St. Petersburg Strike of 1914

a strike that began on July 3 with a mass meeting attended by 12,000 workers from the Putilov Works. The meeting was organized to indicate solidarity with the striking petroleum-industry workers of Baku. Mounted police attempted to disperse the meeting; two workers were killed and about 50 wounded. On July 4 there were 90,000 workers on strike. On the night of July 4, the St. Petersburg Committee of the RSDLP called for a three-day strike. On July 7 there were about 130,000 people participating in the St. Petersburg Strike, and on the following day, 150,000. Barricades were constructed in the Vyborg Quarter, and there were clashes with the police. The newspaper Pravda became the headquarters of the strike struggle. The workers of St. Petersburg were supported by the proletarians of Moscow, where 55,000 went out on strike during these days. Support also came from Riga, where 54,000 workers struck; Warsaw, with 20,000 out; and other cities.

However, the government now went on the offensive. On July 8 Pravda was shut down, as were other workers’ newspapers. A number of trade unions were banned, and troops were brought into the capital. A lockout was declared by the St. Petersburg Society of Factory and Mill Owners. On July 10 and 11, about 100,000 workers were dismissed. The St. Petersburg Committee addressed a leaflet to the workers on July 10, calling for a concerted end to the protest activities. The workers ceased demonstrations. The St. Petersburg Strike was a sign of the ripening of an acute revolutionary crisis in the country.