was replaced by a Provisional Government whose members came from various liberal and left-wing political parties, some previously represented in the Duma , and others in the Petrograd Soviet . However, the initial wave of support for the Provisional Government amongst the Russian people soon subsided and unrest grew, a result mainly of Russia's continued participation in

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1760-604: The Saint Petersburg State Polytechnical University , including the coffin, without leaving a single trace. When the February Revolution broke out in 1917, Kerensky – together with Pavel Milyukov – was one of its most prominent leaders. As one of the Duma 's most well-known speakers against the monarchy and as a lawyer and defender of many revolutionaries, Kerensky became a member of the Provisional Committee of

1840-631: The White movement . During the Kornilov Affair , Kerensky had distributed arms to the Petrograd workers, and by November most of these armed workers had gone over to the Bolsheviks. On 6–7 November [ O.S. 25–26 October] 1917, the Bolsheviks launched the second Russian revolution of the year. Kerensky's government in Petrograd had almost no support in the city. Only one small force,

1920-742: The Bolshevik October Revolution of 7 November 1917 (25 October old style) Kornilov managed to escape from Bykhov Fortress and went on to establish the Volunteer Army , which fought the Bolsheviks during the Russian Civil War . He was killed in battle against Bolshevik forces in the town of Ekaterinodar in April 1918. The biggest beneficiary of the Kornilov affair was the Bolshevik Party, who enjoyed

2000-690: The Bolshevik regime and the White Movement . Kerensky was married to Olga Lvovna Baranovskaya and they had two sons, Oleg (1905–1984) and Gleb (1907–1990), who both went on to become engineers. Kerensky's grandson (also named Oleg), according to the Internet Movie Database , played his grandfather's role in the 1981 film Reds . Kerensky and Olga were divorced in 1939 soon after he settled in Paris, and, in 1939, while visiting

2080-457: The Bolsheviks and fled to Pskov , where he rallied some loyal troops for an attempt to re-take the city . His troops managed to capture Tsarskoye Selo but were beaten the next day at Pulkovo . Kerensky narrowly escaped, and he spent the next few weeks in hiding before fleeing the country, eventually arriving in France. During the Russian Civil War , he supported neither side, as he opposed both

2160-468: The Bolsheviks and used in their own successful armed October Revolution. Bolshevik support amongst the Russian public also increased following the Kornilov affair, a consequence of dissatisfaction with the Provisional Government's handling of Kornilov's attempted seizure of power. Following the October Revolution, Lenin and the Bolsheviks seized power and the Provisional Government that Kornilov

2240-409: The Bolsheviks, Kerensky succeeded Prince Georgy Lvov as Russia's prime minister on 21 July [ O.S. 8 July] 1917. Following the Kornilov Affair , an attempted military coup d'état at the end of August, and the resignation of the other ministers, he appointed himself Supreme Commander-in-Chief , as well. On 15 September Kerensky proclaimed Russia a republic, which was contrary to

2320-431: The Bolsheviks. Kornilov mobilized his troops to Petrograd to address the revolutionary threat shortly after he was appointed commander-in-chief. While there have been multiple conflicting opinions on the specifics of how this event had come to be, as well as how it was carried out, one common fact was that, to "restore peace in Petrograd", Kornilov had been organizing a force of soldiers to move into Petrograd and eliminate

2400-545: The Central Executive Committee of the Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies and the Central Executive Committee of the Soviets of Peasant Deputies, consisting of Mensheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries. The Bolsheviks – representatives of the Soviets – intended to make a declaration at the meeting exposing the counter-revolutionary, in their opinion, sense of the meeting, and then leave it. However,

2480-692: The Conference for publication. The meeting was chaired by the Minister-Chairman of the Provisional Government, Alexander Kerensky . Opening the meeting, he assured that with iron and blood he would crush all attempts to resist the government. On the first day of the meeting, reports were made by Minister of the Interior Nikolai Avksentiev , Minister of Trade and Industry Sergey Prokopovich , Deputy Minister Chairman and Minister of Finance Nikolai Nekrasov . The debate

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2560-601: The Institution's huge archive on Russian history , and where he taught graduate courses. He wrote and broadcast extensively on Russian politics and history. His last public lecture was delivered at Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Michigan, in October 1967. Kerensky died of arteriosclerotic heart disease at St. Luke's Hospital in New York City on 11 June 1970, after being initially admitted for injuries sustained from

