After the February Revolution of 1917 , the Provisional Government came to power, which lasted from early March to late October. At first, the new authority enjoyed very high trust and authority among the population and political parties (except the Bolshevik). However, the most important, agrarian, question was not resolved by the Provisional Government , because of which it lost support and was overthrown quite easily.
Land
To solve the problem of land under the government, the Main Land Committee was created, most of which was built on the party programs of the cadets. The committee declared reform, which was aimed at transferring agricultural land to peasants for use. By default, it was assumed that the conditions of transfer could be either confiscation or alienation. The latter caused major disputes: to alienate with or without a ransom. Given the apparent disagreement, nevertheless, authorities did not discuss this problem at the official level.
So, why did the Provisional Government delay the solution of the agrarian question? The reasons should be sought primarily in the composition of the government itself. Too many representatives of the cadet party, who were members of the main authority, themselves had large land plots that they were not ready to part with.
Reform Highlights
It was decided to prevent the fragmentation of allotments providing basic necessities, production farms, as well as plots of those landowners who gave large crops and had high productivity indicators. As a result, large farms were supposed to be left to their owners.
In general, the reform stipulated the possibility of alienation of land, but the peasants had to pay an unreasonable ransom for this. In addition, the land could mainly be obtained by one who already had his own household. Large allotments at the same time remained with their owners if the land use provided by them was two times higher than the average personal subsidiary plots.
Why did the Provisional Government delay the solution of the agrarian question?
The explanation lies in the fear of the authorities to shake the foundations of private property. Therefore, no one dared to take serious measures that would in any case violate the rights of landowners. Do not forget that at that time Russia was an active participant in the First World War. A huge part of the officers in one way or another owned large land plots. They did not risk disturbing those who led the army: this could turn into deplorable consequences.
At the same time, an imitation of the solution was nevertheless undertaken. So, two decrees were issued. According to the first (“On the Protection of Crops”), landowners pledged to rent unoccupied plots to those who intended to plant them. The second provided for the creation of land committees, whose main function was to prepare for agrarian reform. They were created in 30% of the provinces of the European part of Russia. The presence of the latter did not suit the government very much. However, an understanding of the growing civil position among the peasants forced them to make concessions, while the authorities hoped that they would be able to use them for their own purposes. Directly introducing the reform itself was endlessly postponed. They sought to shift this function to the Constituent Assembly, which they could not convene.
Peasant discord
The Bolsheviks named their reasons why the Provisional Government dragged on the solution of the agrarian question, and skillfully used them, fueling an already fire-hazardous situation. The country began to shake spontaneous rallies of peasants, who demanded laws that would ensure them land rights. Government decisions were interpreted very broadly, so much so that it came to a simple weaning of land and its division between peasants. The latter demanded communal land use, in which there would be no individual farmers.
The infantilism of the authorities in resolving this issue led to the fact that in the autumn natural socialization of the land began - the seizure of allotments from the landowners. The first Provisional Government was unable to cope with the redistribution process growing like a snowball. It was in these circumstances that the slogans of the Bolsheviks came in handy. Experts, analyzing the reasons why the Provisional Government was delaying the solution of the agrarian question, agree that it all came down not only to the fear of losing control, but there was also their own “selfish” interest.