Russia Key Issue 2

Question 1

Three issues facing the provisional government

Answer 1

Peace bread land

Question 2

Who was in the provisional government

Answer 2

Had middle-class politicians and angry revolutionaries

Led by Alexander Kerensky

Question 3

Failures of the provisional government

Answer 3

Promised allies to continue war, very unpopular. Many deserted.
Let the army for a big attack in June, big failure

Made peasants wait for land so they took it themselves. Lost their support

Without peasant support they couldn’t get food to starving proletariats. Prices rose, support lost

Contrastingly, Bolshevik delivered bread and land

Question 4

What were the July days

Answer 4

Bolshevik protests against the war turned into a rebellion.

PG found evidence Lenin was a traitor: support fell, rebellion crushed

Question 5

What happened in September 1917?

Answer 5

Kornilov marched to Petrograd to get rid of B and P.G

Kerensky turned to Lenin for help

But Kornilovs troops refused to fight the red guards

Question 6

What happened end of October and November 1917?

Answer 6

Trotsky organised the red cards and took control of the post office and state bank

Bolsheviks in control, Kerensky forced into exile

8th nov: proclamation of the Petrograd Soviet

Question 7

How did the Bolsheviks establish a communist dictatorship?

Answer 7

Lenin promised free elections but the SR was the majority, not B

Lenin shut down the assembly

he used the Congress of Soviets to pass laws

Democracy<24 hours

Question 8

How did Lenin strengthen his control?

Answer 8

December 1917: cheka
By 1921 had 200,000 members. Ignored their code of conduct. Led the Red terror, killing several 1000 people.

B party had 800,000 members in the right places. 50% of army supported them

January 1918: red army established, everyone under 18 joined. mostly peasants. fought in civil war

Question 9

How did Lenin end Russia’s role in World War I

Answer 9

Treaty of Brest Litovsk

Russia lost 34% population
32% land
89% coal mines

300 million gold rouble fine

Showed Lenin’s single minded attitude to communism

Question 10

When was the Russian civil war?

Answer 10

1918-21. Red and white armies fought each other. Bolsheviks won

Question 11

White army consisted of…

Answer 11

SR’s
Czech legion (prisoners of war)
Tsarist officers
Landlords and capitalists 
France, UK and USA

Question 12

Why did the white army have an advantage?

Answer 12

March 1918: Czech legion seized the trans Siberian railway.

3 separate White armies closed in on Bolshevik areas

Question 13

Why did the Bolsheviks win the war?

Answer 13

B= ruthless and determined
Trotsky made a new army of over 300k men. Trotsky held families hostage to ensure loyalty and made constant speeches and cinema propaganda.

Requisition parties got grain to feed soldiers and towns.

Whites lacked support from peasants who feared aristocracy and were disunited. Whites had uncoordinated attacks.

1919: kolchack and foreign armies withdrew. 1920, army defeated.

Question 14

Red terror atrocities:

Answer 14

The punishment for military offence was death

Thousands dying from hunger in Petrograd

People kept in prison months without trial

Question 15

White army atrocities:

Answer 15

White soldiers met Bolsheviks, executed them and burned their houses.

45% male population whipped

Village delivered food without pay

Question 16

What was war communism?

Answer 16

Harsh economic measures Bolsheviks adopted during the Civil War.
Aims: Feed the army and the city and supply weapons to win the war. Share wealth among Russian people

Question 17

What rules did war communism consist of?

Answer 17

All factories under government control
Production was organised by the government
Strict discipline, any striking workers shot
Peasants were ordered to hand out surplus food
Food rationed
Enterprise became illegal
(FSPFEP as a way to remember it)
These established Communist rule, helped win the war and feed the towns

Question 18

Disadvantages of war communism

Answer 18

Peasants refused to produce food this led to shortages
1920-1921 there was a terrible famine: 7 million people died
Even reports of cannibalism
Bolsheviks lost support

Question 19

Advantage of war communism

Answer 19

Bolsheviks won the war

Question 20

Why was the Kronstadt base important?

Answer 20

It was on the Gulf of Finland and guarded approaches to Petrograd.

The sailors were one of Lenin’s biggest supporters

Question 21

What was the Kronstadt rising?

Answer 21

Happened feb 1921
Sailors on 2 leading battleships produced 15 demands
In response, Trotsky sent 60000 troops to kill over 1000 sailors.
Policy alienated strongest supporters

Question 22

When did Lenin introduce the NEP?

Answer 22

March 1921: at The Communist party congress (annual meeting)

Question 23

What was the NEP? What was the initial reaction?

Answer 23

Lenin agreed TEMPORARILY to bring back capitalist elements to Russia.

Peasants could sell surplus grain for profit and pay tax on produce rather than giving it up.

Vital industries (coal, oil, steel) were still in state hands

Many B thought it was betraying communism.

Question 24

Positive impacts of the NEP?

Answer 24

By 1925 food production rose steeply

electricity almost tripled

Question 25

In what years did Lenin suffer strokes?

Answer 25

1922, 1923, 1924. He died in jan 1924

Question 26

What did Lenin achieve?

Answer 26

He led Russia through revolution and Civil War

even supervised the drawing up of the new constitution that turned the Russian Empire into the USSR

Question 27

What questions did Lenin‘s death leave?

Answer 27

How long will the NEP last?

who succeeds him?