Mensheviks

The Mensheviks were a faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party that favored broad party membership and a gradual transition to socialism.

Russian Social Democratic Labour Party: A Marxist political party founded in the Russian Empire in 1898. The Mensheviks formed as one of its two principal factions.
Marxism: A political and economic theory centered on class struggle and the transformation of capitalism. Mensheviks grounded their strategy in a Marxist account of historical development.
Russian Revolution of 1905: A wave of strikes, protests, and mutinies that forced political concessions from Tsar Nicholas II. The Mensheviks organized workers and debated how to respond to the uprising.
Bolsheviks: A faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party led by Lenin that seized power in 1917. Bolsheviks favored a more centralized party and pursued immediate seizure of state power.
Russian Civil War: The conflict from 1917 to 1922 among the Bolshevik-led Reds, anti-Bolshevik forces, and other factions. Mensheviks opposed Bolshevik rule during the conflict and lost political space.
Second Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party: The 1903 party congress at which Bolsheviks and Mensheviks emerged as rival factions. Disputes over party membership and rules crystallized the split.
Democratic centralism: A party principle combining internal discussion with unified action after decisions are made. The dispute over party organization concerned how tightly members and activists should be bound.
February Revolution: The 1917 uprising that ended the Russian monarchy and established a Provisional Government. Mensheviks entered the new political order and supported a democratic transition.
Socialist Revolutionary Party: A Russian revolutionary party whose support came largely from the peasantry and whose program emphasized land socialization. Its agrarian base and political strategy offered a distinct alternative to Menshevik Marxism.
Georgian Social Democratic Party: A Menshevik-led political party that governed independent Georgia from 1918 to 1921. Georgia became the most substantial state-led experiment in Menshevik governance.

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