Bloody January, Bloody Sunday. Bloody Sunday (1905). History of provocation. Consequences

We know this day as Bloody Sunday. The guards units then opened fire to kill. The target is civilians, women, children, flags, icons and portraits of the last Russian autocrat.

last hope

The logic of the workers who came out on that fateful day for a peaceful march is simple. Since you are the owner, put things in order. The elite were guided by the same logic. The main ideologist of the empire chief prosecutor Holy Synod Konstantin Pobedonostsev he said directly: “The basis of the foundations of our system is the direct proximity of the tsar and the people under an autocratic system.”

Now it has become fashionable to argue that, they say, the workers had no right either to march or to submit petitions to the sovereign. This is an outright lie. Petitions have been submitted to kings from time immemorial. And normal sovereigns often gave them a go. Catherine the Great, for example, she condemned according to a peasant petition. TO Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Quiet twice, during the Salt and Copper riots, a crowd of Moscow people burst in with collective demands to stop the boyar tyranny. In such cases, giving in to the people was not considered shameful. So why in 1905. So why the last Russian Emperor broke with centuries-old tradition?

Here is a list of not even demands, but requests from the workers with which they went to the “trustworthy sovereign”: “The working day is 8 hours. Work around the clock, in three shifts. Normal pay for a laborer is not less than a ruble ( in a day. — Red.). For a female laborer - not less than 70 kopecks. For their children, set up a nursery orphanage. Overtime work is paid at double rate. Factory medical personnel must be more attentive to wounded and maimed workers.” Is this really excessive?

World financial crisis 1900-1906 at it's peak. Prices for coal and oil, which Russia was exporting even then, fell three times. About a third of the banks collapsed. Unemployment reached 20%. The ruble fell by about half against the pound sterling. Shares of the Putilov plant, where it all began, fell by 71%. They began to tighten the nuts. This is during the "bloody" Stalin fired for being 20 minutes late - under the “kind” tsar, people were fired from work for 5 minutes of delay. Fines for defects due to bad machines sometimes consumed the entire salary. So this is not a matter of revolutionary propaganda.

Here is another quote from a complaint against the owners of the factories, who, by the way, carried out government military orders: “The construction of ships, which, according to the government, is a powerful sea ​​power, is happening before the eyes of the workers, and they clearly see how a whole gang, from the heads of state-owned factories and directors of private factories down to apprentices and lower employees, robs people's money and forces the workers to build ships that are clearly unsuitable for long-distance voyages, with lead rivets and putties seams instead of embossing.” Summary: “The workers’ patience has worn thin. They clearly see that the government of officials is the enemy of the motherland and the people.”

“Why are we doing this?!”

How does the “Master of the Russian Land” react to this? But no way. He knew in advance that the workers were preparing a peaceful demonstration, and their requests were known. The Tsar Father chose to leave the city. So to speak, I recused myself. Minister of Internal Affairs Pyotr Svyatopolk-Mirsky on the eve of the fatal events he wrote down: “There is reason to think that tomorrow everything will work out well.”

Neither he nor the mayor had any intelligible plan of action. Yes, they ordered the printing and distribution of 1,000 leaflets warning against the unauthorized march. But no clear orders were given to the troops.

The result was impressive. “People were writhing in convulsions, screaming in pain, bleeding. On the bars, hugging one of the bars, a 12-year-old boy with a crushed skull drooped... After this wild, causeless murder of many innocent people, the indignation of the crowd reached its extreme. Questions were asked in the crowd: “Because we came to ask the king for intercession, we are being shot! Is this really possible in a Christian country with Christian rulers? This means that we don’t have a king, and that officials are our enemies, we knew that before!” - wrote eyewitnesses.

Ten days later, the Tsar received a deputation of 34 workers specially selected by the new Governor General of St. Petersburg Dmitry Trepov, who immortalized himself with the order: “Don’t spare cartridges!” The king shook their hands and even fed them lunch. And in the end he... forgave them. The imperial couple assigned 50 thousand rubles to the families of 200 killed and about 1000 wounded.

