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Alexander II Killed
After multiple attempts, one of which only just over a year prior, Alexander II is assassinated. His carriage is bombed and he is killed in a suicide attack by a Polish revolutionary. -
Period: to
Russian Revolution
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Lenin Sentenced Without Trial
Vladimir Lenin is confined in a Gulag for over a year. In February of 1897 he is exiled to Siberia until 1900. After his sentence ends, Russian newspaper "Iskra" publishes Lenin's controversial 'What Is To Be Done?', inciting even more anti-Tsar dissent and demonstrations. -
Bloody Sunday
Troops loyal to the Tsar open fire on petitioners, killing hundreds and wounding many more. Any popularity Nicholas II still had is now gone. This sets the stage for the 1905 Russian Revolution. -
Constitution Passes
"Fundamental Laws" of Russia are rewritten into an official constitution. A partly elected parliament called the "Duma" is formed to limit the powers of the Tsar. Attempts are fairly unsuccessful but pave the way to the dissolution of autocracy. -
World War 1 Begins
World War 1 begins. Russian soldiers are ill-equipped and underfed to be fight a war. Germany devastates Russian numbers, and surrendering troops are summarily executed by officers. Support for Russia's leadership wanes further. -
February Revolution
Troops and law enforcement massacre over a thousand civilians during a protest lasting more than a week. -
Tsar Steps Down
Tsar Nicholas II finally abdicates his throne, also dismissing his son's heirship. When his brother refuses to accept a Provisional Government is enstated, led by Prince Lvov. A month and a day later marks the long overdue return of Vladimir Lenin from exile. Tsar Nicholas II and his entire family are brutally executed by Bolsheviks after almost a year in Yekaterinburg. -
Russian Government Falls
Bolsheviks capture Petrograd and the Winter Palace, dismantling the Provisional government and forming their own. Within a few short month, the existing media outlets are censored or banned. New property laws and worker's rights are enacted. After 300 years of Romanov tyranny enforced by executions (frequently without trial) the death penalty is outlawed. Citizens also begin receiving food stipends. -
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
Four years into the attrition Russia had been suffering, Bolsheviks signs the treaty of Brest-Litovsk at massive cost to the Russian economy. This effectively concedes territory of imperial states to their sovereign nations as well as turning over large portions of industry and stockpiles, in order to end Russia's involvement in WWI. -
USSR Elects New Premier
Vladimir Lenin suffers a fatal stroke. His successor, Joseph Stalin, becomes the leader of the Soviet Union.