TheRussian Revolutionwas a pair ofrevolutionsinRussiain 1917 which dismantled theTsarist autocracyand led to the rise of theSoviet Union. TheRussian Empirecollapsed with the abdication ofEmperorNicholas IIand the old regime was replaced by aprovisional governmentduring the first revolution of February 1917 (March in theGregorian calendar; the olderJulian calendarwas in use in Russia at the time). Alongside it arose grassroots community assemblies (called 'soviets') which contended for authority. In the second revolution that October, the Provisional Government was toppled and all power was given to the sovietT.heFebruary Revolution(March 1917) was a revolution focused around Petrograd (nowSaint Petersburg), the capital of Russia at that time. In the chaos, members of the Imperial parliament (theDuma) assumed control of the country, forming theRussian Provisional Governmentwhich was heavily dominated by the interests of large capitalists and the noble aristocracy. The army leadership felt they did not have the means to suppress the revolution, resulting in Nicholas's abdication. The soviets, which were dominated by soldiers and the urban industrial working class, initially permitted the Provisional Government to rule, but insisted on a prerogative to influence the government and control variousmilitias. The February Revolution took place in the context of heavy military setbacks during theFirst World War(1914–18), which left much of the Russian Army in a state of mutiny.