chapter thirteen Flashcards
mandate
the authority to carry out a policy; this is usually given by the electorate to a party or candidate that wins the election
why was ideology not a big priority right at the start of bolshevik rule
due to optimism and instability at the success of the revolution, the bolsheviks were more focussed on pragmatism and stability than sticking to strict marxist ideology
armistice
a cease-fire
pragmatic
dealing with matters realistically in a way that is based on practicality rather than theoretical considerations
what was bolshevik expectations on revolutions in the rest of europe
lenin and trotsky both assumed other european countries would have their own revolutions following russia, especially germany which seemed ripe for revolution
why didnt bolsheviks spark revolution in germany
despite having the economic, social, and political criteria perfect for communist revolution according to marx, russia was committed to pursuing peace with the german government, which stunted their ability to rousing german workers into revolution
when did trotsky start peace negotiations for world war one
december 1917
when was the world war one armistice
november 11 1917
what issues did the end of world war one cause within the bolshevik party
caused a split between those who wanted to end the war (represented by lenin) and the revolutionary war group (led by bukharin)
who led the revolutionary war group and why
burkharin; argued that ideologically they needed the war to continue to spark the spread of communsim/world revolution
why did lenin oppose the revolutionary war group
it went against the promise of ‘peace, land and bread’ and also was not pragmatic, wouldve sparked more revolution in the country against the bolsheviks and was not economically viable
what was the treaty of brest-litovsk and when was it signed
3 march 1918
russias official resignation of world war one and russias acceptance of the loss of land in ukraine, finland and polish territories
what was the consequence of russias lost land from the brest-litovsk treaty
ukraine was a major grain source, lead to a worsening of the eventual famine
lost control of 62million people
lost the area that produced 1/3 of russias agricultural produce
lost twnety six percent of russias railway lines
lost 74 percent of its iron ore and coal supplies
what did russias peace treaty represent about lenins ideology
that he prioritised socialism at home over international revolution
when was the land decree
october 1917
when was the factory-workers decree
november 1917
why does the land and factory workers decrees not actually prove anything about lenins commitment to marxism
peasants were already seizing land and workers had already taken over factories; the decrees could have been done with marxist intent or out of pragmatism to try and gain support from the people
what happened to the provisional government under lenin
lenin sidelined it due to it having non-bolshevik socialists
what did lenin replace provisional government with
sovnarkom
what did sovnarkom show about lenins leadership
that he was unwilling to share power, especially with any non-bolsheviks
when did lenin let social revolutionaries into sovnarkom and why
november 1917 due to protests about the establishment of a purely bolshevik state
what happened to the constituent assembly after their first meeting and when
they were dissolved january 1918
what happened to civilian protests against the dissolvement of the constituent assembly
they were fired at and 12 were killed
when did russia become essentially a one party state
around march 1918 after the social revolutionaries allowed into the sovnarkom left in outrage at the peace treaty and for being lowkey ignored for months
when was cheka created
december 1917
what did the civil war cause the bolsheviks to be associated with
terror and repression (through use of cheka + revolution morality)
how did the war affect the developemnt of the party and the state
increased demand for obedience of the state
new central controls to manage economy (war communism)
grain requisition and terror to deal with food shortages
how did the bolsheviks justify war communism
it could be argued as attempts at socialist policies, which were being sabotaged by the whites and opposition
the whites
anyone that was against the revolution (started as those fighting against it but became more broad)
why was the revolt of kronstadt sailors significant
they had previously revolted, which had become one of the first revolts that sparked the 1917 revolution in favour of the bolsheviks; also showed growing discontent from the working class
factions
a group within a party with similar ideas (which lenin banned in the resolution on party unity 1921)
how did bolshevik views on national minorities change throughout the 1920s
whilst they originally supported national self determination, this was abandoned and all independence movements were labelled as counter revolutionary
how many mensheviks were arrested
5000, destroying the groups political force