The English Westminster Gazette of January 27, 1905 wrote: “Nicholas, nicknamed the new peacemaker as the founder of the Hague Disarmament Conference, could accept a deputation of peaceful citizens. But he did not have enough courage, intelligence, or honesty for this. And if a revolution breaks out in Russia, then it means that the tsar and the bureaucracy forcibly pushed the suffering people onto this path.”

I agreed with the British and Baron Wrangel, who is difficult to suspect of treason: “If the Emperor had gone out onto the balcony and listened to the people, nothing would have happened, except that the Tsar would have become more popular... How the prestige of his great-grandfather strengthened, Nicholas I, after his appearance during the cholera riot on Sennaya Square! But our Tsar was only Nicholas II, and not the second Nicholas.”

On January 9, 1905, in the city of St. Petersburg, tsarist troops shot a peaceful procession of workers. They went to the king to present him with a petition with their demands. This event happened on a Sunday, so it went down in history as Bloody Sunday. It served as the impetus for the start of the revolution of 1905-1907.

Background

The mass procession of people did not just happen. It was preceded by a series of events in which last role played by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Empire. On the initiative of the police department in 1903, it was created Meeting of Russian factory workers. The organization was legal, and its the main task consisted in weakening the influence of various revolutionary movements on the working class.

At the head of the workers' organization, a special department of the Police Department placed a Russian priest Orthodox Church Georgy Apollonovich Gapon (1870-1906). This man was extremely proud. Very soon he imagined himself as a historical figure and leader of the working class. This was facilitated by the representatives of the authorities themselves, as they withdrew themselves from control, placing the workers' affairs under the full control of Gapon.

The nimble priest immediately took advantage of this and began to pursue his policy, which he considered the only true and correct one. According to the authorities, the organization they created was supposed to deal with issues of education, education, and mutual assistance. And the newly minted leader founded a secret committee. Its members began to become acquainted with illegal literature, studied the history of revolutionary movements and actively discussed plans to fight for the political and economic interests of workers.

Georgy Apollonovich enlisted the support of the Karelin spouses. They came from a social democratic environment and had great authority among the workers. With their direct assistance, the Assembly of Russian Factory Workers significantly increased its numbers. In the spring of 1904, the organization already numbered several thousand people.

In March 1904, a secret program, the so-called “program of five,” was adopted. It contained clear economic and political demands. They formed the basis of the petition with which the workers went to the Tsar on January 9, 1905.

Very soon the Karelin spouses took a leading position in the Assembly. They had many of their own people, and they organized a kind of opposition. She began to play much more important role than the leader of the organization. That is, Gapon turned into a convenient cover, which his leaders from the Police Department did not even realize.

However, Georgy Apollonovich himself was an energetic and purposeful person, so he cannot be considered as a puppet in the hands of the Karelins. He lacked experience revolutionary struggle, authority among the working masses, but he quickly learned and acquired the necessary skills.

At the end of November 1904, he put forward a proposal to contact the authorities with a labor petition. This proposal was supported by a majority of votes. Accordingly, the authority of Georgy Apollonovich grew, and the number of members of the organization began to grow even faster. In January 1905 it already numbered 20 thousand people.

At the same time, the clergyman’s initiative gave rise to serious disagreements among like-minded people. The Karelin spouses and their supporters insisted on the immediate submission of a petition, and Gapon believed that first it was necessary to organize an uprising, show the strength of the masses, and only after that demand economic and political freedoms. Otherwise, the Assembly will be closed and the leaders will be arrested.

All this extremely strained the relationship between the Karelins and Georgy Apollonovich. The couple began to actively campaign for the overthrow of the leader. It is not known how all this would have ended, but circumstances intervened.

Incident at the Putilov plant

In early December 1904, 4 workers were fired at the Putilov plant. These are Fedorov, Ukolov, Sergunin and Subbotin. All of them were members of the Assembly. They were fired by master Tetyavkin for production violations. But rumors quickly spread among the workers that people were expelled from the plant because they belonged to the Assembly.

All this reached Gapon, and he stated that this dismissal was a challenge to him personally. The assembly is obliged to protect its members, otherwise it is worthless. It was decided to send 3 delegations. The first one is to Smirnov, the director of the plant. The second to Chizhov, the inspector supervising the plant. And the third to Fullon, the mayor.

A resolution with demands was approved. This is the reinstatement of those fired and the dismissal of master Tetyavkin. In case of refusal, it was planned to start a mass strike.

