Georgy Lvov

Georgy Lvov was born in 1861 in Popovka, a village in the Tula Governorate of Russia. He belonged to an old noble family that traced its ancestry to the Rurik dynasty. He studied law at the University of Moscow and became involved in the zemstvo movement, which advocated for local self-government and social reforms. He was elected to the First Duma in 1906 as a member of the Constitutional Democratic Party, also known as the Kadets. He was one of the leaders of the Progressive Bloc, a coalition of liberal and moderate parties that demanded constitutional changes from the tsarist regime. He was also a vice-chairman of the Petrograd Soviet, a council of workers' and soldiers' deputies that emerged after the February Revolution of 1917. He became the head of the Provisional Government that replaced the monarchy and introduced a number of democratic reforms, such as universal suffrage, freedom of speech, and amnesty for political prisoners. He also served as the minister of interior and tried to maintain order and stability in the country. However, he faced increasing challenges from the radical socialists, especially the Bolsheviks, who wanted to end the war with Germany and redistribute land to the peasants. He also failed to gain the support of the army and the Allies, who pressured him to continue the war effort. He resigned in July 1917 after a major left-wing demonstration threatened to overthrow his government. He was succeeded by his war minister, Alexander Kerensky. After the October Revolution, Lvov was arrested by the Bolsheviks, but later escaped to Finland and then to France. He lived in Paris until his death in 1925. He is remembered as a moderate and honest politician who tried to bring democracy and peace to Russia, but was unable to cope with the revolutionary situation.