Alexander Kerensky-Prime Minister of Russia for a brief period in 1917, between the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II and the October Revolution of Lenin and co.
Alot of people aren’t aware that the Russian Revolution was not started by the Bolsheviks themselves. In between the Tsar and the Soviets, Russia actually had the beginnings of a democratic government-known as the Provisional Government, under Alexander Kerensky (I believe he was a Socialist Republican, but I could be wrong.)
There are mostly two schools of thought on Kerensky, IN MY OPINION, as I have witnessed:
(admittedly, I’m simplifying, paraphrasing, etc etc…)
EXTREME Rightist view of Kerensky: he was nothing more than a Bolshevik stooge, a leftist who pandered to whoever he could to stay in power, a usurper who promised the Imperial family help, but abandoned them and then lied to cover this up, a coward-he escaped Russia (some say dressed as a woman.)
EXTREME Leftist view of Kerensky: just a pawn of the monarch, a pansy, who said he would help the people, but really stayed to the old ways-conspired with “Bloody Nicholas”, a capitalist thug, power hungry, weak. Continued the bloody imperialist war while preaching socialism-so he was a liar and a phony.
Okay, that would be the extremes. MY view: a human being, who was probably somewhere in the middle-d’uh. He believed in democracy, and was NOT a monarchist, yet at the same time, he didn’t believe in punishing those who were, exactly. He disagreed with many people, but he still TRIED to treat them humanely-ie, the Imperial family. However, he came in at the wrong time-Russia was a mess-WWI, the fall of one government. Russia was NOT used to democracy-you couldn’t just erase what, 500 or so years of autocracy (from the Muscovites to the Romanovs), a strong, stern leader was needed. He wasn’t a bad guy, though.
So, what IF Kerensky had stayed in power, and kept Lenin away? Would Russia have become weak, and have been taken over by Hitler? Or would Russia have become a democracy that much sooner? Or would the Bolsheviks simply have waited?