Russian Revolution of 1905

The Russian Revolution of 1905 began amid military defeat, labour unrest and hostility to autocratic rule. The killing of demonstrators on Bloody Sunday was followed by mass strikes, peasant uprisings, military mutinies and the formation of workers’ councils.

Revolutionary organisations used propaganda, assassination and armed action, while the imperial government combined concessions with repression. The October Manifesto created an elected Duma, but the monarchy retained decisive powers and dismantled much of the revolutionary movement by 1907.