Issue and Opponent: To calm economic discontent among the workers, the Russian Minister of the Interior Plehve established a legal trade union in St Petersburg, the Assembly of Russian Factory and Mill Workers. It was led by a Russian Orthodox priest, Father Georgy Gapon, and it set the 1905 Revolution in motion. Father Gapon organized a petition complaining about working conditions in the city and calling for change. It was signed by over 150 thousand people. On 22 January 1905, Father Gapon led a march to deliver a petition to the Tsar. Thousands of workers took part in this peaceful protest. The workers were not trying to overthrow the Tsar, instead, they blamed the Tsarist ministers and officials. Dilemma Action: With the leadership of Father Georgy Gapon, thousands (3,000-50,000) marched toward the Winter Palace, the Tsar’s official residence, holding religious icons, and singing hymns and patriotic songs. The protesters intentionally involved women, children, and elderly workers to emphasize the united nature of the demonstration and to try to prevent retaliation, even though protest against the Tsar was strictly forbidden. Government forces reacted extremely violently, with estimates ranging from 1,000-4,000 dead, between shots and trampling. Outcome: This was a major event in the 1905 Russian Revolution and drastically changed the attitude of Russian peasants and workers toward the Tsar. The Tsar lost control of large areas of Russia. The revolution failed, but it served as a warning of what might happen in the future.