When Russian women took to the streets to mark International Women's Day in 1917, they sparked the start of the revolution that would change the course of history.

Political and social unrest had been brewing as a result of economic inequality, food shortages and anger over Russia's disastrous involvement in World War I.

But when female textile workers left their factories in the then-capital Petrograd — on February 23 in the Julian calendar, March 8 in the Gregorian — to march for "Bread and Peace", their action prompted food riots and a mass strike.

The army backed the demonstrators, the tsar was toppled and women were granted the right to vote.

The 1917 Russian revolution was triggered by a textile workers strike on IWD. ( Creative Commons )

Early rallies demanded better working conditions

Australian National University emeritus professor Marian Sawer said most people were probably unaware that IWD had its origins in the international socialist movement of the late 19th and early 20th century.

"It was of course largely owned by the Communist Party and by socialist women up until the arrival of the second wave of the women's movement, in Australia, for example, at the end of the '60s," Professor Sawer said.

Clara Zetkin campaigned for an international day to support women's rights. ( Creative commons )

The first women's national day was organised by the Socialist Party of America in 1909 to commemorate the New York garment workers strike the previous year, when thousands of women had demonstrated in support of better conditions.

At this time, European socialists were wary of the British women's suffrage movement, fearing that enfranchised women would vote conservative.

But at an international socialist conference in Copenhagen in 1910, German socialist Clara Zetkin won support from delegates from 17 countries for an international working women's day to campaign for suffrage and equal rights.

"There were still many men in the German Social Democratic Party and other socialist parties who didn't think this was a good idea," Professor Sawer said.

"But nonetheless Clara Zetkin was a very strong personality and she persevered."

IWD was marked for the first time on March 19, 1911 by more than one million women (and men) in Germany, Austria, Denmark and Switzerland.

At a meeting of the Communist International — or Comintern — in 1921, Bulgarian delegates successfully argued that IWD be permanently celebrated on March 8 to honour the women who had triggered the Russian revolution.

First Australian IWD organised by Communist Party

The first IWD in Australia was celebrated in 1928, with a rally in Sydney's Domain, organised by the Militant Women's Group of the Communist Party.

Among those in attendance, demanding equal pay, was activist Edna Ryan (1904-97), later a founding member of the Women's Electoral Lobby.

"In the decades following that, Edna Ryan continued her campaigning for women's rights and in 1974 was ... largely responsible for the full minimum wage finally being extended to women," Professor Sawer said.

The United Nations began celebrating IWD during International Women's Year in 1975.

"It's a time that women can identify with the collective, ongoing struggle for gender equality, for closing the wages gap ... eliminating gender-based violence and so on," Professor Sawer said.

"[And a time to say] this is not just a celebration of what women have achieved but also a time to take stock of what still has to be done."