Page 93 - A History of the World in 25 Cities
P. 93
Lenin (real name Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov) was the leader of the Bolshevik Revolution and later became the first head of the Soviet state. He is regarded as
one of the most important thinkers of the twentieth century. He lived in Saint Petersburg before being exiled to Siberia, travelling to Europe once his exile
had ended. He returned to Russia in October 1917, arriving at Saint Petersburg’s Finland Station
on a sealed train. Some stories say he was even disguised as a railway worker!
In 1905, a strike by workers at the Putilov Ironworks led to a confrontation in which over 100 people were shot and killed by government troops. This was called ‘Bloody Sunday’. It inspired similar strikes across
the country and increased resentment towards the tsar and the ruling classes.
In 1918, the capital of Russia was changed to Moscow, 600 kilometres to the southeast of Saint Petersburg. One reason for this was that the capital was now much further away from Russia's borders, making it harder to invade in the event of war.
89
66Population of Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg today:
5
25 Population of 5
55
in 1917:
