26 October 1917. John Reed

Non-fiction

Project 1917 is a series of events that took place a hundred years ago as described by those involved. It is composed only of diaries, letters, memoirs, newspapers and other documents

John Reed

Mariinsky Palace, Petrograd, Russian Republic

I went to the white-marble and crimson hall of the Marinsky palace, where the Council of the Republic sat, to hear Terestchenko’s declaration of the Government’s foreign policy, awaited with such terrible anxiety by all the peace-thirsty and exhausted land.

A tall, impeccably-dressed young man with a smooth face and high cheek-bones, suavely reading his careful, non-committal speech. Nothing. . . Only the same platitudes about crushing German militarism with the help of the Allies—about the “state interests” of Russia, about the “embarrassment” caused by Skobeliev’s nakaz. He ended with the key-note:

“Russia is a great power. Russia will remain a great power, whatever happens. We must all defend her, we must show that we are defenders of a great ideal, and children of a great power.”

Nobody was satisfied. The reactionaries wanted a “strong” imperialist policy; the democratic parties wanted an assurance that the Government would press for peace.

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✍ Also today

Alexandra Feodorovna

Tobolsk, Russian Republic

Baby’s toe hurts to walk. It is swollen so he lies on my sofa and has his lessons in my sitting room.

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Ivan Bunin

Vasilievskoe estate, Glotovo village, Orlovskaya guberniya, Russian Republic

There you have the election to the Constituent Assembly. Not a single soul is interested in this. There’s great mountain of Russian people crying out to God. Now I’m happy, where’s this religiousness?! See more

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Joseph Stalin

Petrograd, Russian Republic

Power to the Soviets means a thorough cleansing of any and all governmental agencies, from back to front and top to bottom.

Power to the Soviets means the appointment and replacability of any and all “superiors” from back to front. See more

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Harry Kessler

Bern, Switzerland

The big victory at Isonzo, 30,000 prisoners, 300 under cover.

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Alfred Knox

Petrograd, Russian Republic

On Wednesday, on my way to and from the Ministry of Ways, where I went to collect information about the state of the railways, I passed through a seething crowd of 2,000 to 3,000 soldiers busily engaged in selling boots and clothing to civilians. See more

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Nicholas II

Tobolsk, Russian Republic

It has already been two months that we have lived in this house. It was a wonderful sunny day and it passed as usual.

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25 October

John Reed on the Smolny Institute - Headquarters of the Petrograd Soviet

"Evacuating Petrograd is like opening a can of worms"

1916: Year in Review.

Map of the Royal dynasties of Europe

Romanovs dangerous liaisons

in Petrograd

in Moscow