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Russian Provisional Government
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The Russian Provisional Government was formed in Petrograd after the deterioration of the Russian Empire and the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II.
When the authority of the Tsar's government began disintegrating after the February Revolution of 1917, two rival institutions, the Duma and the Petrograd Soviet, competed for power. Tsar Nicholas II abdicated on March 15 and his brother, Grand Duke Michael, deferred acceptance of imperial power the next day, legally authorizing (by a proclamation prepared for him) the Provisional Government to rule until the Constituent Assembly determined the form of government in Russia. The Provisional Government was to provide elections to the Assembly, but its power was effectively limited by the Petrograd Soviet's growing authority. Although at first the Soviet gave support to the Provisional Government, this gradually eroded. Since the Soviet controlled the army, factories and railways and had the support of the workers, this became a period of dual authority.
The Provisional Government was led first by Prince Georgy L'vov and then by Alexander Kerensky. It succeeded in organizing the elections, but failed to end Russia's involvement in World War I, thereby weakening its popularity among Russia's war-weary people. In fact, it even launched an offensive against the German and Austro-Hungarian army in July 1917. This Kerensky Offensive, as it was called, was a failure which further eroded support for the government. The government was reluctant to make decisive policy decisions, precisely because it was supposed to be provisional. This weakness led to a challenge from the right in the form of the Kornilov Affair, and then from the left, which organized the October Revolution, transferring power to the Soviets controlled by Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks then replaced the government with their own which, until the Russian Constituent Assembly was disbanded, was also called "provisional".
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Below is the text of the public announcement of the formation of the Provisional Government which was published in Izvestia the day after its formation.[1]
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Public Announcement of the Formation of the First Provisional Government With this end in mind, the Temporary Committee of the State Duma has appointed the following persons as ministers of the first cabinet representing the public; their past political and public activities assure them the confidence of the country:
The actual work of the cabinet will be guided by the following principles:
The Provisional Government wishes to add that it has no intention whatsoever of taking advantage of the military situation to delay in any way the carrying through of the reforms and the measures outlined above. |
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The Provisional Government was deposed as a result of the October Revolution.