Deputations came to Smirnov and Chizhov on December 28 and received a categorical refusal. The third deputation was met the next day by Mayor Fullon. He was polite, helpful and promised to provide all possible assistance.

Fullon spoke personally with Witte about the unrest at the Putilov plant. But he decided not to make concessions to the working class. On January 2, 1905, Gapon and his like-minded people decided to start a strike, and on January 3, the Putilov plant stopped. At the same time, leaflets with a list of economic demands to the authorities began to be distributed at other factories.

After the start of the strike, Georgy Apollonovich, at the head of the delegation, came to the director of the plant, Smirnov. They were read to him economic requirements, but the director replied that he refused to fulfill them. Already on January 5, the strike began to cover other factories in the capital, and Gapon decided to address his demands directly to the emperor. He believed that only the king could resolve this issue.

On the eve of Bloody Sunday

The revolutionary priest believed that royal palace many thousands of workers were expected to come. In this case, the sovereign was simply obliged to consider the petition and somehow respond to it.

The text of the petition was read to all members of the Assembly. Everyone who heard her signed the appeal. By the end of the day on January 8 there were more than 40 thousand. Gapon himself claimed that he had collected at least 100 thousand signatures.

Familiarization with the petition was accompanied by speeches with which Georgy Apollonovich spoke to people. They were so bright and sincere that the listeners fell into ecstasy. People swore that they would come to Palace Square on Sunday. Gapon's popularity in these 3 days before the bloody events reached unimaginable heights. There was a rumor that he was the new messiah, sent by God to liberate the common people. At one word from him, plants and factories where thousands of people worked stopped.

At the same time, the leader called for people to go to the procession without any weapons, so as not to give the authorities a reason to use force. It was also forbidden to take alcohol with you and indulge in hooligan behavior. Nothing should have disturbed the peaceful procession to the sovereign. They also appointed people whose duty it was to guard the king from the moment he appeared before the people.

However, the organizers of the peaceful demonstration became increasingly convinced that the emperor would not appear before the workers. Most likely, he will send troops against them. This scenario was more likely. The use of weapons by troops was also allowed. But there was no turning back. On the eve of January 9, the city froze in anxious anticipation.

The Tsar and his family left St. Petersburg for Tsarskoe Selo on the evening of January 6. On the evening of January 8, the Minister of Internal Affairs convened an urgent meeting. It was decided not only not to allow workers into Palace Square, but also into the city center. It was decided to place military outposts along the route of the demonstration, and to use force in case of excesses. But no one had any thoughts of organizing a mass bloodbath. Officials believed that the mere sight of armed soldiers would frighten the workers, and they would be forced to go home. However, everything did not work out as planned in advance.

Early in the morning of January 9, 1905, workers began to gather in their areas on the Vyborg, St. Petersburg side, behind the Nevskaya and Narvskaya outposts, in Kolpino, on Vasilyevsky Island. The total number of demonstrators numbered about 140 thousand people. This entire mass of people moved in several columns towards Palace Square. There the columns were supposed to unite by 2 o'clock in the afternoon and wait for the sovereign to come out to them.

The emperor had to accept the petition, and its delivery was entrusted to Gapon. At the same time, it was planned that the tsar would immediately sign 2 decrees: on the amnesty of political prisoners and on the convening of the Constituent Assembly. If Nicholas II had agreed to this demand, then the rebellious clergyman would have come out to the people and waved a white handkerchief. This would serve as a signal for nationwide celebration. In case of refusal, Gapon had to wave a red handkerchief, which would mean a signal for an uprising.

On the evening of January 8, troops from the St. Petersburg Military District began arriving in the capital of the empire. Already on the night of January 9, combat units occupied combat positions. In total there were about 31 thousand cavalry and infantry. You can also add 10 thousand police officers here. Thus, the government turned more than 40 thousand people against the peaceful demonstration. All the bridges were blocked by military detachments, and cavalrymen rode along the streets. In a few hours the city turned into a huge military camp.

