In 1917, conditions in the capital, Petrograd were grim. The layout of the city seemed to emphasise the division among its people. The workers quarters and factories were located on the right bank of the river Neva. On the left bank were the fashionable areas, the Winter Palace and official buildings, including the palace where the Duma met. In February 1917, food shortages were deeply felt in the workers quarters. On 22 February, a lockout took place at a factory. The very next day, workers in about fifty factories called a strike in sympathy. In many factories, women led the way to strikes which came to be called the International Women’s Day. The government imposed a curfew. Finally, Czar had to leave the throne. All government buildings and offices were seized by Bolshevik army. Under the leadership of Lenin, dictatorship was established in Russia.
