How the Kornilov Affair fractured the fragile Russian Revolution

Black and white portrait of a man with a mustache in a decorated military uniform, facing slightly left.
Photo of Lavr Georgievich Kornilov. (1916). Public Domain. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kornilov1916.jpeg

After the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II in March 1917, the new Provisional Government of Russia faced serious difficulties.

 

General Lavr Kornilov, who believed that only military authority could save the country, tried to intervene and restore order.

 

His attempted coup in August accelerated the breakdown of the government and allowed the Bolsheviks to regain influence.

The problems after the February Revolution of 1917

After the February Revolution, which erupted in Petrograd on 23 February 1917 (Julian calendar, 8 March Gregorian), the Russian Empire collapsed without a clear plan for succession.

 

The abdication of Nicholas II ended more than three centuries of Romanov rule, yet no single organisation held uncontested control of the state.

 

The Provisional Government, which was formed largely by liberal nobles and middle-class Duma politicians, took on governing the country, but it lacked legal authority and the ability to enforce its decisions.

 

It depended heavily on the goodwill of the Petrograd Soviet, a council of workers' and soldiers' deputies, which operated as a parallel body and had more public support.

 

The Petrograd Soviet had formed from the workers' councils of the 1905 Revolution and had come together again in 1917, with its Executive Committee led by Mensheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries, which included figures such as Irakli Tsereteli and Nikolai Chkheidze. 

At the outset, the Provisional Government faced increasing problems managing Russia's economy and military commitments.

 

Many Russians had expected that the fall of the monarchy would bring peace.

 

However, the new government announced it would continue fighting Germany and Austria-Hungary.

 

That decision outraged soldiers at the front, who were exhausted and starving after years of bloodshed and had become disillusioned with the war.

 

Meanwhile, urban conditions deteriorated. Prices rose rapidly, bread queues lengthened, and strikes spread across the factories.

 

Rural unrest also intensified, as peasants seized land and refused to wait for reform.

 

The Provisional Government failed to respond to any of these demands in a meaningful way. 

As a result, its authority weakened further. Soviet Order No. 1 was issued on 1 March 1917 and instructed all military units of the Petrograd garrison to obey only Provisional Government orders that did not conflict with the Soviet.

 

This change gave the Soviet a veto over local military commands. This weakened the chain of command and allowed radical propaganda to spread among army units.

 

Decision-making stalled. The government and the Soviet frequently contradicted one another, and the dual power arrangement paralysed every attempt to establish order.

 

Then, in July, the Petrograd Soviet faced mass protests during a chaotic episode known as the July Days.

 

Armed workers and soldiers demanded immediate transfer of power to the Soviets.

 

The demonstrations failed, and the government blamed the Bolsheviks. Their leaders were arrested or forced into hiding, and for a brief time, it seemed the revolutionary threat had passed.

 

However, the conditions that had caused the unrest were left unresolved. 


Who was General Lavr Kornilov?

Lavr Georgiyevich Kornilov was born in 1870 in the Siberian town of Ust-Kamenogorsk, and had risen through the ranks of the Imperial Russian Army and had earned a reputation as a firm and disciplined officer.

 

He had graduated from the Mikhailovsky Artillery School and the General Staff Academy.

 

During the Russo-Japanese War and the First World War, he had served well. He viewed military order and national unity as essential to Russia's survival. 

By July 1917, Kornilov had replaced General Aleksei Brusilov as Commander-in-Chief.

 

He immediately demanded the restoration of strict discipline across the army, and he even called for the reintroduction of the death penalty for desertion, as well as seeking to suppress all revolutionary agitation.

 

Many conservatives in the officer corps and middle-class civilians welcomed his appointment, as they feared that Russia faced collapse unless someone strong could impose order and prevent the Bolsheviks from taking control.

 

Kornilov saw himself as that man. He had also expressed interest in forming a military dictatorship to preserve Russia from collapse, a plan supported by right-wing circles such as the Union of Officers and some conservative sympathisers.

 

The Cadet party leadership remained cautious and did not uniformly endorse such measures, but he never publicly stated this goal. 

Importantly, he did not see his actions as anti-revolutionary. He believed that the revolution had to be protected from extremists and from those who, in his view, threatened to destroy the army and the nation.

 

He became convinced that Kerensky lacked the will to act and that stronger measures were necessary to stabilise the country. 


How miscommunication triggered the coup

In mid-August 1917, a confused exchange of messages between Prime Minister Kerensky and General Kornilov set off a chain of events that led to open conflict.

 

Kerensky was openly concerned about unrest in Petrograd and the threat of another Bolshevik uprising, and he asked Kornilov to send troops to secure the capital.

 

Kornilov interpreted the request as an invitation to impose martial law and take control of the city.

 

He ordered General Krymov, who had previously served under him at the Southwestern Front and shared his belief in strong military authority, to begin to move the 3rd Cavalry Corps toward Petrograd as a show of force. 

