Alexander Kerensky

Alexander Fyodorovitch Kerensky (Russian: Алекса́ндр Фёдорович Ке́ренский, Aleksandr Fëdorovič Kerenskij) (May 2 [O.S. April 22] 1881 – June 11, 1970) was a Russian revolutionary leader who was instrumental in toppling the Russian monarchy. He served as the second Prime Minister of the Russian Provisional Government until Vladimir Lenin seized power following the October Revolution. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 435 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (1200 × 1653 pixel, file size: 293 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Alexander Kerensky, date unknown. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 435 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (1200 × 1653 pixel, file size: 293 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Alexander Kerensky, date unknown. ... The fictional BattleTech universe is populated by a wide variety of interesting characters. ... May 2 is the 122nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (123rd in leap years). ... Old Style or O.S. is a designation indicating that a date conforms to the Julian calendar, formerly in use in many countries, rather than the Gregorian calendar, currently in use in most countries. ... Year 1881 (MDCCCLXXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... June 11 is the 162nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (163rd in leap years), with 203 days remaining. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A monarchy, from the Greek μονος, one, and αρχειν, to rule, is a form of government that has a monarch as head of state. ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of a cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... The Russian Provisional Government was formed in Petrograd after the deterioration of the Russian Empire and the abdication of the Tsars. ... Lenin redirects here. ... Red October redirects here. ...

Early life and activism

Kerensky, the son of a headmaster, was born in Simbirsk (now Ulyanovsk), the same town as Lenin (then Ulyanov). At one point Kerensky's father, Fyodor, had taught the young Vladimir Ulyanov at Kazan University. Kerensky graduated with a degree in Law from St. Petersburg University in 1904. He showed his political allegiances early on, with his frequent defense of anti-Tsarist revolutionaries. He was elected to the Fourth Duma in 1912 as a member of the Trudoviks, a moderate labor party. A brilliant orator and skilled parliamentary leader, he became a member of the Provisional Committee of the Duma as a Socialist Revolutionary and a leader of the socialist opposition to the regime of the ruling dinosaur, Nicholas II. In the UK and elsewhere, a head teacher is the most senior teacher in a school. ... Ulyanovsk (Улья́новск, formerlySimbirsk (Симби́рск)) is a city on the Volga River in Russia. ... Ulyanovsk (Russian: ), formerly Simbirsk (), is a city on the Volga River in Russia, 893 km east from Moscow. ... Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (Russian: Влади́мир Ильи́ч Ле́нин), original surname Ulyanov (Улья́нов) (April 22 (April 10 (O.S.)), 1870 – January 21, 1924), was... The main bulding of the university, 19th century Kazan State University is located in Kazan, Tatarstan, Russia. ... Seal of Saint Petersburg State University Saint Petersburg State University (Санкт-Петербургский Государственный Университет) one of the oldest Russian educational institutions, established in the city of Saint Petersburg on January 28, 1724 by decree of Peter the Great. ... Tsar (Bulgarian, Serbian and Macedonian цар, Russian  , in scientific transliteration respectively car and car ), occasionally spelled Czar or Tzar and sometimes Csar or Zar in English, is a Slavonic term designating certain monarchs. ... State Duma of the Russian Empire was a legislative assembly in the late Russian Empire. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... The labor movement (or labour movement) is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and political governments. ... Socialist-Revolutionary election poster, 1917. ... Socialism refers to a broad array of doctrines or political movements that envisage a socio-economic system in which property and the distribution of wealth are subject to social control. ... Nicholas II of Russia (May 18, 1868–July 17, 1918)[1] (Russian: , Nikolay II) was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Poland,[2] and Grand Duke of Finland. ...

February Revolution of 1917

When the February Revolution broke out in 1917, Kerensky was one of its most prominent leaders, and was elected vice-chairman of the Petrograd Soviet. He simultaneously became the first Minister of Justice in the newly-formed Provisional Government. When the Soviet passed a resolution prohibiting its leaders from joining the government, Kerensky delivered a stirring speech at a Soviet meeting. Although the decision was never formalized, he was granted a de-facto exemption and continued acting in both capacities. The February Revolution (N.S.: March Revolution) of 1917 in Russia was the first stage of the Russian Revolution of 1917. ... An assembly of the Petrograd Soviet, 1917 The Petrograd Soviet, or the Petrograd Soviet of Workers and Soldiers Deputies, was the council set up in Petrograd (Saint Petersburg, Russia) in March 1917 as the representative body of the citys workers. ... The Justice Minister is a cabinet position in a government. ... The Russian Provisional Government was formed in Petrograd after the deterioration of the Russian Empire and the abdication of the Tsars. ...

