11. The Russian Civil War

Question 1

Civil War

Answer 1

The Red Army by 1920 had over 5 million troops
The Whites has an army of around 1.4 million troops
The murder / rape of over 115,000 Jews on part of the Cossacks in Ukraine
All who so much as dropped a weapon were to “be shot” (Orders to the Red Army)
Over 1 million soldiers deserted by 1918 and nearly 4 million by 1921
1918 - Trotsky was appointed Commissar of the War
The Bolsheviks maintained control over 400,000 Workers in Petrograd / Moscow

Question 2

The White Army

Answer 2

• Groups included liberals, former tsarists, nationalists, separatists, Socialist Revolutionaries, and moderate socialists
• Many liberals supported military dictatorship until Bolsheviks were defeated, whilst Socialist Revolutionaries favoured the Constituent Assembly’s rule.
• Despite this all groups were anti-Bolshevik (anti-communist)
• White armies often clashed, with Socialist Revolutionaries opposing former tsarist officers and monarchists.

Question 3

Red Success - Geographical Factors

Answer 3

• Bolsheviks held central areas including Petrograd and Moscow.
• Moved capital to Moscow (hub of railway network) for easier transport of men and munitions.
• Main armament factories in the area were controlled by Bolsheviks.
• The heavily populated central area allowed large-scale conscripting.
• Communication for the Whites was difficult due to large distances between their armies (moving weapons, coordinating attacks), and no telephone links forced horseback communication.

Question 4

Red Success - Unity and Organisation

Answer 4

• Trotsky organised the Red Army into a better fighting force.
• Whites, divided by different aims and beliefs, struggled to cooperate and develop a political strategy.
• Views on national minorities were also divided and a lack of coordinated military strategy hindered collaboration.
• Generals often distrusted each other, leading to distrust in Kolchak’s motives.

Question 5

Red Success - Leadership

Answer 5

• Trotsky was a brave leader, leading his special forces to fierce fighting areas.
• The Red Army maintained strict discipline, with the death penalty frequently used.
• White leaders were often cruel and treated their men with contempt, leading to desertions. The White armies were characterised by indiscipline and corruption.
• Denikin, a leader, was content with his army merely executing his orders.
• In Omsk (Kolchak’s base), uniforms and munitions were sold on the black market, and officers lived in brothels in a haze of cocaine and vodka.

Question 6

Red Success - Support

Answer 6

• Peasants provided main soldiers for both sides, inclined to support the Reds due to Lenin’s land rights and Whites asserting that land would be restored to its former owners
• Whites lost support from nationalist groups due to their desire to restore the Russian empire.
• Separatists, like Ukrainians and Georgians, did not support Whites when White forces were based in their territories.
• Bolsheviks had a core support group of workers and soldiers but did not have widespread popular support. However urban workers and peasants sought to protect 1917 gains, and the Reds seemed to offer the best chance.

Question 7

Red Success - Other Factors

Answer 7

• Foreign intervention (France and Italy 1919) brought supplies and weapons to Whites, but was ineffective.
• The intervention allowed Bolsheviks to present themselves as Russian defenders.
• Whites, particularly Denikin, lacked understanding of the value of propaganda.
• Reds used powerful images, such as land loss and foreign invading support for the Whites, whilst promising a new society for workers and peasants under the Reds.

Question 8

First Hand Quotes

Answer 8

Lenin - “The Green armies are far more dangerous than all the [Whites] put together.”
Denikin - “I can do nothing with my army.”

Question 9

Historian Interpretations

Answer 9

Greenwood - “…lack of unity was to prove fatal”
Greenwood - “motley array of oppositionists”
Corin - “single unified command structure”