Background info

• The liberals were a key player after feb 1917. They were known as ”The Party of Popular Freedom”, believed in parliamentary democracy, civil rights, and free election. The main party was the Kadets and they used purely non-violent methods. Their main aim was to move towards constitutional monarchy. Their main support was from the middle class intelligensia.
• The social revolutionaries emerged from populists and were a fairly loose organisation who supported a range of views. Their methods included agitation, terrorism, and assassination. Their beliefs included peasant revolution, overthrowing of the Tsar, and acceptance of capitalism as a fact. They wanted land from land owners to be divided amongst peasants. Their main supporters were peasants.
• the Bolsheviks were the majority of the Marxists, they were highly disciplined and professional. they aimed to bring socialist consciousness to workers and operated under centralised leadership. their main support was from the working class (young and more militant).
• the Mensheviks were the minority of the Marxists and believed in a socialist revolution. they encouraged trade unions and democracy. they had a broad range of support from different races and intelligence.