After the first government crisis over Pavel Milyukov's secret note re-committing Russia to its original war aims on May 2-4, Kerensky became the Minister of War and the dominant figure in the newly formed socialist-liberal coalition government. Under Allied pressure to continue the war, he launched what became known as the Kerensky Offensive against the Austro-German South Army on June 17 Old Style. At first successful, the offensive was soon stopped and then thrown back by a strong counter-attack. The Russian Army suffered heavy losses and it was clear - from many incidents of desertion, sabotage, and mutiny - that the Russian Army was no longer willing to fight. Pavel Nikolayevich Milyukov (Cyrillic: Павел Николаевич Милюков) (1859-1943) was (alongside Vladimir Lenin and Peter Stolypin) the greatest Russian politician of pre-revolutionary years. ... A defence minister ( Commonwealth English) or defense minister ( American English) is a cabinet portfolio (position) which regulates the armed forces in a sovereign nation. ... Combatants Russia Germany, Austria-Hungary Commanders Aleksei Brusilov von Bothmer Strength XI, VII, VIII Armies South Army (A.H.-Germany) VII and III Army (Austria-Hungary) Casualties 400,000 ? The Kerensky Offensive (aka July Offensive or Galician Offensive) was the last Russian offensive in World War One. ... Old Style can refer to: Old Style and New Style dates, a shift from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar: in Britain in 1752, in Russia in 1918. ...

Kerensky was heavily criticised by the military for his liberal policies, which included stripping officers of their mandate (handing overriding control to revolutionary inclined "soldier committees" instead), the abolition of the death penalty, and the presence of various revolutionary agitators at the front. Many officers jokingly referred to commander in chief Kerensky as "persuader in chief".

On July 2, 1917, the first coalition collapsed over the question of Ukraine's autonomy. Following widespread unrest in Petrograd and suppression of the Bolsheviks, Kerensky succeeded Prince Lvov as Russia's Prime Minister. Following the Kornilov Affair at the end of August and the resignation of the other ministers, he appointed himself Supreme Commander-in-Chief as well. He retained his other posts in the short-lived Directory in September and the final coalition government in October 1917 until it was overthrown by the Bolsheviks. Georgy Yevgenyevich Lvov, Knyaz (Prince) (Russian: Георгий Евгеньевич Львов) (November 2, 1861-March 7, 1925) was a Russian statesman and the first post-imperial prime minister of Russia, in the Russian... A prime minister is the most senior minister of a cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... The Kornilov Affair was a confused struggle between General Lavr Kornilov and Aleksandr Kerensky in August/September, 1917, in between the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II and the October Revolution. ... Commander-in-Chief (in NATO-lingo often C-in-C or CINC pronounced sink) is the commander of all the military forces within a particular region or of all the military forces of a state. ...

Kerensky's major challenge was that Russia was exhausted after three years of war, while the provisional government did not offer much motivation for a victory outside of continuing Russia's obligations towards its allies. Furthermore, Lenin and his Bolshevik party were promising "peace, land, and bread" under a communist system. The army was disintegrating due to a lack of discipline, which fostered desertion in large numbers. Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert Henry Asquith Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Woodrow... Bolshevik Party Meeting. ... This article is about communism as a form of society and as a political movement. ...

Kerensky and the other political leaders continued their obligation to Russia's allies by continuing involvement in World War I - fearing the economy, already under huge stress from the war effort, may become increasingly unstable if vital supplies from France and the UK were to stop. Some also feared that Germany would demand enormous territorial concessions as the price for peace (which indeed happened at the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk). The dilemma of whether or not to withdraw was a great one, and Kerensky's inconsistent and impractical policies further destabilized the army and the country at large. Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert Henry Asquith Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Woodrow... The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed on March 3, 1918, at Brest, formerly Brest-Litovsk, between Russia and the Central Powers, marking Russias exit from World War I. While the treaty was practically obsolete before the end of the year, it gave some relief to...

Furthermore, Kerensky adopted a policy which isolated the right-wing conservatives, both democratic and monarchist oriented. His philosophy of "no enemies to the left" greatly empowered the Bolsheviks and gave them a free hand, allowing them to take over the military arm or "voyenka" of the Petrograd and Moscow Soviets. His arrest of Kornilov and other officers left him without strong allies against the Bolsheviks, who ended up being Kerensky's strongest and most determined adversaries as opposed to the right wing, which evolved into the White movement. Bolshevik Party Meeting. ... White Army redirects here. ...

