Any pretenses of political unity and national strength that came from the Empire's victory over Japan came to a shattering halt with the short-lived war against the German Empire. The army, long considered one of the most fearsome in the land, riding off its victory of Napoleon for near a century, was shown to be the hollow charade it truly was. The army and the state were considered to be unshakable institutions, a vision that was reinforced with victory over Japan. With that image now degrading rapidly in front of the Russian people, there seemed to be less and less holding the multi-ethnic Empire together. Tensions that simmered below the surface now boiled to the top, as more and more people were emboldened to speak out. The first signs of trouble happened when strikes began to take place in various workshops and factories across the country. Sympathy strikes broke out across St. Petersburg, supporting the grievances those workers held against their current living conditions. Due to the Tsar's land reform of the previous years, in many cases it was better to be a landed peasant than one who was working in a factory, toiling hard all day to produce goods to be sold at a price they could never afford, all the while struggling to pay rent and feed themselves.

Education in Russia was limited at best. Those who were educated were far more open to revolutionary ideas, and their words and speeches were given to these industrial workers on strike and found a way to whip them up into a revolutionary frenzy, bringing forth promises of greatness, a revolution for the working people of the country. In the halls of power, there was nothing but a deaf ear for these radicals. Viktor Chernov was one of these men who had ample education and a good speech handy, who encouraged more strikes through speeches and papers, joined in by other members of Russia's radical classes, including Leon Trotsky. The government did not take serious note of these strikes until they grew unavoidable. The pressure continued to mount, and after several weeks, St. Petersburg suddenly found itself with 200,000 men on strike, and angry at the government. Men gathered around Chernov, who decided to lead a march to the Winter Palace, to try and ask him for assistance and to improve their conditions, which many considered to be deplorable. After reaching the palace, the guard was instructed to secure the premises, and not to let the rioters past a certain point. When such a line was crossed, they opened fire on the hungry and scared crowd, sending them scattering, and filling the streets with blood.

The event became to be known as "Bloody Friday" and over three thousand men were shot dead. The news shot across the empire, emboldening revolutionaries, and causing more strikes to break out. The industrial economy of Russia was starting to seize up, as all industrial centers saw a drop of anywhere from thirty percent to one hundred percent of workers. Electricity services and newspapers shut down, as the Tsar tried to come to grip with what was happening to his Empire. Industrial work was nearly non existent in St. Petersburg, where it was estimated that 300,000 of the 400,000 industrial workers were on strike. Thinking quickly, the government's reformist wing proposed a novel idea, the revised Constitution that would limit the powers of the Tsar, and bring forth somewhat parliamentary government to the Empire. To the hungry and angry masses in St. Petersburg and Moscow, there was no swelling of support for democratic government. Sergei Witte, understanding the lack of support for his measures, announced his resignation from the government. Ivan Goremykin quickly emerged as one of the new power-players within the government, convincing the Tsar to do away with the other reformist ministers, and use this as an opportunity to have a show of strength to the Russian people.

With support from the Tsar, the military was sent into St. Petersburg, with orders to bring the city back to functioning conditions, and force the workers to go home. Such a move, as historians later noted, was quite unwise. The confrontation that occurred between soldier and striker was brutal and short. Soldiers swept through the city, shooting at large gatherings of men waving red banners or gathered around for speeches. The city was declared to be under martial law and everyone not working declared to be a delinquent and subject to being thrown in jail. Underground revolutionaries, both from abroad and within Russia, quickly began to emerge, their voices louder and stronger. The Tsar's image of the powerful and benevolent overlord, who would assist in the plight of the Russian underclass, was being chipped away by the massive demonstrations. Surely, the Tsar could see them and hear them, so why was he not helping?

Not helping the Government's situation was the fact that the newspapers that were still in operation in the cities were the revolutionary ones that were continuing to stir the pot. The government countered with more men to go into these underground operations and physically break up printing presses