Lenin: Industrial and agricultural change Flashcards
what does Trotsky’s theory of “combined and uneven development” argue?
that Russia could skip a phase of development and leap straight from feudalism and socialism.
who did the White Armies consist of and where did they exist?
the White Armies consisted of former Tsarist generals, nationalist independence movements and the Social Revolutionaries and existed at the periphery of Bolshevik territory.
why was the Red Army struggling to arm and equip itself during 1918?
because Russian heavy industry was in chaos following the two revolutions of 1917
despite good harvests, why did Russia experience serious food problems in 1916?
due to: the collapse of the transport network, the fact that the government fixed grain prices artificially low, and rising inflation ate into any profits the peasantry might make.
Food problems in 1916 encouraged the peasants to do what?
hoard their grain instead of selling it to the state.
what policy did the government introduce to tackle grain hoarding and was it continued?
the government introduced razvyortska, making the hoarding of grain illegal and giving the right to collect surpluses. The Provisional Government continued with this policy as did the Bolsheviks.
why did the size of the Red Army during the Civil War put pressure on the peasants?
By 1920 it had swelled to over 3 million men, all of whom needed to be fed and clothed. They also needed to requisition as many horses as possible and conscript large numbers of peasants who would otherwise be harvesting their crops
by 1918 why were Russian cities starving and how many people left for the countryside as a result?
By 1918 Russian cities were beginning to starve as the peasants were reluctant to sell their produce believing the ruble was losing its value due to inflation. This and a collapsing rail network caused mass hunger and led to 70% of Petrograd’s population and 50% of Moscow’s leaving the city for the countryside.
who were Bagmen and why did they burden the railway system?
Bagmen were those who stole items from the factories where they worked and then traded the goods for food in the villages. They were one of the main sources of food supplies to the starving cities but as tens of thousands of Bagmen poured on to trains to the countryside every day, the already weakened railway system came close to collapse.
what was the role of the Vesenkha?
the Vesenkha was the soviet supreme economic council, established in December 1917. When the Bolsheviks government took most industries under state control, the Vesenkha directed their work and output. It also had the power to seize any assets from their owners. The Vesenkha was one of the main organisations through which War Communism was established in Russia.
when did the Bolsheviks impose martial law across central Russia?
May 1918, as they faced total collapse.
what decree did the Bolsheviks announce in May 1918?
Grain Monopoly: all grain was declared state property and the peasants were required to hand over any surpluses.
when did the Bolsheviks announce the Nationalisation Decree and what was it?
June 1918: The factories that had been taken over by the workers during 1917 were made the property of the state.
what are some of the arguments historians have provided in order to explain Lenin’s intentions in creating the policies of War Communism?
Desperation: perhaps he did not originally envisage extending state control over the entire economy. Instead, the pressures of the civil war forced Lenin to establish a grain monopoly and abolish private trade.
Class War: an opportunity to eliminate “enemy” social classes. The bourgeoisie and the former nobility either starved or were reduced to such penury thy had no influence. Workers (Mensheviks or SRs) were controlled through hunger and over work. The peasants were subjected to immense brutality, Kulaks in particular.
Creating a Socialist Economy: a chance to create an economy that eliminated private trade. But Lenin himself did not believe in the short term that this was possible.
the abolishment of private trade meant what for the cities?
by abolishing private trade the cities were pushed closer to starvation and the Bolsheviks were forced to send thousands of soldiers to procure grain from the peasants instead of fighting at the front.
how did the Bolsheviks attempt to sow division into the village communities?
through the establishment of Poor Peasants Communities; each village was given a quota to fulfil and the poor peasants were encouraged to place the burden of the quotas on their better off neighbours. Often the committees were filled with party activists who had travelled from the cities and were viewed as outsiders.
Under Lenin, why did some villages resist attempts to create division?
because the peasants were inter-related within the village, they did not see themselves as “rich” or “poor” but viewed each other as equally impoverished or they resented attempts to stir up trouble.
why were PPCs abolished?
they often acted illegally, running some villages in a manner close to barbarism which was a powerful contributing factor to waves of revolt in 1918 and 1919. They were abolished in Dec. 1918 at the 6th Party Congress when Lenin realised the policy had failed.
how did the government use grain requisitioning to their advantage?
government propaganda emerged that portrayed kulaks as greedy speculators and class enemies. Lenin made a series of speeches demanding death to the Kulaks and a Bolshevik “food army” of armed requisitioning was formed to occupy peasant villages and use whatever violence was necessary to extract food from the peasants.
why was the grain monopoly declared?
when the village soviets refused to send grain to the cities because the price was too low and there was nothing to buy with the paper money they received in return. Because so many workers had left for the countryside, factories stood empty and the manufactured goods the peasants normally bought were not produced.