October Revolution of 1917

During the Kornilov Coup, Kerensky had distributed arms to the Petrograd workers, and by October most of these armed workers had gone over to the Bolsheviks. Lenin was determined to overthrow Kerensky's government before it could be legitimised by the planned elections for a Russian Constituent Assembly, and on November 7 [O.S. October 25] 1917 the Bolsheviks launched the second Russian revolution in that year. Kerensky's government in Petrograd had almost no support in the city. Only one small force, the First Petrograd Women's Battalion, actually fought for the government against the Bolsheviks. It took less than 20 hours before the Bolsheviks had taken over the government - in what is known as the October Revolution. The Kornilov Affair was the failed military coup by General Lavr Kornilov against the Provisional Government of Aleksandr Kerensky in September, 1917, in between the fall of the Tsars and the October Revolution. ... Saint Petersburg  listen (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991... An election is a decision making process where people choose people to hold official offices. ... The Russian Constituent Assembly (Всероссийское Учредительное Собрание, Vserossiyskoye Uchreditelnoye Sobranie) was a democratically elected constitutional body convened in Russia after the overthrow of Tsar Nicholas II. It met for 13 hours, 4 p. ... November 7 is the 311th day of the year (312th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 54 days remaining. ... Old Style or O.S. is a designation indicating that a date conforms to the Julian calendar, formerly in use in many countries, rather than the Gregorian calendar, currently in use in most countries. ... Year 1917 (MCMXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar (see: 1917 Julian calendar). ... The Womens Battalion (also known as the Womens Battalion of Death) was an all-female military unit created in 1917 by the newly formed Russian Provisional Government after the February Revolution. ... Red October redirects here. ...

Kerensky escaped the Bolsheviks and went to Pskov, where he rallied some loyal troops for an attempt to retake the capital. His troops managed to capture Tsarskoe Selo, but were beaten the next day at Pulkovo. Kerensky narrowly escaped, and spent the next few weeks in hiding before fleeing the country, eventually arriving in France. During the Russian Civil War he supported neither side, as he opposed both the Bolshevik regime and the White Movement. The Trinity Cathedral (1682-99) is a symbol of Pskovs former might and independence. ... In politics a capital (also called capital city or political capital — although the latter phrase has an alternative meaning based on an alternative meaning of capital) is the principal city or town associated with its government. ... Tsarskoye Selo (Царское Село in Russian, may be translated as “Tsar’s Village”), a former residence of the royal families and visiting nobility 24 km south of St. ... Pulkovo Airport (Аэропорт Пулково in Russian) ( IATA Airport Code: LED / ICAO Airport Code : ULLI) is located 16 km south of St Petersburg, Russia. ... Combatants Red Army (Bolsheviks) White Army (Monarchists, SRs, Anti-Communists) Green Army (Peasants and Nationalists) Black Army (Anarchists) Commanders Leon Trotsky Mikhail Tukhachevsky Semyon Budyonny Lavr Kornilov, Alexander Kolchak, Anton Denikin, Pyotr Wrangel Alexander Antonov, Nikifor Grigoriev Nestor Makhno Strength 5,427,273 (peak) +1,000,000 Casualties 939,755... White Army redirects here. ...

Life in exile

Kerensky lived in Paris until 1940, engaged in the endless splits and quarrels of the exiled Russian democratic leaders. In 1939, Kerensky married former Australian journalist Lydia ‘Nell' Tritton.[1] When the Germans overran France at the start of World War II, they escaped to the United States. City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) Paris Eiffel tower as seen from the esplanade du Trocadéro. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

In 1945, his wife became terminally ill. He traveled with her to Brisbane, Australia and lived there with her family until her death in February 1946. Thereafter he returned to the United States, where he lived for the rest of his life. Brisbane (pronounced ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, as well as the third largest city in Australia, with a greater metropolitan population of just under two million. ...

When Adolf Hitler's forces invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, Kerensky offered his support to Stalin, but received no reply. Instead, he made broadcasts in Russian in support of the war effort. After the war he organized a group called the Union for the Liberation of Russia, but this achieved little.^{[citation needed]} Hitler redirects here. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...

