Russia: PG, bolsheviks, civil war, NEP Flashcards
How did the PG come to power after the tsar’s abdication?
- Duma decided to form temporary government (PG)
- Would run the country until elections could be held to decide Russia’s future
For how long did the PG exist?
From March - October 1917
What was the Petrograd Soviet and what was its first order?
- Workers and soldiers sent representatives to form a soviet to look after their their interests
- Petrograd Soviet was the the most important of the soviets that were forming around Russia
- They firstly issued order No 1 which gave it control of armed forces in Petrograd
Who was Alexander Kerensky?
- Minister of justice of the PG
- Respected member of Petrograd Soviet and was a ‘bridge’ between them
- At end of July 1917 he became prime minister
There are 6…
Name the major political parties in 1917.
- Kadets
- Progressive party
- Octobrists
- Socialist Revolutionary party
- Mensheviks
- Bolsheviks
What was dual power?
- Where there were 2 possible bodies who could claim to run the government
- PG was accepted as government, but could only carry out descisions if the soviet agreed
6 things…
Give the actions the PG took.
- Continued the war
- Granted freedom of religion
- Abolished secret police
- Garunteed free speech
- Introduced 8 hour day
- Recognised trade unions
What did the PG urge the peasants not to do?
- To wait for elections before taking any land
- The plan was for free elections to take place to elect new Constituent Assembly that would carry out major change
Who was the PG mostly made up of?
Middle class liberals
Who was the PS mostly made up of?
Key workers like railway men and soldiers
What percentage of the population was peasants?
80
Give 2 strengths of the PG.
- Gave people freedom
- Allowed workers rights
Give two weakness of the PG.
- Did not have support of most of population (made up mostly of middle class)
- Continued the war which many soldiers and peasants would have not been happy with as the war killed many russian lower class soldiers
Give two strengths of the Bolsheviks.
- Had the support of the lower classes (made up most of population) and soldiers
- Had majorities in Petrograd soviet, Moscow soviet, and all-Russia congress of soviets (a kind of soviet parliament)
What did the April theses outline?
- Condemned Russia’s involvement in war
- Urged people to support Bolsheviks in a second revolution
- Condemned PG
- Called for land to be given to peasants and banks to go into state control
In April 1917 Lenin returned to Petrograd, Into what were his speeches collated?
The April Theses.
Give two key Bolshevik slogans from 1917.
Peace, Bread and Land; All Power to the Soviets.
What is a soviet?
A workers’ co-operative - basically a trade union.
June 1917: first elections to the Congress of Soviets. How do the Bolsheviks do?
105 seats; half that of the Mensheviks and Social Revolutionaries.
What occurred on July 16-17 1917?
The July Days. Afterwards, Lenin fled and Kerensky took over the Provisional Government.
What were the July days?
When Bolshevik led protests against the war turned into a rebellion, which was soon crushed by Kerensky, and Lenin fled to Finland
Who launched a coup in September 1917, and who did the Provisional Government ask for help against it?
The Cossack General Kornilov; the Red Guard.
In September 1917 the Bolsheviks won what, and what happened to Trotsky?
They won a majority in elections to the Petrograd Soviet, and Trotsky became its leader.
When did Lenin return from post-July Days exile?
October 1917.
Why were the Bolsheviks strong in October 1917?
- Promising what people wanted (peace, bread, land)
- Defended Petrograd in failed Kornilov coup (Sept. 1917) –> gained status, weapons and influence
- At end of Sept 1917 they won a majority in elections to PS and Leon trotsky became its chairman
Why was the PG in trouble by october 1917?
- Tried to carry on war and failed –> lost army’s support
- Tried to stop peasants from taking land –> lost peasant’s support
- No peasant support –> it failed to bring food into towns –> food prices increased greatly —> lost support of urban workers
7 November 1917:
The Russian Revolution begins.
What happened on the night of the 6th of November 1917?
- Red Guards led by Trotsky took control
- On the 7th Kerensky found the Bolsheviks were in control of most of Petrograd, while they continued their takeover with little opposition
- Kerensky fled
- They then stormed the Winter palace that evening and on the 8th, an announcement stated that “The Provisional Government has been overthrown”
What did Lenin’s November Decrees promise?
Peace with Germany, 8 hour day and 48 hour week for workers, land given to peasants, non-Bolshevik newspapers banned.
What happened in new elections to the Constituent Assembly, November 1917?
Bolsheviks came a distant second: 175 deputies to the SRs’ 370.
What did Lenin’s December Decrees do?
The Cadets were banned, factories were placed under control of workers’ committees, church land was confiscated by the state.
In January 1918 the Constituent Assembly met for the first time. What did Lenin do?
Shut it down for good within 24 hours.
What was signed in March 1918, what was its main aim and what were its key terms?
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk between Russia and Germany, which took Russia out of the war. Russia lost 27% of its arable land, 26% of its railways, 74% of its iron and coal; 50 million Russians displaced; reparations of 3bn roubles.
When did Russian Civil War begin?
Spring 1918
Who were the three sides in the Russian Civil War?
Reds (Bolsheviks), Whites (opponents of Bolshevism, including Tsarists, nobles, Mensheviks and SRs, supported by Britain, France, USA and Japan) and Greens (independent groups of nationalists, peasants and bandits).
How did the Red terror help the Bolsheviks to fight the war?
- Trotsky created new Red Army of over 300,000 men led by former Tsarist officers
- He made sure of their loyalty by holding their families hostage
- Imposed strict control over country and used fear to do so
Why did the Reds win the Civil War (four reasons)?
Their military strength, white weaknesses, Red Terror and War Communism.
Give more detail on some white weaknesses.
- Whites weren’t strong alliance and armies were unable to work with each other
- Foreign soldiers disinterested, low morale
- Limited support
Give more detail as to why the Reds won the civil war.
- Used propaganda to raise fears about intentions of foreign armies in league with Whites
- Propaganda train spread communist ideas across Russia and raised fears about possible return of Tsar and landlords
- Had important territorial advantages: enemies were spread around edge of Russia while they controlled the centre and railway system –> enabled them to move troops and supplies quickly and effectively compared to enemies
What, in general, was War Communism?
The measures the Bolsheviks adopted during the Civil War to share out Russia’s wealth and keep the towns and Red Army well fed and equipped.
Basically to put into practise Communist theories
6 things…
What measures were taken during war communism?
- All large factories were taken over by government
- Production was planned and organised by government
- Discipline for workers was strict and strikers could be shot
- Peasants had to hand over surplus food to government (if they didn’t, they could be shot)
- Food was rationed
- Free enterprise became illegal
Free enterprise being illegal means all production and trade was controlled by state
What did war communism lead to?
Peasants refused to cooperate in producing more food if gov just took it away, which led to food shortages, which along with bad weather in 1920-21 caused a terrible famine-some estimates suggest 7 million people died.
Who mutinied in February 1921?
Sailors at the Kronstadt naval base.
How did the Kronstadt Naval mutiny happen?
- Soldiers from the KNB were strong supporters of bolsheviks during civil war
- They saw the hardships of the people under war communism when soldiers visited petrograd in feb 1921
- Made 15 demands, including new elections, freedom of speech, equal rations, scrapping of militia units that were taking peasants grain
- This could have been serious issue for Bolsheviks and could have threatened their war effort
- In early March 1921 Trotskys forces stormed the base, with the deaths thought to be in the thousands
4 things…
What was NEP?
- A (temporary) New Economic Policy (NEP) was introduced in March 1921
- Effectively brought back capitalism for some areas of society
- Production (in particular food production) rose
- Some Bolsheviks saw it as a betrayal of communism
What reforms were made under NEP?
- Peasants were allowed to sell surplus grain for profit and would pay tax on what they produced rather than giving up some to gov
- Small factories handed back into private ownership
- Private trading of small goods was allowed but vital heavy industries (e.g. coal, iron, oil, steel) remained in state hands
Who were the ‘Nepmen’ and why were they despised?
- New traders who appeared in cites and made high profits
- Communists saw them as making money out of the labour of others
What was electrification?
The technological innovation of Russia - Lenin saw electric power as the key to moderninsing the USSR
Why would countries now trade with Russia?
They hoped that the small introduced element of capitalism would mean the failure of communist ideas
Give 2 examples of foreign trade with Russia.
- Anglo soviet trade agreement in 1921 begun increased trade with the west —> boosted soviet economy
- Large scale exchanges of western industrial goods for Russian oil
Give 2 other reasons as to why NEP was a sucess.
As well as Russia generally becoming more prosperous
- Some peasants became quite rich buying land and animals
- Industrial workers were better off
Give 2 other reasons as to why NEP was a failure.
1.Peasants thought price for manufactured goods was high and after 1925 were unwilling to sell grain for money as they could not afford much with it
2.By 1926, economy reached pre-1914 levels and by end of 1920’s food supply became a problem again
