In the turmoil and confusion which followed the February Revolution, groups of militant Anarchist-Communists expropriated a number of private residences in Petrograd, Moscow, and other cities.

Durnovo's dacha was located in the radical Vyborg (Russian: Выборг) district, Petrograd's "Faubourg St. Antoine," as John Reed dubbed it,[1] lying on the north side of the Neva, just beyond the Finland Station.

Anarchists and other left-wing workmen seized the Durnovo villa and converted it into a "house of rest," with rooms for reading, discussion, and recreation; the garden served as a playground for their children.

The following day, 50 sailors came from Kronstadt to defend the dacha,[4] and workers in the Vyborg district left their factories and staged demonstrations against the eviction order.

Condemning the seizure of private dwellings "without the agreement of their owners," the proclamation demanded the liberation of Durnovo's dacha and suggested that the workers content themselves with the free use of the garden.