Alexander Kerensky headed the Russian government after the tsar’s abdication. He tried to keep his country in the war against Germany, was overthrown by the Bolsheviks and fled to the U.S. In Comrade Kerensky, Russian historian Boris Kolonitski closely examines the overlooked, enduring facet of his short-lived regime: his cult of personality. Kerensky’s image circulated widely in photographs and prints, cast in bronze and plaster. Possessing power, Kolonitski writes, “is not quite enough.” With old traditions of authority falling, Kerensky scrambled to erect new ones, posing as an authoritative leader who could fill the gap left by the tsar while embodying the elusive will of the people. According to Kolonitsky, Kerensky marketed himself skillfully but his enemies proved too resolute, the coalition supporting him too fragile. Comrade Kerensky is a valuable addition to the vast literature on the Russian revolution.
