October revolution and Jews of Russia

It is proposed to consider the cause of the 1917 revolution as a set of causes of discontent among various social and national groups. The reasons for dissatisfaction with their position of the national group of Jews of Russia are considered. In this regard, an overview of various decisions of Russian government and their consequences for the Jews is given. The procedure of self-determination of Jews between the Bolsheviks and anti-Bolsheviks is analyzed. The history of the settlement of Jews in the territory of Russia at the end of the 18th century after the sections of Poland is considered. The policy of Catherine II aimed at "correcting" Jews and involving them in public life of the state is described. The analysis of the difficulties of the absorption of Jews into the economy of the country, their extrusion by the government from central regions to the outskirts of the country - into the notorious "Pale of Settlement". The problem of conscription of Jews for military service and institution of cantonists is considered. Numerous oppressions that they endured during the reign of Paul I, Alexander I, and Nicholas I are described. The reforms of Alexander II, which made life easier for Jews in Russia, are analyzed in great detail. The era of Alexander III is considered, when anti-Semitism became an official policy towards Jews. It was then that mass Jewish emigration from Russia began. The participation of Jews in the Russian revolutionary movement is considered in detail. Also the participation of Jews in the World War I and their mass evictions from the war zone is touched. In conclusion, the support that the Jewish masses rendered to the February Revolution of 1917, their life under the Provisional Government, is described. At the end of the article, the difficulties faced by Russian Jews after October coup, mass pogroms during the Civil War and their transition to the side of Bolsheviks, who defended them from pogroms, are analyzed. Article is written on basis of latest Russian and foreign sources: monographs, reference books, encyclopedias and textbooks.