The Kornilov Affair - August 1917

August 1917 - Russia on verge of chaos.     - Peasants seizing land.    - Industry production failing.    - German and Austro-Hungarian armies were advancing.PG survived July Days and the Bolsheviks were temporarily out of the way.    - Fatal blow to the position of the PG = Kornilov Affair.Brusilov was dismissed as the commander-in-chief of the army due to the failed June Offensive and replaced by General Lavr Kernilov.    - Loyal and concerned about a left-wing radical plot against the Government (Another July Days).    - To prevent this, Kornilov ordered Russian troops into Petrograd on 24 August 1917.Prime Minister Kerensky panicked - fearing a military takeover.     - Ordered arrest of Kornilov and armed groups of workers in the capital (many Bolsheviks - also released from prison for the same reason).1st September the whole affair was over.    - Devastating effect on the PG who looked very weak in the light of the events.    - Support for the PG fell, while support for the All-Russian Soviet increased.    - Main beneficiaries of the Kornilov Affair being the Bolsheviks. Krensky relied on the Bolsheviks = made them look strong and set them up as defenders of Petrograd = increase in numbers dramatically.October 1917    - PG had lost most of its authority    - Contemporaries believed it would be replaced soon.

New Page