Black Night, White SnowThe destruction of the Czars which brought about the reign of revolutions from 1905–1917 in Russia looms as the crucial political event of the twentieth century. In little more than a decade the Romanov dynasty was toppled, and its time-honored institutions repudiated. How did it happen? How could Nicholas and Alexandra, the nobility, middle class anarchists—even Lenin himself—not foresee the catastrophic changes that were shaking the empire? Why could nothing be done? And why were the efforts so ineffectual? Black Night, White Snow captures the rich drama of this whole period. With the artistry of a Balzac, Harrison Salisbury exposes the strata of Russian society, with its decedents, prophetic poets, religious fanatics, and newly liberated serfs. From archival sources within the Soviet Union, interviews, and his personal photography collection, he recreates the story as it happened. Hard data on Russia's economy, a first-hand knowledge of the county, and a historian's gift of compression are combined in a fast-paced narrative that reads with the ease of a good novel and the urgency of a newspaper headline. |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
Alexander Alexei Andrei Bely Anna Arkhiv Russkoi Revolyutsii arrested asked Bely Blok Bolshevik Bonch-Bruyevich Byloye called Central Committee comrades Cossacks crowd Czar Czar's Czarina diary Dmitri Duma exile Gapon German Gorky Government Grand Duke Guards Ibid Imperial Inessa January Kamenev Kerensky Khabalov Kokovtsov Krasny Arkhiv later Leon Trotsky letters Mariya Mayakovsky meeting Memoirs Mensheviks Merezhkovsky Mikhail military Military Revolutionary Committee Milyukov Minister morning Moscow Nadezhda Krupskaya Nevsky Nicholas night Nikolai Nikolai II October officers Oktyabrskoye Vooruzhennoye Vosstaniye Padeniye Tsarskogo Rezhima Party peasants Petersburg Petrograd police political Pravda Prince prison Protopopov Purishkevich Rasputin Regiment Reminiscences revolutionary Rodzyanko Romanov rubles Russian Revolution sent Sergei shouted Shulgin Smolny soldiers Soviet Stalin streets Sukhanov Sverdlov talk Tauride Palace thought told troops Trotsky Tsarskoye Selo Ulyanov V. I. Lenin Valentinov Vladimir Vospominaniya Voyeikov Vyborg Vyrubova Winter Palace Witte workers wrote Yekaterinburg young Yusupov Zinaida Gippius