how important was lenin in bringing about revolution in russia in october 1917? explain your answer.

It is entirely possible that a revolution in Russia would
have occurred anyway; however Lenin formed the leadership and organizational skills to
bring that revolution about. He was basically the right man at the right time. Had the
Czarist or Provisional governments been stronger, it is doubtful that he would have
succeeded.

By the time Lenin was sent back to St.
Petersburg by the Germans in a sealed train in a deliberate attempt to undermine the
provisional government, the Czarist government had already collapsed. A provisional
government was established under Alexander Kerensky. Kerensky believed that continuation
of Russia's participation in World War I was more important than reforms at home, a
serious mistake. Soldiers were weary of the war, and peasants were ready to seize land
from the landlords; in fact many soldiers abandoned the war effort to go home and join
in the "land grab." Kerensky's government was further weakened by the activities of
Workers Councils, or Soviets which were quite
revolutionary.

By the time Lenin arrived, the country was
in a state of complete anarchy. Lenin took advantage of the situation with his famous
slogan of "Peace, Land, Bread," and attempted a takeover of the government which failed.
He was then forced to go into hiding to avoid arrest. Shortly thereafter, another revolt
was led by the army; Kerensky had no creditability with the army and was thus no longer
in control. This gave Lenin a golden opportunity; his second, Leon Trotsky with a large
number of Bolshevik followers seized government buildings, and declared Lenin the head
of a new revolutionary government.

Lenin was a strong
believer in revolution from above; only the strong could lead and should force
revolution on the lower classes. In this instance, however, the revolution was already
underway; Lenin simply provided the necessary leadership to bring it to a
conclusion.