civil war and lenin Flashcards
how did lenin close consituent assembly
lenin believed that bolsheviks would not be able to consolidate power through future elections to the assembly therefore chose to use military force to end it
official justification was elections had been rigged
lenin claimed the constituent assembly was elected on the old register and appeared to be an expression of old regime where authority belonged to the bourgeoisie
what issues were faced by the bolsheviks at end of 1918
opposition of the second all russia congress of soviets who met in october, right ring SRs walked out in protest, leaving bolsheviks with little opposition
petrograd revolution - as result of october revolution bolsheviks had to spread their authority, attempted to do this by creating more soviets in russia. proved difficult due to old guard resistance in the empire and was a reason for outbreak of civil war
-decree on land - bolshevik issues a decree on land it sanctioned the requistion of private land by peasants
-war - decree on peace- called for an immediate truce and a peaceful settlement, lay the foundation for an armastice that was signed dec 1917
march soviet representitive signed the treaty of brest litovsk which ceded a huge porpotion of territory about 1/3 of european russia to germany including ukraine -grain producing region also had to repay 3 billion roubles reparation
what were the origins of civil war 1918
involvement in ww1 and russian revoltuion
bolshevik seizure of power in 1917 sparked chaos throughout russian empire
-people saw the october revolution as an opportunity to launch counter invasion
what were the feature of civil war
war communism - during war lenin used state capitalism alongside grain requisitioning. war communism was nationalisation of larger enterprises, partial militarisation of labour and forced requistioning of grain
cheka - secret police, there was a shift towards groups displaying a bourgeois element and counter revolutionary behaviour. targets were SRs
red terror - used terror to victimise people to who they were. involved enforcing war communism, elimination of kulaks, administration of gulags and militarisation of labour
murder of the tsar and his family
what were the reasons for red victory - leadership and strategy
trotsky proved to be skillful in managing the red army
lenin ensured that bolshevik supporters remained united in their belief of socialist cause
white leaders struggled to coordinate and cooperate
trotsky’s strategy was to maintain communication and break down supply lines of white army
controlled and maintain railways
kept petrograd and moscow safe
without cheka would have been difficult to impose strict war time measures
what were the reasons for red victory -resources and logistics
both red and whites used conscription to boost their forces
trotsky turned the red army of peasants and workers into a disciplined organisation
1920 trotsky managed over 3 million troops
former tsarist military officers were employed by the red army
red terror helped maintain cohesiveness
red controlled military centres and therefore were able to get munitions to support the army
by controlling the railways reds were able to move troops
what was the motives for the NEP
russian people wanted something new to resolve the hardship due to the civil war and first world war
war communism was a short term emergency measure
what was the content of the NEP
Denationalisation pf small scale enterprise
state control of heavy industry
removal of trade restrictions
encouragement of external foreign trade and investment
end of grain requisitioning
what was the consequence of NEP
industrial output increased rapidly and there was a greater amount of food and consumer goods
the supply of food increased at a rate that exceeded demand which resulted in a fall in price peasants were reluctant to sell at a low price
the sale of manufactured goods increased at a slower rate which meant price rise
only a short term problem as the bolsheviks found a solution
what was the structure of the new government
all russian congress of soviets - organised a comttee (exceutive committee). by 1918 mensheviks and SRs were expelled leaving only bolsheviks
the council of peoples’s commissars - the new system appeared to be democratic, however the soviets were dominated by the bolsheviks whos organisation resembled new government
how was the bolshevik party reshaped
the central executive committee was responsible for the orgburo and politiburo
all the key positions were led by senior bolsheviks
there was around 1 million members by 1928
what were the strengths of lenin as bolshevik leader
- believed the imposition of marxist ideas was the only way for a more just and equal society
- lenin was flexible in his actions, when peasants show revolutionary behaviour he saw they had a more important part to play in political change
- great self belief
- he took advantage of the weakness shown by opponants
what were the weaknesses of lenin as a leader
lenin was not afraid to use force
he refused to accept other alternative to achieve more equal society
opposition to lenin was expanded when he banned all political parties
lenins economic, social and political reforms could have set russia backwards