Grave of Kerensky in London

Kerensky eventually settled in New York City, but spent much of his time at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University in California, where he both used and contributed to the Institution's huge archive on Russian history, and where he taught graduate courses. He wrote and broadcast extensively on Russian politics and history. His last public speech was delivered at Kalamazoo College, in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Image File history File links Kerenskygrave. ... Image File history File links Kerenskygrave. ... Nickname: Big Apple, Gotham, NYC, City That Never Sleeps, The Concrete Jungle, The City So Nice They Named It Twice Location in the state of New York Coordinates: Country United States State New York Boroughs The Bronx Brooklyn Manhattan Queens Staten Island Settled 1676 Government  - Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Area... Hoover Tower at the Hoover Institution The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace is a public policy think tank and library founded by Herbert Hoover at Stanford University, his alma mater. ... The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly known as Stanford University (or simply Stanford), is a private university located approximately 37 miles (60 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco and approximately 20 miles northwest of San José in an unincorporated area of Santa Clara County. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... The history of Russia is essentially that of its many nationalities, each with a separate history and complex origins. ... Politics is the process by which groups make decisions. ... History studies the past in human terms. ... Kalamazoo College is a small, private liberal arts college located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. ... Nickname: The Mall City Location of Kalamazoo within Kalamazoo County, Michigan Coordinates: Counties Kalamazoo County  - Mayor Hannah McKinney Area    - City 65. ...

Kerensky's major works include The Prelude to Bolshevism (1919) ISBN 0-8383-1422-8 , The Catastrophe (1927), The Crucifixion of Liberty (1934) and Russia and History's Turning Point (1965).

Kerensky died at his home in New York City in 1970, one of the last surviving major participants in the turbulent events of 1917. The local Russian Orthodox Churches in New York refused to grant Kerensky burial, seeing him as being largely responsible for Russia falling to the Bolsheviks. A Serbian Orthodox Church also refused. Kerensky's body was then flown to London where he was buried at Putney Vale non-denominational cemetery. Nickname: Big Apple, Gotham, NYC, City That Never Sleeps, The Concrete Jungle, The City So Nice They Named It Twice Location in the state of New York Coordinates: Country United States State New York Boroughs The Bronx Brooklyn Manhattan Queens Staten Island Settled 1676 Government  - Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Area... The Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (Russian: ), also known as the Orthodox Christian Church of Russia, is that body of Christians who are united under the Patriarch of Moscow, who in turn is in communion with the other patriarchs and primates of the Eastern Orthodox Church. ... Flag of the Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) (Serbian: Српска Православна Црква / Srpska Pravoslavna Crkva; СПЦ / SPC) or the Church of Serbia is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Putney Vale is a small community at the foot of Roehampton Vale. ... Graves at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. ...

Trivia

• His sons Oleg and Gleb Kerensky, who fled with their mother Olga (née Baranovsky) from Leningrad when they were both teenagers and entered the UK on a false (Estonian) passport, went on to have successful careers as engineers. Oleg supervised the construction process of the Mulberry Harbour sections at Conwy Morfa in North Wales^[1].
• In 1945, he met novelist-philosopher Ayn Rand at a party in New York City. Ayn Rand admired Kerensky profoundly in her youth during his tenure as Prime Minister.
• Also around 1945, he met with Catholic Worker co-founder, Dororthy Day, in New York City. See "The Long Loneliness," pages 216-217.

Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and... A Mulberry harbour was a type of temporary harbour developed in World War II to offload cargo on the beaches during the Allied invasion of Normandy. ... The Conwy Morfa is a piece of originally marshy-sand based spit, north of the western end of the modern A55 entrance to Conwy. ... This article is about the country. ... It has been suggested that The Ayn Rand Collective be merged into this article or section. ...

Family

• Now there is distant family living in California with the surname of Earle.

Fictional references

General Aleksandr Kerensky from BattleTech is stated in several sourcebooks to be a descendant of the historical Kerensky. The fictional BattleTech universe is populated by a wide variety of interesting characters. ... BattleTech is a wargaming and science fiction franchise, launched by FASA Corporation and currently owned by WizKids. ...

References

R. Abraham, Kerensky: First Love of the Revolution, Columbia University Press, 1987. ISBN 0-231-06108-0

1. ^ http://www.combinedops.com/Mulberry%20Harbours.htm

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Alexander Kerensky

• An account of Kerensky at Stanford in the 1950s
• Alexandr Kerensky Internet Movie Database Archive Footage