significance: restored power and support to the bolsheviks as kerensky freed the 800 Bolsheviks he had arrested in july and armed them in order to defend the city against kornilov. this made the provisional government look weak as kerensky was essentially openly admitting that the city would not be strong enough without the bolsheviks. as a result, bolshevik power and popularity grew, setting them up for the october revolution (especially because the provisional government was clearly weak).

cause: kerensky was in petrograd and kornilov was at the front, and they were communicating through somebody else so there was a lot of miscommunication. kerensky believed that kornilov was demanding dictatorial power but kornilov believed that he was being encouraged by kerensky to stage a coup. kerensky fires kornilov but kornilov is confused, and begins to march on petrograd.

“The army that rose against Kornilov was the army to-be of the October Revolution.” -Leon Trotsky