Revolutions Never Die, they Just Fade Away: The February Revolution through Chinese Eyes

Abstract

The February Revolution which overthrew the Russian monarchy was greeted with euphoria by the Chinese media. Reminiscent of the 1911 Revolution which overthrew not just the Qing dynasty but also the imperial system, it resonated with Chinese intellectuals. The predominant mood of optimism was fuelled by reports which painted a rosy picture of the February Revolution, some of which bordered on naivete. As events unravelled, news reports on the February Revolution grew increasingly pessimistic about the situation in Russia, although most commentators never lost their sympathy for the revolution. Indeed, they followed the chaos in Russia with worry and concern, and tried to interpret events in ways that made sense to their Chinese readers. In this article, I examine how the February Revolution and the Provisional Government’s prosecution of the war was reported by the Chinese media, thus highlighting how interpretations of historical events were unavoidably distorted by the circumstances of the time.