Russian Revolution Flashcards
Tsarism
Russia before the revolution. i.e ruled by the Tsar
February Revolution
end of Tsarism
Provisional Government
coalition of liberals and moderate socialists: feb to oct 1917
October Revolution 1917
coup d’etat by the Bolshevik party against provisional government
Bolshevik party
small marxist party led by Vladimir Lenin (changed to the Russia communist party)
Russia in 1900
Autocratic political system
- Nicholas II
Peasant society
-125 million population –> 90% peasants
Tsarist Russia as a modernizing country
-growing cities
-developing civil society
-professional groups running services via local government i,e doctors, lawyers etc
challenges of modernisation
-poor conditions in new industrial areas
-civil society questioned government’s monopoly of power
-land hunger and peasant unrest
-revolutionary movement (marxists and socialists)
February Revolution: key dates: 23th of february
international womens day
strikes and demonstrations in Petrograd; grew in strength in following days
February Revolution: key dates: 27 february
the day of revolution
Petrograd garrison mutinied
petrograd soviet formed
provisional committee of the Duma formed
February Revolution: key dates: 2nd of march
Nicholas II abdicates
provisional government formed
February Revolution: points to note
not an anti war revolution
abdication intended to prevent revolution
Nicholas II in abdicating did not think he was ending Romanov rule
very limited involvement of revolutionary parties
opened doors for radicals
provisional government was weak because..
-dual power (liberals and socialists) –> reflected influence of Petrograd soviet of provisional government
-rural unrest
-committed to Allies in WW1 (army desertion grew)
centrifugalism
Lenin’s “April Theses” - key points
- Bolsheviks will not support provisional government
Russia revolution will soon enter a second phase
all power should be transferred to soviets
The “April Theses” helped Bolsheviks gain more support in 1917 as:
- other socialists parties supported the provisional government
-the “April Theses” contained policies that would become increasingly popular
Bolsheviks seize power
25 September: Bolsheviks control Petrograd Soviet (Trotsky becomes chair)
25 October: Bolshiveks seize power from provisional government in name of congress of soviets (meeting at that time)
Declaration of the Rights of working and exploited people (Jan 1918)
Fundamental task of new regime was:
“…destruction of any exploitation of man to man, the complete abolition of the division of society into classes…”
Declaration confirmed:
-abolition of private land ownership
-workers supervision of industry and transport
-nationalization of banks
-universal labour duty
-formation of Red army
Problems faced by Bolshevik government
-food shortages
- collapse of industrial production
-de-urbanisation
-civil war
-attempts on Lenin’s life
the way the Bolsheviks responded to these challenges helped to shape the soviet system - crisis management blended with political ideology
problem responses: monopoly of power, centralisation, and coercion
“dictatorship of the Proletariat” during the transitional period
“stupid and absurbly distopion to assume that the transition from capitalism to socialism is possible without coercion and without dictatorship” (Lenin 1918)
-power gradually re-centralised (soviets, factory committees, workers militias lost influence) communist party became main area of power
the red terror 1918
a Bolshevik-led campaign of intimidation, arrests violence and execution unfolded in the second half of 1918 as the new regime struggled to eliminate opposition and threats to its own power
problem responses: state planning of economic production and distrubtion
bolsheviks economic planning 1917-21 known as war communism
three main features
- forced grain requistioning from peasantry
- state ownership of industry (private trade abolished)
- compulsory labour
black market still thrived and grain requisitioning created mass unrest in countryside
problem responses: mobilization of culutre
bourgeois culture part of system of class domination
necessary to create new proletarian culture
proletarian culture themes:
-centrality of labour
-collectivism instead of individualism
struggle against “backwardness” (supersition)
-campaign for literacy (Lenin)
-impacted religion, education, laws the arts, propaganda, etc
with all these measures the bolsheviks laid the foundations of the soviet system
-centralised one-party system
-economic planning
-cultural transformation