2640-469: The Ispolkom, but to the entire Petrograd Soviet. He then swore, as minister, never to violate democratic values, and ended his speech with the words "I cannot live without the people. In the moment you begin to doubt me, then kill me." The huge majority (workers and soldiers) gave him great applause, and Kerensky now became the first and the only one who participated in both the Provisional Government and

2720-479: The Ispolkom. As a link between Ispolkom and the Provisional Government, Kerensky stood to benefit from this position. After the first government crisis over Pavel Milyukov 's secret note re-committing Russia to its original war-aims on 2–4 May, Kerensky became the Minister of War and the dominant figure in the newly formed socialist-liberal coalition government. On 10 May ( Julian calendar ), Kerensky started for

2800-528: The July Days revolt. The July Days took place in the Russian capital of Petrograd from 16 to 20 July ( O.S. 3 to 7 July) and was a rebellion against the Provisional Government. The demonstrations during the July Days did not alleviate the frustrations of the Russian people and continued unrest throughout that summer sparked calls for more discipline and a stronger, more unified government. Unease also escalated amongst Russia's businessmen and industrialists in

2880-517: The Menshevik and Socialist Revolutionary leaders of the Central Executive Committee of the Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies did not admit them to the delegation. Nevertheless, the Bolsheviks were able to attend the Conference among the trade union, cooperative and some other delegations, but were deprived of the opportunity to read out their declaration and submitted it to the Presidium of

2960-528: The Navy Admiral Dmitry Verderevsky and Minister of Posts and Telegraphs Aleksei Nikitin  [ ru ] . He retained his post in the final coalition government in October 1917 until the Bolsheviks overthrew it on 7 November [ O.S. 26 October] 1917. Kerensky faced a major challenge: three years of participation in World War had exhausted Russia, while the provisional government offered little motivation for

3040-469: The Provisional Government. Support for the restoration of order was strong even amongst the members of the Provisional Government. Immediately following the July Days, Aleksander Kerensky became prime minister of the Provisional Government and swiftly appointed Kornilov the commander-in-chief of the Russian Army . With the help of officers of the Russian Army, Kornilov amongst them, he hoped to deliver

3120-661: The Socialist Revolutionary Party bought Kerensky a house, as he otherwise would not be eligible for election to the Duma, according to the Russian property-laws. During the 4th Session of the Fourth Duma in spring 1915, Kerensky appealed to Mikhail Rodzianko with a request from the Council of elders to inform the tsar that to succeed in the war he must: In August, he became a significant member of

3200-460: The Soviet, most notably the Bolsheviks for reasons that were important later on, were given ammunition and arms in the event that Kornilov's troops should arrive at Petrograd and combat be necessary. However this proved unnecessary because by 13 September 1917 (30 August Old Style) Kornilov's army had lost a large number of soldiers and with no more support for Kornilov's movement the affair had come to

3280-407: The Soviet. Whether Kornilov had done this as a means of imposing a military dictatorship after his success, or was simply acting under Kerensky's orders, is not clear, but what is definite was that Kerensky had no intention of allowing Kornilov to enter Petrograd with an army, fearing the former possibility. In an effort to avoid this, on 10 September 1917 ( O.S. 27 August), Kerensky had sent Kornilov

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3360-483: The State Duma and was elected vice-chairman of the newly formed Petrograd Soviet . These two bodies, the Duma and the Petrograd Soviet, or – rather – their respective executive committees, soon became each other's antagonists on most matters except regarding the end of the tsar's autocracy. The Petrograd Soviet grew to include 3000 to 4000 members, and their meetings could drown in a blur of everlasting orations. At

3440-564: The State Duma of all convocations, 129 representatives from the Soviets of Peasant Deputies, 100 from the Soviets of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies, 147 from the City Duma, 117 from the Army and Navy, 313 from cooperatives, 150 from commercial and industrial circles and banks, 176 from trade unions, 118 from zemstvos, 83 from the intelligentsia, 58 from national organizations, 24 from the clergy, etc. The councils were represented by delegations of

3520-799: The United States he met and secretly married Lydia Ellen "Nell" Tritton (1899–1946), the Australian former journalist who had become his press secretary and translator. The marriage took place in Martins Creek, Pennsylvania . When Germany invaded France in 1940 , they emigrated to the United States. After the Axis invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, Kerensky offered his support to Joseph Stalin . When his wife Nell became terminally ill in 1945, Kerensky travelled with her to Brisbane , Australia, and lived there with her family. She suffered

