Bolsheviks and Mensheviks: The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party split at the London Conference in 1903 into two factions: Bolsheviks, the majority, led by Lenin, and Mensheviks, the minority. In 1912, the factions became parties. In August 1917, the Bolsheviks held their “Unity Conference” at which Trotsky and the Mezhrayonsti joined them. In the same month they Mensheviks attempted to weld their groups into a single party, with little success.
Cadets: So-called after the initials of the Constitutional Democratic party, formed October 1905, by the liberal-monarchist bourgeoisie. It was the leading party in the Dumas and the first Provisional Government.
Labourites or Tradoviks: A petty-bourgeois, peasant-intellectual formation from April 1906 in the First Duma. Kerensky was the most famous member.
Social Revolutionaries: A heterogeneous petty-bourgeois formation since 1901. In October 1917, the “party” split and the Left Wing supported the Bolsheviks in the Revolution, it soon turned against the Soviet Government and sided with the counter-revolution.
Dien (Day): A Petrograd daily. Originally a liberal-bourgeois paper founded 1912 with the support of the Banks. It was in 1917, of the Mcnshevik-Liquidators, edited by A. Potressov. Banned November 8th, 1917.
Dyelo Naroda (Peoples’ Cause): Petrograd daily. Organ of the Centre Social Revolutionaries (Chernov Group). March 1917-June 1918.
Izvestia (Bulletin Daily): published from March 13, 1917 by the Petrograd Soviet. After October, official organ of the Soviet Government.
Novoye Vremya (New Times): An influential, reactionary, daily, published Petrograd 1876-1917.
Novaya Zhin (New Life): Daily organ of the Menshevik Internationalists, April 1917-July 1918. Edited by Maxim Gorki, Martov and others. Vacillated between social-pacifism and revolution.
Pravda (Truth): Organ of the Central Committee of the Bolshevik Party published from April 22, 1912. Intermittently suppressed. From March 18, 1917, daily.
Rabochaya Gazetta (Workers’ Gazette): Menshevik daily Petrograd March 26-December 13, 1917.
Riech (Speech): Central Organ of the Cadets: St Petersburg daily 1906-1917. Editor: P. Miliukov. Suppressed November 8 1917
Yedinstvo (Unity): PlekHanov’s anti-Bolshevik paper: Published March-November 1917, Petrograd. Suspended January 1918 for lack of subscribers.
Last updated on: 8.12.2006