NEP Flashcards
Problems that lead to NEP
1921 = Soviet economy was in ruins + transport was about to collapse
Factories couldn’t get materials they needed → industrial production fell
→ famine and disease killed thousands
In these circumstances, people weren’t willing to put up with wartime policies
Peasantry
main threat to the Communist government came from the peasentry
hostility of the peasants to Grain requisitioning → revolt
1920 = poor harvest left peasants with no reserves of Grain
1920- 1921 = Tambov uprising = most serious revolt
army of 70,000 peasants → put down by reds using poison gas
the countryside was in open revolt
green army supported peasants which made it hard for reds to control
Why were the workers angry?
Who were they supported by?
angry with food shortages
militarised factories
trade unions used as an instrument to keep workers in line
supported by the Kronstadt sailors
March 1921 = mutiny in Hope of starting a general revolt against bolshevik
They demanded an end to Terror, dictatorship, grain requisitioning + one-party state
Kronstadt Uprising
1917 = Trotsky called Kronstadt the Pride of the Russian Revolution
But Kronstadt = SRs
they supported peasant revolt and assisted the strikes in petrograd
Their revolt was a powerful argument for change in economic policies
Cheka put the uprising down killing 10,000 Ks + sending the rest to labour camps
Why did Lenin create NEP
Lenin realised that concessions to peasants + some economic liberalisation was essential for the regime to survive
the government couldn’t continue with war communism → NEP created
Grain Requisitioning abolished
a key element = abolition of Grain requisitioning
once peasants had given a fixed proportion of the grain, they were able to sell surplus on the open market
Why was the Ban on private trade removed?
How did the Bolshevik party react?
Lenin realised that peasants wouldn’t sell their produce unless there were goods that they wanted on sale
small businesses, private trading + money economy was back
many bolsheviks believed this a betrayal against bolshevik ideology
however, doubters were convinced by the Kronstadt uprising as they realised any split in the party could result in the bolsheviks losing power or together
they were prepared to follow Lenin as long as NEP was temporary
Was NEP ideological?
no, it was a pragmatic response to the failure of WC
private trade + money economy back
it created ideological tension and divisions in the ranks of the Communist Party
Many Bolsheviks interpreted it as a surrender to capitalism
What was the Scissor crisis?
Trotsky describe the economy as a Scissor crisis
food production increased + framers made money
but industrial pro didn’t increase = no goods to buy
framers began holding back their supplies
so gov capped industrial prices + bought in money tax to make money from the farmers that way
