The Bolsheviks in power, 1917-24 Flashcards
The early Bolshevik decrees of November-December 1917
Immediately after his rise to power, Lenin wanted to show that he intended to govern Russia effectively and therefore orchestrated a Land Decree on the 8th of November 1917 which took land from the Government and Church and redistributed it amongst the peasants. Peasants were also given permission to take unused land from landlords.
Lenin also created the Peace Decree on the 8th of November 1917 and announced that negotiations to end the war with Germany would begin at once. Russia’s participation in World War One had become increasingly unpopular amongst the Russian people as many people had died and it was a huge drain on the Russian economy. Lenin therefore signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on the 3rd of March 1918 to make peace with Germany, marking Russia’s exit from the war.
The treaty, however, was extremely unpopular as the country lost 32% of its’ agricultural land, 54% of its’ industry, 89% of its coal mines and 26% of its’ railways. There was also a fine of 300,000,000 gold roubles. Nevertheless, this was all returned to Russia when Germany lost the war.
The removal of opposition, including the Constituent Assembly and the execution of Tsar Nicholas II and his family
The Bolsheviks dealt with opponents ruthlessly. On the 1st of December 1917 all non-Bolshevik newspapers were closed down and political opposition such as the Constitutional Democratic Party were banned and its’ leaders were arrested.
The Bolsheviks had been sure that, following their success in the October Revolution, they would win Russia’s first ever General Election in 1917. Lenin was very disappointed by the result as the Social Revolutionaries had double the amount of votes of the Bolsheviks. Lenin therefore used the Red Guards to close down the Constituent Assembly on the 18th of January 1918. He then used the Congress of Soviets to pass his laws, effectively establishing a dictatorship.
Tsar Nicholas II and his family were murdered by the Bolsheviks in July 1918, confirming the end of more than 300 years of the Romanov dynasty’s rule.
The causes of the civil war
The Civil War, fought between the Red and White Army, lasted from the summer of 1918 until 1921. The Red Army was made up of Bolsheviks and supporters of the Left. In contrast, the White Army was made up of those that were opposed to Bolshevik rule and the Left.
A group of anti-Bolsheviks united in an attempt to crush the Red Army in 1918. They became known as the White Army and included the Mensheviks, supporters of the Tsar, the Socialist Revolutionaries, Ukrainians and the Czech Legion who were former prisoners of war.
The Whites instigated the war by seizing control of a section of the Trans-Siberian Railway in March 1918, whilst three seperate White Armies marched into western Russia.
The nature of the civil war
The Bolsheviks reacted violently with the help of over 300,000 men who were recruited into the Red Army.
Atrocities were commited on both sides but through strict leadership, Trotsky’s army defeated each of the Whites’ forces one by one.
Lenin also ordered the Bolsheviks to kill the Tsar and his family on the 17th July 1918 as he wanted to eliminate the potential risk of the Tsar being rescued to become the leader of the Whites.
Industrial workers and peasants who lived in areas where the war took place suffered largely as both sides committed extremely cruel acts of violence.
the consequences of the civil war
The Bolshevik’s were victorious by 1921. Reasons for this included that Trotsky recruited ex-Tsarist Officers to join the Red Army. In doing so, the Red Army automatically had increased experience and expertise on their side. The Bolsheviks also had a geographical advantage and their strong military force was strengthened by Trotsky who served as an effective Chairman of the Supreme War Council. Likewise, by having support from the industrial cities, the Bolsheviks had access to railway links and communication points. Moreover, Trotsky effectively used propaganda through methods such as posters, speeches and travelling cinemas to booste morale and maintain the support of the workers.
The White Army also had the flaw of many different factions which made it difficult to communicate. They led their attacks at different times which meant that the Red Army were able to fight each section one at a time rather than being confronted en masse.
