Economics

Question 1

State Capitalism

Answer 1

• April 1918
• Need economic change
• Severe economic crisis
• Another example of Lenin’s pragmatism
• Bols. inherited a failing economy
• Talked about evils of capt. For 15+ years and now they need it to survive

Question 2

Economic policy: state

Answer 2

• Govt. ownership/control of key industry such as railroad, steel, etc.
• Centralised banking
• Workers’ Control to ensure capitalists did not exploit.

Question 3

Economic policy: capitalism

Answer 3

• Most businesses retain old managers as “bourgeois experts”
• Free Market structure remained.
• Govt. has monopoly in key sectors.

Question 4

The Vesenkha

Answer 4

• 2 Dec 1917: VSNKh or Vesenkha- Supreme Council of the National Economy
• Govt. body to oversee economic policy; State run industry, management of workers’ councils

Question 5

Bols. Divided

Answer 5

• Lenin argued this policy “implies a step, or several steps towards Socialism!”
• Others, such as Bukharin and preobrazhensky disagreed
• Didn’t unite Bols. created divisions and tensions within the party

Question 6

War Communism

Answer 6

• 28 June 1918
• Forced to adopt War Communism due to Civil War, unrest, losses from the Treaty of B-L, ‘nationalisation from below’ and ideology
• Implemented through nationalism, militarisation of workplace, and abolition of money

Question 7

Nationalisation

Answer 7

• Unstable economy (food shortage/resources deficiency)
• Workers desired government control
• Main focus was to increase supply to Red Army before anything else (Trotsky: “Everything for the Front”)

Question 8

Militarisation of the workplace

Answer 8

• Workers were repressed (extended work hours, limited rations)
• Duties allocated according to social class (Burzhui had the hardest jobs whereas party member had the easy ones)
• Army style punishment for any seditious behaviour
• Introduction of Subbotniki which included cleaning roads, railways, shovelling snow, etc.
• Bols. Utilised hatred of upper classes to organise this

Question 9

Abolition of Money

Answer 9

• 1919: Lenin declares need to abolish money
• Govt. forced hyperinflation made money worthless
• Gov.t would provide goods and services in place of private business
• Ration system based on social class replaces purchase of food
• 21st Nov 1918: Private trade is declared illegal meaning they could confiscate any stock from private business

Question 10

Committees of the Poor

Answer 10

• 11 June 1918
• Groups of poor peasants who were required confiscate surplus grain and hand over to officials who could keep a small cut for themselves
• These peasants were called the Kombedy
• Dec 1918: Kombedy’s dissolved

Question 11

Requisition Squads

Answer 11

• Jan 1919: Requisition squads begin collecting grain
• Requisition squads = Prodraverstka
• Cheka agents confiscate grain from peasants
• Cultivation dropped by 40% from 1917 to 1921
• Peasants stopped growing surplus grain
• Peasants retaliated with armed resistance