“Society note from Moscow.”

In November 1917 the second phase of the Russian revolution unfolded, as communists led by V. I. Lenin took power. Although deeply disturbing to President Woodrow Wilson and other western leaders, the Bolsheviks promised a far-reaching social transformation that appealed to downtrodden peoples around the world. This cartoon was one of a series by Alfred Freuh in the radical weekly Good Morning that celebrated the Bolshevik Revolution’s impact on Russia’s aristocracy: “Count Parasitsky will not occupy his palatial residence in the mountains this summer,” reads the caption. “He expects to remain in the city and do uplift work.”

Source: Alfred Frueh, Good Morning, May 15, 1919—Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress.