Nature of Gov under Lenin

Question 1

What emergencies occurred that had to be addressed ?

Answer 1

• Autumn 1920 peasants in Tambov rebelled against War Communism and Cheka brutality
• Jan 1921 rebel force of 50,000 was fighting communists across Tambov region
• Early 1921 wave of strikes across Russias main cities
• In Petrograd Red Army responded by opening fire on unarmed workers

Question 2

What did the The Party Congress of 1921 do?

Answer 2

Address crisis created by civil war:
- War communism created a famine
- Red Terror created a backlash against communist repression
Lenin responded by replacing war communism with THE NEW ECONOMIC POLICY (NEP) - still refused to allow return to democracy more capitalistic, shorter working hrs, relaxed Cheka

Question 3

What interrupted the Party Congress?

Answer 3

-Sailor’s at Kronstadt Naval base rebelled against communist brutality
demanded end to War Communism and restoration of democracy
- Led to the abolition of grain requisition

Question 4

What 2 factions of opposition did Lenin face within the party

Answer 4

Workers opposition - reintroduce workers control of industry
Democratic Centralists - want communist party to be more democratic

Question 5

hint: faction

How did Lenin respond to opposition within the party

Answer 5

Tightening communist political control:
Introduced a resolution banned factions inside party
Party members found guilty of forming factions could be expelled from party
Made it difficult for opposition within the party to organise

Question 6

What happened 1924?

Answer 6

Lenin died
Left a highly authoritarian political legacy
Destroyed Soviet Democracy

Question 7

Why was there a decline of Sovnarkom?

Answer 7

Slowly ceased to function as from 1920 Politburo effectively became the government of Russia
Player much smaller role merely approving decisions that have been made from Politburo

Question 8

What was the ‘party state’

Answer 8

New government based on 2 different structures: Communist party and the Soviet State
after 1921 opposition parties were banned
Communist party dominated creating a new form of gov known as the ‘party state’

Question 9

How did the Civil war change the nature of Communist party?
What is the New Elite?

Answer 9

1918 communist party was a group of workers and revolutionaries
1921 became increasingly dominated by administrators who were former middle class
The party provided better accommodation and more food for members.
Though communist party claimed to rule on behalf of workers, it was becoming a privileged new elite