Among Russian public figures there is a person whose name has been undeservedly forgotten by modern historians. He was at the head of state for only 4 months, but during the period that Georgy Evgenievich Lvov headed the Provisional Government, important events took place in the country that determined the further path of development of Russia.
early years
About people like Georgy Lvov they say: "An aristocrat of the highest standard." His biography began on November 2, 1861 in the German city of Dresden. The family belonged to an old princely family, dating back to the Rurikovichs. Father headed the district nobility in Aleksin, Tula province. However, in the middle of the 19th century, the family became poorer and, despite the nobility, they did not live well.
The boy spent his childhood in the family estate Popovka near Tula with his brothers. The elder Alexander subsequently headed the painting school in Moscow, the younger Vladimir headed the archive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Georgy graduated from high school, then continued his education at Moscow University. The landowner began his career as a lawyer in the courts of the Tula province. Very soon the zemstvo leader won fame and authority. The famous fellow countryman Lev Tolstoy approved of his activities when Lvov headed the zemstvo council, participated in the work of zemstvo congresses. He was known as a business man, diligently and eagerly doing his job.
The childhood and adolescence of Georgy Lvov coincided with important transformations of all aspects of Russian reality. The part of the provincial society to which he belonged was forming a new order. The basis of life for them was the atmosphere of work and respect for others. After returning to Popovka, the young landowner built an oil mill, a mill and planted an apple orchard. During active economic activities, he did not forget to take care of the peasants: he opened an elementary school, a shop and a teahouse.
In 1901, there were changes in the personal life of George. The prince married Julia, the youngest daughter of Count Bobrinsky. The wife was in poor health and died a year later without giving Lvov the joy of fatherhood.
Political career
Since 1903 Lvov was a member of the illegal liberal movement "Union of Liberation". The organization operated in 22 Russian cities and its main task was to introduce political freedoms in the country. The movement published its own magazine, and by 1905 it had 1,600 people.
In 1906, Lvov was elected to the State Duma of the 1st convocation, he headed the work of the medical and food committee. The organization was charitable in nature, funded by both the state and foreign philanthropists. The funds raised were primarily used to support the settlers in Siberia and the Far East: canteens, bakeries and first-aid posts were opened for the hungry and the poor. In order to thoroughly study the resettlement business, in 1909 Lviv visited Canada and the United States.
In 1911, Georgy joined the Progressist Party, before that he was a member of the Cadet Party. Colleagues elected him to the Moscow City Duma, but rejected the candidacy.
During the First World War, Lviv helped the army in every possible way. The All-Russian Zemstvo Union created by him provided support to the wounded front-line soldiers. On the collected 600 million rubles, ambulance trains were created and new hospitals were opened. The Union supplied the troops with bandages and trained medical personnel. A year later, he entered the united All-Russian organization ZEMGOR and helped millions of the military.
Among the progressive public, opinions began to be heard more and more often that Georgy Evgenievich was an ideal figure for the post of minister or even prime minister.
Head of the Provisional Government
By 1915, Lvov was absolutely sure that the connection between the government and the public was completely lost. He saw a way out in the new leadership, which was to replace the "government of bureaucrats."
After the February Revolution, simultaneously with the abdication of the throne, Nicholas II assumed that Lvov would become the chairman of the Council of Ministers, but this fact was ignored. On March 2, 1917, the provisional committee of the State Duma appointed Georgy Evgenievich to head the Provisional Government and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Already during the first meeting, the ministers were disappointed, because the head of the government did not at all look like a leader. He was cautious, acted evasively, in his speeches he limited himself to general phrases. The lack of confidence in the actions of the Provisional Government was explained by its dependence on the Soviets. The first decisions of the government were general democratic: amnesty for political prisoners, the abolition of the tsarist gendarmerie, equality of estates and nationalities, freedom of religion, general elections.
Lvov's inability as a leader was obvious. A month later, the government crisis began. Ministers Guchkov and Milyukov were dismissed. On the initiative of the head, a coalition government of socialists was created, but it could not organize its work either. After the Petrograd unrest of the Bolsheviks with demands for resignation, he suffered a second crisis, after which the government ceased its work on July 7. The new composition of ministers was headed by Alexander Kerensky.
In emigration
Lvov has never been a supporter of the revolution and advocated peaceful democratic changes in the country. He envisioned the future of Russia as a monarchy with a government responsible to its people. After the October events, the former minister-chairman left for Siberia, hoping to get lost from the persecution of the Bolsheviks. He lived in Tyumen, Omsk and Yekaterinburg. In the winter of 1918, he was arrested, but after 3 months Lvov managed to leave the country. He appealed for help to the governments of the United States and England to help the White movement, but was refused. By that time, the First World War had ended, and the center of international politics had moved to France. Lvov settled in Paris and joined a large anti-Soviet center. As a representative of the emigrant ZEMGOR, he provided assistance to immigrants from Russia.
George Lvov died in 1925 in the French capital. The last years spent in a foreign land, he was very homesick for his homeland and the Russian people, whom he deeply and sincerely loved.