3600-483: The University of Kazan. In 1889, when Kerensky was eight, the family moved to Tashkent , where his father had been appointed the main inspector of public schools (superintendent). Kerensky graduated with honours in 1899. The same year he entered St. Petersburg University , where he studied history and philology . The next year he switched to law. He earned his law degree in 1904 and married Olga Lvovna Baranovskaya,

3680-495: The army, as well as the revival and strengthening of financial and economic life. No documents (resolutions, etc.) were adopted at the meeting. Some of the Moscow workers, organized by revolutionary political forces, in connection with the Conference, declared a one-day general strike on the day of its beginning, in which more than 400 thousand people took part. The meeting received a negative assessment in Soviet historiography as

3760-414: The behest of the Petrograd Soviet to assist in the organization of the defense of Petrograd. The Soviet had performed several acts such as working with rail worker unions to impede Kornilov's army's progress towards Petrograd as well as infiltrating the army for the purpose of sabotage and convincing soldiers within the force to desert, all in an effort to halt and weaken the forces of Kornilov. In Petrograd

3840-408: The capital against Kornilov's advancing troops and aspirations of gaining power. It can be considered that, through communicating with the help of Lvov, the different intentions of both Kornilov and Kerensky were miscommunicated or misrepresented in conversation, which perpetuated the attempted government seizure of power. One take on the Kornilov affair was put forward by Aleksander Kerensky himself,

3920-616: The committee were representatives of the two national Soviet executive committees of workers and soldiers and of peasants, the Petrograd Soviet, the General Central Council of Trade Unions, and the Social Revolutionary (S. R.) and Menshevik parties. The most notable members of this committee were the Bolsheviks, who had a large support base among the lower class, and included organizers such as Leon Trotsky , who had been previously imprisoned but released at

4000-714: The contemptible Grishka Rasputin!" Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich , Prince Georgy Lvov , and General Mikhail Alekseyev attempted to persuade the Emperor Nicholas II to send away the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna , Rasputin's steadfast patron, either to the Livadia Palace in Yalta or to Britain . Mikhail Rodzianko , Zinaida Yusupova (the mother of Felix Yusupov ), Alexandra's sister Elisabeth , Grand Duchess Victoria and

4080-531: The daughter of a Russian general, the same year. Kerensky joined the Narodnik movement and worked as a legal counsel to victims of the Revolution of 1905 . At the end of 1904, he was jailed on suspicion of belonging to a militant group. Afterwards, he gained a reputation for his work as a defence lawyer in a number of political trials of revolutionaries. In 1912, Kerensky became widely known when he visited

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4160-405: The death penalty; and allowing revolutionary agitators to be present at the front. Many officers scornfully referred to commander-in-chief Kerensky as the "persuader-in-chief". On 2 July 1917 the Provisional Government's first coalition collapsed over the question of Ukraine 's autonomy. Following the July Days unrest in Petrograd (3–7 July [16–20 July, N.S.] 1917) and the official suppression of

4240-456: The empress's mother-in-law Maria Feodorovna also tried to influence and pressure the imperial couple to remove Rasputin from his position of influence within the imperial household, but without success. According to Kerensky, Rasputin had terrorised the empress by threatening to return to his native village. Members of the nobility murdered Rasputin in December 1916, and he was buried near

4320-482: The event in his work The Russian Revolution: 1899–1919 . Pipes argued that, far from there being a Kornilov plot, there was in fact a "'Kerensky plot' engineered to discredit the general as the ringleader of an imaginary but widely anticipated counter-revolution, the suppression of which would elevate the Prime Minister to a position of unrivalled popularity and power, enabling him to meet the growing threat from

4400-424: The fact that the source of sovereign state power is the will of the whole people, and not an individual parties or groups. At the same time, for example, Pavel Ryabushinsky said that Russia is governed by a dream, ignorance and demagogy. Alexander Kerensky, summing up the meeting, said that its significance was that representatives of all classes, parties and nationalities of Russia openly expressed their opinion on

4480-534: The front and visited one division after another, urging the men to do their duty. His speeches were impressive and convincing for the moment, but had little lasting effect. Under Allied pressure to continue the war, he launched what became known as the Kerensky Offensive against the Austro-Hungarian/German South Army on 1 July [ O.S. 18 June] 1917. At first successful, the offensive soon met strong resistance and

4560-736: The goldfields at the Lena River and published material about the Lena massacre . In the same year, Kerensky was elected to the Fourth Duma as a member of the Trudoviks , a socialist, non-Marxist labour party founded by Alexis Aladin that was associated with the Socialist-Revolutionary Party , and joined a Freemason society uniting the anti-monarchy forces that strived for democratic renewal of Russia. In fact,