Chronology of events

Workers of the Izhora plant from Kolpino moved to Palace Square first, since they had to travel the greatest distance. At 9 o'clock in the morning they linked up with the workers of the Nevskaya Zastava. On the Shlisselburg tract, their road was blocked by the Cossacks of the Ataman regiment. There were about 16 thousand workers. There were two hundred Cossacks. They fired several volleys of blank cartridges. The crowd fled, broke the fence separating the street from the Neva, and moved further along the ice of the river.

On Vasilyevsky Island, workers set off at 12 noon. There were approximately 6 thousand of them. The Cossacks and infantry blocked their road. A mounted detachment of Cossacks wedged itself into the crowd. People were chopped down with swords, lashed with whips, trampled by horses. The human mass retreated and began to build barricades from fallen telegraph poles. Red flags appeared from somewhere.

The soldiers opened fire and captured one barricade, but by this time the workers had already built another. Before the end of the day, the proletarians erected several more barricades. But they were all captured by troops, and the rebels were shot at with live ammunition.

At the Narva outpost, Gapon came to the assembled workers. He put on the full vestments of a priest. A huge crowd of 50 thousand gathered in this place. People walked with icons and portraits of the king. Troops blocked their path at the Narva Gate. At first, the peaceful procession was attacked by grenadiers, but the horsemen did not frighten the huge mass of people. Then the infantry began to shoot. The soldiers fired five salvos and the crowd began to disperse. The dead and wounded were left lying in the snow. In this skirmish, one of the bullets wounded Gapon in the arm, but he was quickly taken away from the fire.

On the St. Petersburg side the crowd reached 20 thousand people. People walked in a dense mass, holding hands. The Pavlovsky regiment blocked their road. The soldiers started shooting. Three salvos were fired. The crowd wavered and flowed back. The dead and wounded were left lying in the snow. Cavalry was sent after the fleeing people. Those who were caught up were trampled by horses and chopped down with sabers.

But on the Vyborg side there were no casualties. Cavalry was sent to meet the procession. She dispersed the crowd. People, fleeing from the horses, crossed the Neva across the ice and continued their journey to the city center in small groups.

Despite the continuous military barriers, by noon a significant mass of people had gathered on Palace Square. They managed to penetrate into the city center in small groups. In addition to the workers, the crowd included many onlookers and passers-by. It was Sunday, and everyone came to see how the rebel people would present their petition to the king.

In the second hour of the day, mounted detachments tried to disperse the crowd. But people joined hands and insults were hurled towards the soldiers. The Preobrazhensky Regiment entered the square. The soldiers lined up and, on command, took their guns at the ready. The officer shouted to the crowd to disperse, but the crowd did not move. The soldiers fired 2 volleys at the people. Everyone started running. The dead and wounded were left lying in the square.

A huge crowd crowded on Nevsky Prospekt. By 2 o'clock in the afternoon the entire avenue was clogged with workers and onlookers. Cavalry detachments did not allow them to get to Palace Square. At 3 o'clock in the afternoon, volleys were heard from the direction of Palace Square. This made people angry. Stones and pieces of ice were thrown at the cavalrymen. They, in turn, tried to cut the crowd into pieces, but the horsemen did not succeed well.

At 4 o'clock a company of the Semenovsky regiment appeared. She began to push back the demonstrators, but met fierce resistance. And then the order came to open fire. IN total 6 volleys were fired at people. Local clashes continued until late in the evening. The workers even built a barricade, blocking Nevsky. Only at 11 pm the demonstrators were dispersed and order was restored on the avenue.

Thus ended Bloody Sunday. As for losses, a total of 150 people were killed and several hundred were wounded. The exact figures are still unknown, and data from different sources vary significantly.

The yellow press put the figure at more than 4 thousand killed. And the government reported 130 killed and 299 wounded. Some researchers are of the opinion that at least 200 people were killed and approximately 800 were injured.

Conclusion

After the bloody events, Georgy Gapon fled abroad. In March 1906, he was strangled by the Socialist Revolutionaries at one of the dachas near St. Petersburg. His body was discovered on April 30. The dacha was rented by the Socialist-Revolutionary Pyotr Rutenberg. Apparently, he lured the former labor leader to the dacha. The failed leader was buried in the capital's Assumption Cemetery.

