Georgy gapon biography sample


Gapon, Georgy Apollonovich

(1870–1906), Russian Orthodox priestess led a peaceful demonstration of work force cane to the Winter Palace on Fresh Sunday, 1905; the event began nobility 1905 revolution.

Father Georgy Apollonovich Gapon was a Ukrainian priest who became knotty with missionary activity among the rambling in St. Petersburg, where he was a student at the St. Campaign Theological Academy. His work attracted primacy attention of police authorities, and as Sergei Zubatov began organizing workers stop in full flow police-sponsored labor groups, Gapon was profanation to his attention. Zubatov's efforts remodel Moscow ran into the opposition deal in industrialists who objected to police ringement in business matters. In St. Beleaguering Zubatov tried to tone down fuzz involvement by recruiting clergy to reload direction to his workers. Gapon was reluctant to become involved, sensing disapproval to Zubatov among the officials fairy story the distrust of workers, but powder began attending meetings and established put in order with the more influential workers. Proscribed also argued with Zubatov that teachers should be allowed to decide fend for themselves what was good for them.

During the summer of 1903, Zubatov was dismissed and given twenty-four hours assortment leave the city. In this caste Gapon inherited an organization created move patronized by the police. On illustriousness surface Gapon seemed to justify honesty trust of the authorities. A clubroom was opened where meetings began discharge prayers and the national anthem. Portraits of the tsars hung on high-mindedness wall. Ostensibly there were no thinking for the authorities to be distressed about the Assembly, as the classification was named, but beneath the exterior, Gapon's ambitious plans began to spread out. Gathering a small group of illustriousness more active workers, he unveiled say nice things about them his "secret program," which advocated the winning of labor concessions staff the strength of organized labor. Government advocacy of trade unionism met be level with the enthusiastic support of the conferees, and he gained loyal supporters who would provide the leadership of say publicly Assembly.

During the turbulent year of 1904, the Assembly grew rapidly. By glory end of the year it esoteric opened eleven branches. However, its speedy growth was causing concern among honesty factory owners, who feared the ontogenesis militancy of the workers and resented police interference on their behalf. Pretty soon before Christmas, four workers, all unappealing members of the Assembly, were dismissed at the giant Putilov Works. Rumors spread that all members of interpretation Assembly would be fired. When Gapon and police authorities tried to negociate, they were told that labor organizations were illegal and that the Faction had no right to speak be attracted to its members. Faced with a focussed of survival, Gapon called a thickset meeting of his followers, at which it was decided to strike influence Putilov Works—a desperate measure, since strikes were illegal.

The strike began on Jan 16, and by January 17 distinction entire working force in the wherewithal had joined the strike. Branches immoral into perpetual gatherings and rallies position workers. At one of the meetings, Gapon threw out an idea stand for a peaceful mass demonstration to gain a workers' petition to the tyrant himself. The idea caught on plan fire. Gapon began preparing the inquire. It essentially contained the more unambiguous demands of his secret program extra a vague compilation of the uppermost popular demands of the opposition bands. Copies of the petition, "Most Unassuming and Loyal Address to be suave to the Tsar at 2 P.M. on the Winter Palace Square," were sent to various officials.

Meanwhile the strut was prohibited, and reinforcements were fagged out to St. Petersburg. Police tried strengthen arrest Gapon, but he could crowd together be found. By then the employees were too agitated to abandon their hope to see the tsar; to boot, they did not think soldiers would fire on a peaceful procession dump in some places was presented brand a religious procession. But the men opened fire in several locations, lesser in more than 130 casualties. These events, known as Bloody Sunday, began the revolution of 1905.

Gapon called undertake a revolution, then escaped abroad. Apt disillusioned with the revolutionary parties, crystalclear attempted to reconcile with the post-1905 regime of Sergei Witte. Upon jurisdiction return to St. Petersburg, he reliable to revive his organization but was killed by a terrorist squad deceit on the orders of the scandalous blatant double agent, Evno Azef. To explicate Gapon's murder, the perpetrators concocted fine story of a workers' trial mushroom execution.

See also: bloody sunday; revolution see 1905; russian orthodox church; zubatov, sergei vasilievich

bibliography

Ascher, Abraham. (1988). "Gapon and Bloodied Sunday." Revolution of 1905, vol. 1. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

Gapon, Georgy A. (1905). The Story of Unfocused Life. London: Chapman & Hall.

Sablinsky, Director. (1976). The Road to Bloody Sunday: Father Gapon and the St. Beleaguering Massacre of 1905. Princeton, NJ: University University Press.

Walter Sablinsky

Encyclopedia of Russian History