4640-408: The government, the Ispolkom of the Soviet issued the infamous Order No. 1 , intended only for the 160,000-strong Petrograd garrison, but soon interpreted as applicable to all soldiers at the front. The order stipulated that all military units should form committees like the Petrograd Soviet. This led to confusion and "stripping of officers' authority"; further, "Order No. 3" stipulated that the military

4720-453: The heart. On 14 September 1917 (1 September old style), the Provisional Government proclaimed the establishment of the Russian Republic , formally abolishing what was left of the old monarchical system and creating a Provisional Council as temporary parliament, in preparation to the elections of a Constituent Assembly . However, the Provisional Government had lost all credibility and soon crumbled. Shortly after Lenin seized power with

4800-418: The imperial residence in Tsarskoye Selo . Shortly after the February Revolution of 1917, Kerensky ordered soldiers to re-bury the corpse at an unmarked spot in the countryside. However, the truck broke down or was forced to stop because of the snow on Lesnoe Road outside of St. Petersburg. It is likely the corpse was incinerated (between 3 and 7 in the morning) in the cauldrons of the nearby boiler shop of

4880-412: The left" greatly empowered the Bolsheviks and gave them a free hand, allowing them to take over the military arm or "voyenka" ( Russian : Военка ) of the Petrograd and Moscow Soviets. His arrest of Lavr Kornilov and other officers left him without strong allies against the Bolsheviks, who ended up being Kerensky's strongest and most determined adversaries, as opposed to the right wing, which evolved into

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4960-526: The main target of the coup. In the years after the event, Kerensky described the affair as a right-wing conspiracy that "...developed slowly, systematically, with cool calculation of all the factors involved affecting its possible success or failure." Kerensky posited that Kornilov himself was drawn into this conspiracy long after the preparatory work had been completed. In a 1966 interview with Soviet journalist Genrikh Borovik , Kerensky further elaborated on his theory by stating that Winston Churchill had played

5040-426: The measures that are needed to save the state; a greater understanding has been reached in society; the interim government will try to implement all the proposals aimed at reconciliation and unification of the country; the government proceeds from the fact that the conference spoke in favor of continuing the war, maintaining loyalty to the allies, in connection with which the most important are the issues of strengthening

5120-487: The meeting of 12 March [ O.S. 27 February] 1917 to 13 March [ O.S. 28 February] 1917 the executive committee of the Petrograd Soviet, or Ispolkom , formed a self-appointed committee, with (eventually) three members from each of the parties represented in the Soviet. Kerensky became one of the members representing the Socialist Revolutionary Party (the SRs). On 14 March [ O.S. 1 March] 1917, without any consultation with

5200-405: The meeting. At the meeting, a split occurred between moderate and revolutionary groups. In the speeches of Lavr Kornilov, Alexei Kaledin, Pavel Milyukov, Vasily Shulgin and others, the following program was formulated: the liquidation of the Soviets, the abolition of public organizations in the army, the war to the bitter end, the restoration of the death penalty, harsh discipline in the army and in

5280-404: The military did not heed his request to defend the government when the Bolsheviks attacked in the October Revolution in 1917. Several schools of thought surrounding the Kornilov affair offer contrasting interpretations and have provoked debate among historians. Mark D. Steinberg presents the conflicting beliefs and political opinions on the Kornilov Affair. He elaborates by stating that the event

5360-435: The non-socialists' understanding that the Provisional Government should hold power only until a Constituent Assembly should meet to decide Russia's form of government, but which was in line with the long-proclaimed aim of the Socialist Revolutionary Party. He formed a five-member Directory, which consisted of himself, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mikhail Tereshchenko , Minister of War General Aleksandr Verkhovsky , Minister of

5440-413: The prime minister of the Provisional Government, and his tenure was consumed with World War I . Despite mass opposition to the war, Kerensky chose to continue Russia's participation . His government cracked down on anti-war sentiment and dissent in 1917, which made his administration even more unpopular. Kerensky remained in power until the October Revolution . This revolution saw the Bolsheviks create

5520-406: The prime minister," which was not his true occupation. Through his interaction with Kornilov, Lvov gained the knowledge that Kornilov wanted to create a stronger, more unified government where he had more of a voice. Then, Lvov went on to express these desires to Kerensky, but Kerensky viewed this information as a threatening proposal to take over the government. From there, Kerensky prepared to defend

