There had been revolutionary grumblings in Russia since the early 1800s. Almost alone among the European powers, Russia still operated under a system of feudalism called serfdom and the tsarist government was thoroughly absolutist. Additionally, the country had made some modest attempts at industrialization but lagged far behind other countries economically. Russia's loss in the Crimean War from 1853 - 1856 set the country back further.
Revolutionary violence began with the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881. The new tsar, Alexander III, cracked down brutally on revolutionary groups, which only fueled resentment. Nicholas II became tsar in 1894 amid a current of discontentment.
After Russia's defeat in the Russo-Japanese War in 1905, there was a full-blown wave of revolutionary protest. Trying Prussia's strategy from 1848, Tsar Nicholas established a parliament and granted a constitution with a list of civil rights.
However, revolutionary sentiment remained strong, especially among Marxist groups, and in February 1917, protests turned violent and the tsar was forced to abdicate, ending the 370-year-old Tsardom of Russia. Power fell to a Provisional Government but the revolts continued under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin and the "Petrograd Soviet" (Saint Petersburg Council), which was dominated by the revolutionary Russian Bolshevik Party. The Provisional Government became so weak that many different left-wing groups all began competing for power.
The Provisional Government was overthrown in the October Revolution when the Bolsheviks seized power under the leadership of Leon Trotzky. A civil war ensued among various left-wing groups, anarchists, nationalists, Islamic militants, and remnants of the tsarist army. The Bolsheviks themselves splintered into the Red Army and the White Army. When the dust settled, the Red Army had won, and Vladimir Lenin became the leader of Russia.
Lenin established the Russian Communist Party, banned all rival political organizations, and expelled anyone who challenged the party platform. The government was centralized under the Central Committee of the Communist Party, and soviets were established throughout Russia, officially becoming the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, also known as the Soviet Union, in 1922.
Vladimir Lenin died later that same year, and was succeeded by Joseph Stalin, who became the first "General Secretary of the Communist Party."
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