The Consolidation of Bolshevik authority (4) Flashcards
What was the Bolshevik position like at the end of October?
Far more secure
Initially what did civil servants do?
Refused to serve and bankers refused to provide finance.
How long did it take to persuade the State Bank to hand over its reserves?
10 days
How did the the Bolsheviks have to establish their authority?
They had to establish their authority outside the capital and combat the forces of Kerensky who had set up a new headquarters at Gatchina and rallied an army comprising 18 Cossack regiments and a small force of Socialist Revolutionary cadets and officers.
Why did Lenin’s forces appear weak and smaller in numbers compared to his opponents?
Because many soldiers from the Petrograd garrison returned to their homes in the countryside immediately after the revolution.
What happened on the 29th October 1917?
1) An army cadet rising against the Bolsheviks, within Petrograd was quickly defeated by the Red Guard.
2) The Executive Committee of Railwaymen demanded a “united socialist government” and refused to transport food.
What happened on the 31st October 1917?
The Bolsheviks took control in Baku in 17 provincial capitals.
What happened on the 2nd November 1917?
1) Kerensky’s opposition forces were defeated.
2) The Soviet Government proclaimed, “The Declaration of Rights of the people of Russia”
What happened on the 3rd November 1917?
The Kremlin in Moscow was taken, ending a 10 day battle for Moscow Lenin issued an ultimatum to end division within the Bolshevik party.
Who was unhappy with the new government and when did they leave?
Kamenev, Zinoviev, Rykov, and others left on the 3rd of November 1917.
When did Lenin proclaim the victory of the revolution?
On the 5th October 1917
What did the Bolsheviks dominate?
All the major towns and railways.
What was outside of the Bolsheviks control?
Large areas of the countryside.
What did Lenin reluctantly agree on?
To allow seven left-wing Social Revolutionaries to join Sovnarkom in November, but he was hostile to any further suggestions of “power-sharing” and it was made clear to the delegates that they had to follow Bolshevik lead.