5600-461: The rear – in factories. In particular, General Aleksey Kaledin, delegated to the Conference from the Cossacks, noted that in a terrible hour of difficult trials at the front and in the rear, from complete political and economic collapse and ruin, from destruction a country can only be saved by really firm power, not connected by narrow-party group interests, free from the need, after every step, to look at all kinds of committees and councils, and aware of

5680-426: The tsar, he now saved the lives of many of the tsar's civil servants about to be lynched by mobs. Additionally, the Duma formed an executive committee which eventually became the Russian Provisional Government . As there was little trust between Ispolkom and this government (and as he was about to accept the office of Attorney General in the Provisional Government), Kerensky gave a most passionate speech, not just to

5760-512: The war effort, might become increasingly unstable if vital supplies from France and from the United Kingdom ceased flowing. The dilemma of whether to withdraw was a great one, and Kerensky's inconsistent and impractical policies further destabilised the army and the country at large. Furthermore, Kerensky adopted a policy that isolated the right-wing conservatives, both democratic and monarchist-oriented. His philosophy of "no enemies to

5840-427: Was "a strange mixture of conspiracy and confusion". Once the attempt was halted, many citizens expressed skeptical thoughts regarding what actually happened between Kornilov and Kerensky. On the left side, those who defended Kornilov believed that Kerensky had intentionally planned the seizure of power, but publicly disapproved of it to be the savior figure in the midst of turmoil. Another aspect that Steinberg highlights

5920-658: Was Secretary-General of the Grand Orient of Russia's Peoples and stood down following his ascent to the government in July 1917. He was succeeded by a Menshevik, Alexander Halpern . In response to bitter resentments held against the imperial favourite Grigori Rasputin in the midst of Russia's failing effort in World War I , Kerensky, at the opening of the Duma on 2 November 1916, called the imperial ministers "hired assassins" and "cowards", and alleged that they were "guided by

6000-507: Was a part of ceased to exist. The fragments of the Provisional Government were a pivotal force in the Russian Civil War that occurred in response to Lenin's seizure of power. Despite the officer corps' refusal to participate in Kornilov's mutiny, they were angry with the punishment Kerensky gave him, as well as Kerensky's accommodation of the left and his arrest of prominent generals. This would later come back to haunt Kerensky as

6080-755: Was a teacher and director of the local gymnasium and was later promoted to be an inspector of public schools. His paternal grandfather Mikhail Ivanovich served as a priest in the village of Kerenka in the Gorodishchensky district of the Penza Governorate from 1830. The surname Kerensky comes from the name of this village. His maternal grandfather was head of the Topographical Bureau of the Kazan Military District . His mother, Nadezhda Aleksandrovna (née Adler),

6160-521: Was attended by 84 people. The main events of the Conference were the speeches of Alexander Kerensky , Nikolai Chkheidze , Supreme Commander-in-Chief Lavr Kornilov , Alexei Kaledin . Mikhail Alekseev , Ekaterina Breshko-Breshkovskaya , Alexander Guchkov , Ivan Ilyin , Peter Kropotkin , Vasily Maklakov , Pavel Milyukov , Vladimir Nabokov , Georgy Plekhanov , Mikhail Rodzianko , Pavel Ryabushinsky , David Ryazanov , Sergey Salazkin , Irakli Tsereteli , Vasily Shulgin , Vadim Rudnev also spoke at

6240-634: Was flown to London, where he was buried at the non-denominational Putney Vale Cemetery . Papers of the Kerensky family are held at the Cadbury Research Library, University of Birmingham . Kornilov affair The Kornilov affair , or the Kornilov putsch , was an attempted military coup d'état by the commander-in-chief of the Russian Army , General Lavr Kornilov , from 10 to 13 September 1917 ( O.S. , 28–31 August), against

6320-410: Was subordinate to Ispolkom in the political hierarchy. The ideas came from a group of socialists and aimed to limit the officers' power to military affairs. The socialist intellectuals believed the officers to be the most likely counterrevolutionary elements. Kerensky's role in these orders is unclear, but he participated in the decisions. But just as before the revolution he had defended many who disliked

6400-480: Was the granddaughter of a former serf who had managed to purchase his freedom before serfdom was abolished in 1861 . He subsequently embarked upon a mercantile career, in which he prospered. This allowed him to move his business to Moscow, where he continued his success and became a wealthy Moscow merchant. Members of the Kerensky and Ulyanov families were friends; Kerensky's father was the teacher of Vladimir Ulyanov (Lenin) and had even secured him acceptance into

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