"All power to the Soviets", people would shout while rampaging through the city. Lenin's slogan "Peace, Land and Bread" (Modern World History, McDougal Littell, page 392) was catching on and the citizens of Russia supported it. After years of being under the provisional government's rule, the Bolsheviks decided to take action, ignoring all former rule, and giving the people what they wanted, peace and equality. .
Near the end of WWI, Russia had been turned upside down; they had already sustained a great loss of people to their enemy. Although the March Revolution was successful in bringing down the czar, it failed to set up a strong government to replace his regime. Headed by Alexander Kerensky, the provisional government decided to continue fighting in the war. His decision was a big mistake, which cost the government support of the soldiers and citizens. As the war continued, the conditions in Russia worsened as the citizens requested land and formed soviets (local councils consisting of workers, peasants and soldiers). V.I. Lenin, leader of the Bolshevik's, saw this as a chance to jump in and take control of the crumbling Russia.
Lenin planned for the Bolsheviks to storm the Winter Palace in November of 1917. With no warning, the Bolshevik soldiers killed an arrested many of the government officials. The whole revolution was over within a day. Kerensky fled the scene in fear of what might have happened to him. .
Now that Lenin had gained control of Russia, he had the daunting task of restoring order in Russia. In order to meet the citizen's demand for land, Lenin ordered that all government owned farmland be distributed amongst the peasants. Another immediate change was to give control of the government owned factories to the workers. Now that some of the domestic issues had been temporarily fixed, it was time to deal with international affairs. .
Germany and Russia were still at war with each other on the Eastern Front and Russia was ready to get out.