At that point, both men misunderstood each other's intentions. Kornilov believed that Kerensky had authorised him to assert military control over the city.

 

Meanwhile, Kerensky believed that Kornilov was preparing to overthrow the Provisional Government.

 

The lack of clear instructions and paranoia that grew between the two men created an explosive situation.

 

On 26 August, Kerensky publicly dismissed Kornilov and accused him of attempting a coup.

 

He also issued orders for the advancing troops to halt immediately. 

However, Kornilov refused to recognise the dismissal because he maintained that he had acted within the orders that had been originally given.

 

The crisis escalated when it became clear that Kerensky had no loyal troops of his own to defend Petrograd, so he turned to the Petrograd Soviet for help.

 

To defend the capital, he had released many Bolshevik leaders from prison, among them Leon Trotsky, who would soon become chairman of the Petrograd Soviet and a key organiser of the October insurrection.

 

This decision had enormous consequences. 


What happened during the Kornilov Affair?

As Kornilov's forces moved closer to Petrograd, the Soviet took rapid action. Red Guards were mobilised, factory committees were armed, and railway workers blocked Kornilov's troop movements.

 

Bolshevik organisers worked tirelessly to persuade Kornilov's soldiers to abandon their orders.

 

They distributed propaganda that described the general as a reactionary who wanted to bring back autocracy and crush the revolution.

 

Some flyers linked Kornilov to former Okhrana agents and accused him of a conspiracy with foreign interests, and, as a result, many of the soldiers believed them. 

Because of this, the advance on Petrograd collapsed without a fight. General Krymov found his troops unwilling to continue.

 

After he met with Kerensky to explain his position, Krymov returned to his quarters and shot himself.

 

Kornilov was unable to rally support or continue his plans and surrendered shortly afterwards.

 

He and his fellow officers were arrested and imprisoned in Bykhov. 

No actual battle had taken place, but the impact of the failed coup was immediate and severe.

 

Kornilov's credibility was largely destroyed, while the conservative elements that had placed hope in his leadership now found themselves associated with failure.

 

Kerensky, who had survived the crisis, was left weakened and dependent on forces he could no longer control. 


How did the Kornilov Affair impact the Russian Revolution?

The Kornilov Affair greatly changed the course of 1917. First, it shattered what little was left of trust between the army and the government.

 

Many officers now distrusted Kerensky, whom they viewed as unreliable. Soldiers, having refused to support Kornilov, lost what little discipline was left.

 

Entire units deserted, and revolutionary propaganda spread unchecked across the front lines.

 

In cities like Kiev and Rostov-on-Don, the affair caused serious divisions among local soviets, military units, and civil authorities, as debates erupted over whether Kornilov had acted patriotically or traitorously. 

Second, the affair gave the Bolsheviks an opportunity to recover from their recent defeat in July.

 

By stepping in to resist Kornilov, they positioned themselves as defenders of the revolution and, as a result, support for the Bolsheviks increased rapidly.

 

After the Kornilov Affair, Bolshevik membership in Petrograd reportedly rose from around 23,000 in early August to as many as 60,000 to 80,000 by mid-September, while national membership increased to approximately 200,000, showing a dramatic swing in popular support.

 

Thousands joined their party, especially in Petrograd and Moscow. Their leaders had returned from hiding, and by September, they had taken control of the Petrograd Soviet. 

That shift proved pivotal, as the Bolsheviks used their new authority to agitate for the overthrow of the Provisional Government.

 

They claimed that only the Soviets could prevent another Kornilov-style coup and protect workers' rights.

 

The failure of the Kornilov Affair also discredited moderate socialist leaders in the Petrograd Soviet, who had previously cooperated with Kerensky and now appeared ineffective or complicit.

 

By early October, preparations were underway for an armed insurrection. 

The Provisional Government could not recover since Kerensky had alienated both conservatives and radicals.

 

He no longer commanded support from the army or from the Petrograd Soviet.

 

The Kornilov Affair had broken the last fragile alliance between civilian leadership and military power.

 

From that point forward, the Bolsheviks largely had the advantage. 


What happened to Kornilov after his arrest?

After his arrest, Kornilov was held in custody in Bykhov. He had refused to admit fault and had insisted that he had acted in Russia's best interest.

 

When the Bolsheviks seized power in Petrograd in October, Kornilov escaped from prison and travelled south to the Don region.

 

There, he joined the White forces gathering to fight the new Soviet regime. 

He quickly became one of the main commanders of the Volunteer Army, which formed the nucleus of the anti-Bolshevik resistance during the Russian Civil War.

 

In early 1918, Kornilov led an offensive toward Ekaterinodar, a key southern city.

 

However, the attack failed and, on 13 April, during an artillery bombardment near Ekaterinodar, a shell struck his headquarters.

 

He either died instantly or succumbed to his wounds shortly afterwards, according to varying accounts.