On January 10, 1905, the sovereign dismissed the mayor Fullon and the Minister of Internal Affairs Svyatopolk-Mirsky. On January 20, the Tsar received a delegation of workers and expressed sincere regret about what happened. At the same time, he condemned the mass procession, saying that it was a crime for a rebellious crowd to go to it.

After Gapon disappeared, the workers lost enthusiasm. They went to work and the mass strike ended. But this was only a short respite. In the near future, new victims and political upheavals awaited the country.

January 9 (new style January 22) 1905 - important historical event V modern history Russia. On this day, with the tacit consent of Emperor Nicholas II, a 150,000-strong procession of workers who were going to present the Tsar with a petition signed by tens of thousands of St. Petersburg residents asking for reforms was shot.

The reason for organizing the procession to Winter Palace was the dismissal of four workers at the largest Putilov plant in St. Petersburg (now the Kirov plant). On January 3, a strike of 13 thousand factory workers began, demanding the return of those fired, the introduction of an 8-hour working day, and the abolition of overtime work.

The strikers created an elected commission from workers to jointly with the administration examine the workers' grievances. Demands were developed: introduce an 8-hour working day, abolish mandatory overtime work, establish a minimum wage, not punish strike participants, etc. On January 5, the Central Committee of the Russian Social Democratic Party (RSDLP) issued a leaflet calling on the Putilov workers to extend the strike, and on the workers of other factories to join it.

The Putilovites were supported by the Obukhovsky, Nevsky shipbuilding, cartridge and other factories, and by January 7 the strike became general (according to incomplete official data, over 106 thousand people took part in it).

Nicholas II transferred power in the capital to the military command, which decided to crush labor movement until it turned into a revolution. the main role The guard was assigned to suppress the unrest; it was reinforced by other military units of the St. Petersburg district. 20 infantry battalions and over 20 cavalry squadrons were concentrated at predetermined points.

On the evening of January 8, a group of writers and scientists, with the participation of Maxim Gorky, appealed to the ministers with a demand to prevent the execution of workers, but they did not want to listen to her.

A peaceful march to the Winter Palace was scheduled for January 9. The procession was prepared by the legal organization "Meeting of Russian Factory Workers of St. Petersburg" led by priest Georgy Gapon. Gapon spoke at meetings, calling for a peaceful march to the tsar, who alone could stand up for the workers. Gapon insisted that the tsar should go out to the workers and accept their appeal.

On the eve of the procession, the Bolsheviks issued a proclamation “To all St. Petersburg workers,” in which they explained the futility and danger of the procession planned by Gapon.

On January 9, about 150 thousand workers took to the streets of St. Petersburg. The columns led by Gapon headed towards the Winter Palace.

The workers came with their families, carried portraits of the Tsar, icons, crosses, and sang prayers. Throughout the city, the procession met armed soldiers, but no one wanted to believe that they could shoot. Emperor Nicholas II was in Tsarskoye Selo that day. When one of the columns approached the Winter Palace, shots were suddenly heard. The units stationed at the Winter Palace fired three volleys at the participants of the procession (in the Alexander Garden, at the Palace Bridge and at the General Staff building). The cavalry and mounted gendarmes chopped down the workers with sabers and finished off the wounded.

According to official data, 96 people were killed and 330 wounded, according to unofficial data - more than a thousand killed and two thousand wounded.

According to journalists from St. Petersburg newspapers, the number of killed and wounded was about 4.9 thousand people.

The police buried those killed secretly at night in Preobrazhenskoye, Mitrofanyevskoye, Uspenskoye and Smolenskoye cemeteries.

The Bolsheviks of Vasilyevsky Island distributed a leaflet in which they called on the workers to seize weapons and begin armed struggle with autocracy. Workers seized weapons stores and warehouses and disarmed the police. The first barricades were erected on Vasilyevsky Island.

The beginning of 1905 was marked by significant tension in public consciousness. Absolutely all segments of the population, each in their own way, are dissatisfied with the external and internal politics Emperor Nicholas II, were eager to understand and comprehend the reasons for the failures that Russia suffered both in military and in internal affairs.
The events were, on the one hand, carefully prepared by the top of the imperial opposition, and on the other, they occurred spontaneously due to social tension. The causes and consequences of Bloody Sunday are very significant for Russian history.

