Civil War Flashcards
What was the Constituent Assembly?
A 1918 democratically elected body of officials meant to represent the people, to write a constitution for post-revolutionary Russia and form a government.
Who won a plurality of seats in the Constituent Assembly?
The Socialist Revolutionaries, with 40% of the vote. The Bolsheviks won 25%
Why did Lenin and the Bolsheviks(mostly) want to dissolve the Constituent Assembly?
Lenin said it was because the CA did not represent the will of the people, though he did not prove this and refused to have another vote. After one sitting, the CA never sat again.
What was the result of the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly?
Because there could be no peaceful agreement between the parties, a civil war began that lasted from 1918-1922.
What did the Cheka stand for?
The Commission to Combat Counterrevolution and Sabotage.
What was the treaty of Brest-Litovsk?
The treaty Lenin and the Bolsheviks made with Germany to end their involvement in the war on March 3, 1918. Anxious to win the war at all costs, Russia gave up Ukraine, part of Poland, the Baltics, and Finland.
How did the Left SRs try to sabotage Brest-Litovsk?
They pulled out of a coalition with the Bolsheviks and tried to restart the war by murdering the German ambassador as well as assassinating Bolsheviks. During these assassinations, the head of the Cheka was got and Lenin shot twice.
Who made up the White faction in the civil war?
Tsarists, pro prov. gov. types, a disunited group
Which three Generals on the Whites?
Anton Denikin, Aleksandr Kolchak, and Nikolai Ludenich
Denikin was supported by Tsarists and Cossacks
Kolchak by Liberals, Czech troops, and Right SRs.
How did the Red Army work?
Created by Trotsky, he brought in conscription, but it was not a democratic institution. There were no elected officers, they used Tsarist officers.
How did the civil war affect worker control over production?
They lost a lot of it as the government intervened to direct what industries should be prioritized. They brought in bourgeois specialists and paid them more. They nationalized large industries, taking them out of the hand of the proletariat, and militarized the workplace. This meant that workers were run like they were in the army - strict rules and punishments for slackers or fuck ups.
What was war communism?
During wartime, the government took over industry, housing, etc. whenever it was needed. They expropriated food from peasant farmers, especially kulaks. This left no incentive to grow extra grain because it would just be taken away, which led to food shortages.
Who were Kulaks?
There is no static definition. Instead, it depended on the time, place, and individuals involved. Broadly, peasants who produced more than they could consume, those who “exploited” the labour of other peasants. Often, it was tied to your status before the revolution, not your current status. Decades later, kulaks and children of kulaks who were poor were still kulaks.
What is Taylorism?
A scientific, efficient method of running a factory whereby workers operate as if they were machines with the right tools, movements, and so to do good work in short order.
