Bolshevik take over Flashcards
Main weaknesses of the PG
- Nature of the PG - limited by the real power of the Soviets, Lack of legitimacy, Divisions between socialists and liberals led to a lack of clear policies
- Policies such as decisions to continue war created huge amounts of opposition. Failure to legitimise the peasant takeover of land meant it lost their support
- Mistakes by Kerensky. Kornilov affair. He underestimated the strength of the Bolsheviks and gave them an excuse for seizing power in October by moving against them
Arguments for the Bolshevik Uprising being inevitable (policies)
- Bolsheviks were the only party that opposed continuing the war which greatly increased their popularity.
- They’re promise to the peasants of land redistribution secured their support
- Their radical policies were in tune with workers’ and soldiers’ aspirations eg slogans of ‘Peace, Bread and All Power to the Soviets’
Arguments that the Bolshevik uprising was not inevitable (luck)
- The military and economic collapse in September/October offered the Bolsheviks an opportunity to secure power. The army was not in a position to do much and hunger was an important factor in October
- Radicalised workers who were not satisfied with the PG favoured soviet power which Bolsheviks seemed to offer
- Kerensky’s role
What was the main body of the government called
Although Lenin had proclaimed soviet power many expected the Soviet to become the main body of government, Lenin formed an entirely new body - the Council of the People’s Commissars (Sovnarkom). This showed that Lenin had no intention of sharing power with the Mensheviks and SRs
How was the power of the Bolsheviks limited after their takeover
- Many soviets and bodies were controlled by Mensheviks, SRs or non-socialists
- All over the capital, civil servants mounted protest strikes and the State Bank refused to hand over any money - it took 10 days and armed forces to make the bank staff open the vaults
How did Lenin react to challenge by giving into demands
He compromised Bolshevik principles to maintain popularity
- Land decree - this gave peasants the right to take over the estates of the gentry, without compensation, and to decide for themselves the best way to divide it up. Land could no longer be bought, sold or rented it belonged to the ‘entire people’ - this went against the principles of Bolsheviks of nationalisation
Worker’s control decree - Factory committees were given the right to control production and finance in workplaces
- Rights of the people of Russia decree - this gave the right of self-determination to the national minorities in the former Russian empire
How did the Bolsheviks deal with opposition harshly (censorship)
Censorship
- Closed down opposition press - first the centre and right wing and then later the socialist press Decree on the Press on November 9, 1917
How did the Bolsheviks deal with opposing political parties
Denounced and outlawed the Kadet party
Leading Kadets were arrested
Imprisoned leading right wing socialist revolutionaries and Mensheviks
Political terror increasing
What did the Cheka do
Set up on 7 December 1917
- Force of dedicated Bolshevik supporters who provided dependable security
- Controlled units of the red guard and the military
- Effective mechanism for dealing with opposition
How did Lenin utilise class warfare
He encouraged class warfare to terrorise and intimidate Kadets
Attacks on Kadets as the leaders of the bourgeois counter revolution
Anybody deemed to be a bourgeois were liable to be arrested
Legal system was abolished and replaced by revolutionary justice
Why could Lenin utilise class warfare so successfully
- Workers, soldiers, and peasants supported the end of privilege and the more egalitarian society - have power and dignity to them
- The socialist press espoused ideas if the bourgeois being the ‘enemies of the people’
What happened to the civil service
The striking civil servants were arrested and the civil service was thoroughly purged
Therefore the bureaucracy that developed was of poor quality but it was obedient
When was the decree of peace signed
26 October 1917
Conflicts in ending the war
- Trotsky withdrew the negotiations saying there would be ‘neither war nor peace’
- Lenin however understood that opposition to the war had been a key factor in the Bolshevik success ad he had to honour his promise
- Under pressure from Lenin, representatives of the Bolsheviks reluctantly signed the treaty of Brest-Litovsk on 3 march 1918
