Historical Events of the Revolutionary World Movement

First May, 1917 - in Russia

First May, 1917 - in Russia

- an imporant step on the way towards the victory of the October Revolution -

It took 100 years to pay tribute to the great international importance of this world event.
In 1917, the first time, the May Day was officially recognized as an official holiday in Russia. This was one of the first great achievements of the February revolution.
At the same time, May Day 1917 in Russia was the most powerful May Day in world history.

For the first time the Russian workers gathered in Warsaw on May 1 and not in Russia, where May 1 was forbidden. This was in 1890. All mass demonstrations, strikes and rallies on 1 May had to be organized as illegal actions since then and were massively suppressed by the tsarist counterrevolution - until Tsarism was overthrown by the February Revolution in 1917. With the liberation from Czarism, the 1st May Day in Russia became the most progressive May Day in the world.

Hundreds of thousands of workers, soldiers, civil servants, people of different professions walked in the streets of Russia, even the peasants in villages. Above their heads the red flags and the "Marseillaise" on their lips - namely in Russian language. May 1, 1917, became a symbol of international proletarian solidarity- coming from Russia. Everywhere on the squares in Petersburg, Moscow and other cities, the demonstrators met on rallies. May 1 (April 18) in Russia was officially called "World's Day of Labour and Fraternity of Peoples".

On the banners was read:

"Fight for the 8-Hour Day"

"Long live international solidarity!"

"Proletarians of all countries, unite!"

"For land and freedom!"

"Peace to the shacks! War on the palaces!"

"Down with the imperialist war!"

"Down with the Constituent Assembly and the Mensheviks!"

"Peace without annexations and contributions!"

For most Russians it was the first time in 1917 that they participated in the demonstrations and rallies on May 1. It was mainly the overthrow of Tsarism which was celebrated on May Day. This event left a deep impression not only on the active participants, but moreover on the whole people and among all nationalities. We like to mention the unique event in the history of the revolutionary world movement that representatives of the clergy and the bourgeoisie were marching under the revolutionary banners and red flags of the Bolsheviks. On that day, the workers had carried along even some class enemies. But not everywhere. There were also a wide spread amount of groupings with hostile political positions, namely from the followers of the Mensheviks, to the "defenders of the fatherland" and the entire bourgeois camp, up to the monarchists who carried the banner: "War until the bitter end!"

May Day was celebrated all over the country, especially at symbolic places of the revolutionary workers' movement. These were not a few sad places of the massacres of tsarist counterrevolution against the Russian labor movement. Thus, May 1, 1917 in Russia was in particular a memorial day to the victims of the revolution.

There were also celebrations in unusual places, as for example on the Volga - on specially chartered Volga ships.

The 1st of May was held in times of war, which is why a great many Russian soldiers gathered on May 1st. The movement of the workers, peasants and soldiers began on May 1, 1917, in Russia and from here, the Councils Movement spread throughout the world.

Until today, the May Day 1917 in Russia, is of great importance for all following May Days which took place in the period of imperialist wars. Instead of being able to take part in the May celebrations in their homeland, the workers of the belligerent countries shed their blood for the profit of the capitalists. At the front, the Russian soldiers organized May meetings, and not infrequently together with delegates of soldiers of the enemy armies, especially the German soldiers. And, for example, in the French army, the soldiers on the Russian front, together with the Bolsheviks, held rallies with the call for peace and the brotherhood of the peoples. The French soldiers wrote on their banners: "For a free, democratic and socialist Russia!" The fraternization of the soldiers on the front - this was one of the most important factors in the struggle for peace, for revolution and socialism.