Defending the Bolshevik Revolution Flashcards
How did the Bolsheviks initially look after the October Revolution?
- The Bolsheviks deemed to be supportive of the Constituent Assembly having the ability to decide Russia’s future
What was Lenin’s true intent after he took power?
- H wasn’t going to ruin his Communist Utopia by handing over power to the Constituent Assembly.
What was Lenin’s justification for the Constituent Assembly results?
- Lenin disregarded the Constituent Assembly, claiming that the ballot papers didn’t allow voters to distinguish between pro-Bolshevik left SRs and anti-Bolshevik right SRs.
What were the conditions that Sovnarkom imposed upon the Constituent Assembly?
- Members could recall previous representatives to replace ‘awkward’ representatives.
- Meetings could go ahead if only half of the members were present.
- Bolsheviks would check the credentials of members.
What happened before the Constituent Assembly meeting?
- 50,000 anti-Bolshevik protesters gathered in Petrograd but 10 were killed by Bolsheviks.
What happened during the Constituent Assembly meeting?
- The Assembly was disbanded after one day by the Bolsheviks.
When did peace talks between Russia and Germany begin?
- November 1917.
Why did Lenin want to avoid the war?
- He had made a promise to Russian working class people that he would end the war.
- He wanted to control the Bolsheviks’ internal enemies and needed ‘two hands to throttle the bourgeoise’.
- Russia was vulnerable to German invasion.
Why did the Germans want to end war on the eastern front?
- The USA had entered the war and joined the western front, leaving Germany fighting 3 major powers.
- As a result, they needed to end their activity in the east to transport men and materials to the western front.
How did the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk go?
- Germany demanded several countries within the Russian Empire.
What were the figures for Russia’s loss from Germany?
- 26% of its population.
-27% of its arable land. - 74% of its coal and iron ore.
What were the contrasting viewpoints on how Russia should deal with the Treaty of Brest Litovsk?
- Bukharin believed Russia should deny the Treaty and start a ‘revolutionary war’ with Germany where they’d stir up the German working class against their Government.
- Trotsky believed that the Russians should not accept the treaty but also should end the war, ‘neither war, nor peace’.
- Lenin urged the acceptance of the treaty and threatened to leave Sovnarkom if his wishes weren’t met.
What did the middle-upper classes think about the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?
- Russia’s middle and upper class saw the treaty as cowardice and now were hoping to overthrow the Bolsheviks and restart the war with Germany.
What was the Cheka?
- The political police force of the Soviet Union to begin with.
What was the purpose of the Cheka?
- To suppress counter-revolution and sabotage across the whole of Russia.
How many employees did the Cheka collect by 1921?
120,000
What power did the Cheka have?
- Power to arrest and punish alleged counter-revolutionaries as it saw fit.
What reputation did the Cheka have?
- Reputation for savagery and brutality through its uses of torture, becoming a permanent feature of Communist rule in Russia.
What was Lenin’s decree on the press?
- The banning of hostile newspapers to the Bolsheviks.
How did the Bolsheviks manage political parties and participation?
- The Bolsheviks outlawed the Kadet Party.
- The Bolsheviks banned middle class citizens from voting.
- The Bolsheviks expelled the Mensheviks and SRs.
What was the Red Terror?
- A period of Cheka brutality against those who aimed to destabilise the Bolshevik Government.
What 2 reasons did the Red Terror lead to increased violence by Bolsheviks?
- The reaction to Brest-Litovsk made Bolsheviks feel insecure.
- There was an increase in assassination attempts against Lenin and officials of the Bolshevik Government.
Why did the Cheka kill the Tsar’s family?
- Lenin saw Nicholas II as a potential rallying point around whom enemies could assemble.
How many lives did the GPU claim?
- 200,000 potentially.