Causes

1. Military defeat.
The main reason for the decline in the authority of the tsar and the growing general discontent was the defeat of the Russian army on December 21 in Port Arthur. At this time I was walking Russo-Japanese War. Everyone said that the tsar started an inconclusive war, which was also very costly for the Russian Empire.
2. Strike at the Putilov plant in St. Petersburg (December 1904) The workers, who demanded an 8-hour working day, explained their request by the lack of time for sleep and rest and the exorbitant volumes of military orders in wartime conditions.

Gapon: a great provocateur or a savior of the people from tsarism?

The name of the clergyman G. Gapon for a very long time was perceived unambiguously as the name of a person who committed a huge provocation of the broad masses of people who rebelled against the monarchical system in Russia at the beginning of the 20th century.
However, in Lately modern historians present Gapon as a talented person, gifted with oratory and a genius in his own way. It is believed that through his actions he produced a kind of liberation policy.
It is known that from an early age Gapon felt a sense of compassion for all those who suffered and sought to help in any trouble. So he came to devote his life to the priesthood.
However, later these feelings degenerated into ambition and pride.
Pursuing his own interests and ambitions, Gapon launched active educational activities among the broad masses, mainly the worker and peasant population of the country.
All the “gatherings” organized by Gapon before the events of January 1905 had a cultural and educational purpose.
However, Gapon’s activities did play a decisive role in organizing the workers’ strike on January 9, 1905. He held a meeting specifically dedicated to issues life and work of people. The place was also not chosen by chance - this is the capital of St. Petersburg, in which at that time they were concentrated large masses workers.
By January 6, 1905, the workers' strike was already gaining impressive proportions. The petition was drawn up competently by Gapon. Already on the eve of January 9, he traveled to factories where meetings were held, read it there and explained to the workers the specific situation in the country. The idea of ​​going to the Tsar with a petition caused a strong resonance; people immediately believed Gapon and decided to elect him as their spiritual mentor.

Bloody resurrection event

Why Sunday?
The strike took place on Sunday January 9, 1905.
The main gathering place for the rebels was the Winter Palace - official residence Emperor. People carried banners with slogans glorifying the autocracy, and also carried icons and portraits depicting the Tsar.
The petition formulated by Gapon contained economic and political demands, which, among other things, were peaceful in nature.
The procession was peaceful; the majority of the people still believed in the power of the monarchy and retained faith in the Tsar-Father.
However, before reaching the palace, the crowd saw police barricades. In response to demands to stop the movement, the working masses still moved forward. Then the guards opened fire with rifles. Most of those gathered were wounded and killed. The death toll was in the thousands. Only a few groups of people were able to continue the attack on the Winter Palace.
The crowd of people, who were shot from guns, literally went berserk - they smashed shop windows, built barricade-type fortifications, and attacked law enforcement officers and military personnel who were simply passing by.
Gapon walked with the people, but in the confusion disappeared in an unknown direction. According to supposed information, he left Russia forever and went to permanent residence abroad.
This is how one day ended - the workers were unarmed, they just wanted to convey their demands to the emperor, but were shot. This is both the tragedy and the absurdity of this day.

Consequences

Thus, January 9 began to be called Bloody Sunday in the country. This event spurred the country to more massive and organized revolutionary uprisings. Workers began to seize socially significant objects and erect barricades on the main streets.
The consequences of January 9, 1905 are still being debated. Society is largely divided into two groups. Some of them do not understand the actions of Tsar Nicholas II and condemn him for indifference and inaction. Others, on the contrary, justify the measures taken by the government in an attempt to stop the armed coup.
The main consequence of Bloody Sunday is the beginning of the country's parliamentarism. The absolute power of the monarch was irrevocably abolished. The Tsar was forced to take measures that were unfavorable for the Tsar's power.
But even the introduction of the famous Stolypin reforms did not bring calm to the way of life of the state. The liberal opposition to the existing government has intensified.
V.I. spoke and wrote a lot about the results of Bloody Sunday in those years. Lenin: he recognized the defeat of the first Russian revolution, took into account all the errors in the organization and embodied his ideas in 1917.
Foreign states carefully observed the tense events that took place in the 10-20s of the twentieth century in Russia. Thus, external interference in Russian affairs undermined everything that was still holding together.
An explosion of social discontent - more prepared and well planned - repeated in 1917. Thus, the first Russian revolution of 1905 continued in 1917.

