The document summarizes the Russian Revolution. It describes Czar Nicholas II as a strict ruler who relied on the army and large government to maintain power. His wife Alexandra was German and isolated him from events during WWI. Growing unrest over food shortages and Russia's poor performance in the war led to the overthrow of the Czar in March 1917. Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks then seized power in November 1917 and established the world's first communist state, fighting a civil war against opposing forces until 1920 when they emerged victorious, establishing the Soviet Union.