The red terror
Red Terror was the Bolsheviks’ method of killing anyone who opposed them. Opponents such as strikers were shot in a bid to eliminate any opposition to the Bolshevik rule.
the role of the cheka
The Cheka, also known as the “All-Russian Emergency Commission for Combating Counter-Revolution and Sabotage”, was initiated on the 7th of December 1917. It was the Bolshevik’s secret police force which rooted out and dealt with potential threats across Russia. Led by Felix Dzerzhinsky, the Cheka consisted of over 200,000 members and was largely feared as the brutal group killed more than 10,000 people. Their operations were a large part of the ‘Red Terror’.
The Kronstadt mutiny
The Russian navy revolted at Kronstadt Naval Base in March 1921. This was a big shock to Lenin because the navy had supported the Bolsheviks throughout the Civil War. In response, Trotsky sent approximately 60,000 troops to suppress the uprising and over 1,000 of the sailors were killed.
Bolshevik centralisation, including the role of Lenin and the Politburo, setting up of the USSR
The Bolshevik government wanted to establish a communist society.
In an attempt to quash any opposition, Lenin ensured that only the Communist Party was legal under the Bolsheviks.
Lenin created Comintern in 1919 as he wanted to initiate Communist revolutions across Europe.
The Politburo made important decisions and had huge authority as it was in charge of creating policies for the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.#
Lenin organised the Russian empire into a united state in 1922 and called it the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
War Communism
Lenin introduced harsh economic measures during the Civil War which became known as War Communism.
Based on Communist theory, it created a centralised state whereby all farm and industrial produce was given to the government. This also helped to ensure that the Red Army had sufficient food and weapon supplies during the war.
It was managed very strictly by the Cheka, the Bolshevik’s Secret Police, who ensured that all citizens adhered to War Communism. Many people received the death penalty for not abiding to the rules by retaining food or raw materials.
The policy was extremely unpopular and many peasants refused to produce more food as they knew the government would take it away. This, combined with bad weather conditions between 1920 and 1921 meant that Russia experienced a horrific famine whereby approximately 6,000,000 Russians died and cannibalism occurred.
The NEP (the new economic policy)
Owing to the terrible effects of War Communism on the economy, Lenin introduced the New Economic Policy (NEP) in 1921.
The NEP allowed traders to make a profit on their excess goods, which provided an incentive to produce more and improved the economy post the devastation of the Civil War and War Communism. The private ownership of factories was permitted once more and a stable currency was re-established as the Soviet state returned to a money-based economy.
Lenin made it very clear that NEP was temporary and that the key parts of heavy industry such as coal and oil production would remain under state ownership.
Between 1921 and 1925, production largely increased. However despite its’ success, NEP was a step backwards for the Bolsheviks as Lenin was resorting back to capitalist values which was the antithesis of communism and many in the party saw it as betrayal.
Social changes
A key social change under the Bolsheviks included that education was prioritised to ensure the spread of Communist ideas. A literary campaign was launched to help people read party doctrines and many new schools were built to help teach the Communist ideology.
Many Bolshevik policies helped females as abortion was introduced, divorce was made easier and women were deemed as equals in the workplace. However, progress was still slow as it was difficult to erase traditional attitudes.
summary
Immediately after his rise to power, Lenin wanted to show that he intended to govern Russia effectively and therefore orchestrated a Land and Peace Decree on the 8th of November 1917.
Tsar Nicholas II and his family were murdered by the Bolsheviks in July 1918, confirming the end of more than 300 years of the Romanov dynasty’s rule.
The Bolsheviks set up a secret police force called the Cheka in 1917.
The Civil War, fought between the Red and White Army, lasted from the summer of 1918 until 1921.
Lenin introduced harsh economic measures during the Civil War which became known as War Communism. However, he abandoned this and introduced the New Economic Policy (NEP).
The Russian navy revolted at Kronstadt Naval Base in March 1921. In response, Trotsky sent approximately 60,000 troops to suppress the uprising and over 1,000 of the sailors were killed.