In 1905 - 1907, events took place in Russia that were later called the first Russian revolution. The beginning of these events is considered to be January 1905, when workers of one of the St. Petersburg factories entered the political struggle.

Back in 1904, the young priest of the St. Petersburg transit prison, Georgy Gapon, with the assistance of the police and city authorities, created in the city labor organization"Meeting of Russian factory workers of St. Petersburg." In the first months, workers simply organized common evenings, often with tea and dancing, and opened a mutual aid fund.

By the end of 1904, about 9 thousand people were already members of the “Assembly”. In December 1904, one of the foremen of the Putilov plant fired four workers who were members of the organization. The “assembly” immediately came out in support of the comrades, sent a delegation to the director of the plant, and, despite his attempts to smooth out the conflict, the workers decided to stop work in protest. On January 2, 1905, the huge Putilov plant stopped. The strikers have already put forward increased demands: to establish an 8-hour working day, to increase salaries. Other metropolitan factories gradually joined the strike, and after a few days 150 thousand workers were already on strike in St. Petersburg.

G. Gapon spoke at meetings, calling for a peaceful march to the tsar, who alone could stand up for the workers. He even helped prepare an appeal to Nicholas II, which contained the following lines: “We are impoverished, we are oppressed, .. we are not recognized as people, we are treated like slaves... No more strength, Sovereign... For us, that terrible moment has come when death is better than continuation of unbearable torment. Look without anger ... at our requests, they are directed not to evil, but to good, both for us and for You, Sovereign!" The appeal listed the requests of the workers; for the first time, it included demands for political freedoms, the organization of the Constituent Assembly, - it was practically a revolutionary program. A peaceful march to the Winter Palace was scheduled for January 9. Gapon assured that the tsar should go out to the workers and accept an appeal from them.

On January 9, about 140 thousand workers took to the streets of St. Petersburg. Columns led by G. Gapon headed towards the Winter Palace. The workers came with their families, children, festively dressed, they carried portraits of the Tsar, icons, crosses, and sang prayers. Throughout the city, the procession met armed soldiers, but no one wanted to believe that they could shoot. Nicholas II was in Tsarskoye Selo that day, but the workers believed that he would come to listen to their requests. When one of the columns approached the Winter Palace, shots were suddenly heard. The first dead and wounded fell. The people holding icons and portraits of the Tsar firmly believed that the soldiers would not dare to shoot at them, but a new volley rang out, and those who were carrying these shrines began to fall to the ground. The crowd mixed up, people started running, there were screams, crying, and more shots. G. Gapon himself was no less shocked than the workers.

Execution of workers at the Winter Palace

January 9 was called "Bloody Sunday." On the streets of the capital that day, from 130 to 200 workers died, the number of wounded reached 800 people. The police ordered that the corpses of the dead not be given to relatives; they were buried secretly at night.

The events of "Bloody Sunday" shocked all of Russia. Portraits of the king, previously revered, were torn and trampled on. Shocked by the execution of the workers, G. Gapon exclaimed: “There is no more God, there is no more tsar!” In his new appeal to the people, he wrote: “Brothers, comrade workers! Innocent blood was still shed... The bullets of the tsar’s soldiers... shot through the tsar’s portrait and killed our faith in the tsar. So let us take revenge, brothers, on the tsar cursed by the people,... on the ministers, to all the robbers of the unfortunate Russian land. Death to them all!"

Maxim Gorky, no less shocked by what happened than others, later wrote the essay “January 9,” in which he spoke about the events of this terrible day: “It seemed that most of all, cold, soul-dead amazement poured into people’s chests. After all, a few insignificant minutes before that they walked, clearly seeing the goal of the path in front of them, a fabulous image stood majestically in front of them... Two volleys, blood, corpses, groans and - everyone stood in front of the gray emptiness, powerless, with torn hearts.”

Tragic events January 9 in St. Petersburg became the day of the beginning of the first Russian revolution, which swept all of Russia.

Text prepared by Galina Dregulas

For those who want to know more:
1. Kavtorin Vl. The first step towards disaster. January 9, 1905. St. Petersburg, 1992