Ten Days That Shook the World · Character

Matvei Skobelev

Menshevik Minister of Labor whose awkward position as a Russian delegate opposing his own government's foreign policy becomes a target for Miliukov's scorn.

supporting

Also known as Skobeliev

First appearance: i background

As a supporting figure in Ten Days That Shook the World, Matvei Skobelev is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Defends the Soviet nakaz and protests against sending Terestchenko to Paris.

In the storyIII: On the EveOpen this moment free

Skobeliev embodies the impossible straddle of the Mensheviks, serving in a coalition government while their socialist principles pull them toward the Soviet's peace platform. Miliukov mocks him as a man who would appear abroad as a Russian delegate yet oppose his own government, asking what anyone could possibly discuss with him. His dilemma captures the paralysis of the moderate socialists, caught between responsibility and ideology as the Bolsheviks seize the initiative.

See Matvei Skobelev in III: On the Eve Book page

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Character Web

13 connections

A slice of how Matvei Skobelev sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Other

Character groups

Provisional Government and Soviet Leaders
Socialist Revolutionary and Menshevik Leaders
Provisional Government and Counter-Revolutionaries

+8 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

The emotional peak occurs when the narrator, after witnessing the destruction of sacred and historic Kremlin s…

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In the story

Matvei Skobelev appears across 10 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

III: On the Eve
Defends the Soviet nakaz and protests against sending Terestchenko to Paris.
V: Plunging Ahead
Speaks at the Committee for Salvation, urging unity against Bolsheviks.
The Committee for Salvation
Reports new adhesions to the Committee for Salvation and argues for excluding both Bolsheviks and Cadets.
Appendix to Chapter I
Listed as a Menshevik who joined the coalition ministry in June.
The Socialist Ministers
Skobelev is listed as a Menshevik participant in the coalition ministry.
Appendix to Chapter II
Attacked by Miliukov for his position as a Russian delegate opposing government foreign policy.
The Nakaz to Skobeliev
Recipient of the Nakaz as the representative of Russian revolutionary democracy at the Paris Conference.
Terestchenko’s Speech (Resumé)
Referenced in relation to the nakaz (mandate) given to him, though Terestchenko declines to comment on it.
Miliukov's Speech (Resumé)
Miliukov attacks Skobelev, suggesting his position as a Russian delegate opposed to government foreign policy would be absurd.
From the Council of People’s Commissars to the Toiling Cossacks
Mentioned as a supporter of the July offensive, opposed to the Bolsheviks.

Chapter companion notes

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See Matvei Skobelev in III: On the Eve