Topic 4: Bolshevik Consolidation of Power Flashcards
Lenin forms a government of how many Bolsehviks?
15
What was Lenin’s new government called?
Council of People’s Commissars (Sovnarkom)
Who was the Chairman of the Sovnarkom?
Lenin
Who was the Commissar for War in the Sovnarkom?
Trotsky
Where were the four Soviet Socialist Republics?
Russia
Ukraine
Belorussia
Transcaucaus
In 1922, what was Russia renamed to?
USSR
What was Lenin’s secret police called?
Cheka
Where did the Cheka have their headquarters?
Lubyanka prison
In 1918 alone, how many opponents of Bolshevism had been executed?
50,000
What were the 5 promises of the Bolsheviks?
- Elections to a Constituent Assembly
- Peace
- Land
- Bread
- All Power to the Soviets
What did Lenin proclaim on the 26th October 1917?
He proclaimed Russia a Republic of Soviets
Who did Lenin want to oppress?
The bourgeoisie class
What was the Decree on Peace?
- All countries should seek peace
- Called for an immediate armistice without loss of territory or money (unrealistic)
What was the Decree on Land?
- Private ownership of rural land was illegal in November 1917
- In December this was extended to the Church
- Took 500m acres of land and gave it to the peasants
What was the Decree on Nationalities?
- Ended Russification
- They would have their own choice of government
What was the Decree on Workers’ Rights?
Decree on Work: 8 hour work day and 48 hour work week
Decree on Unemployment: Insurance for injuries, illness and unemployment.
Pensions introduced
Decree on Workers’ Control: All factories under control of workers’ soviets.
How did Lenin try to solve the problem of food?
Priority was put on getting food to the cities
Cheka and police took food that was not handed over
How did Lenin want to control the economy?
Lenin wanted to end the capitalist system
What was taken over by the government in aid of the economy?
The banks and factories
They were put under the control of elected workers’ councils
How was religion viewed by the Communists?
As a way of controlling people
What did the Decree on Freedom of Conscience do?
Took away the priviledged status of the Church
What did the Church lose?
All land
Publications were outlawed
Religious education outside of the home was banned
What religions were the Bolsheviks more cautious with?
Non-Christian cultures e.g. Islamic traditions were left alone
Women were declared ____ to men
Equal
What made divorce easier?
The Family Code
What was made legal for women?
Abortion
Why were workplace creches encouraged?
Improve women’s lives but also get more women into work
What types of newspapers were banned?
All non-Bolshevik newspapers
Which political parties were banned?
The Liberal Party
The Cadets
When were elections held for a Constituent Assembly?
In November 1917
Why was Lenin forced into elections for a Constituent Assembly?
The railway workers threatened to strike if there were no elections
Who was more popular than the Bolsheviks?
The Socialist Revolutionaries - especially amongst the peasants
What were the results of the elections for the Constituent Assembly?
Bolsheviks: 175 seats
Socialist Revolutionaries: 410
What did Lenin do in relation to the Constituent Assembly election results?
Rejected the results and criticised the Constituent Assembly as a threat to the revolution
When did the Constituent Assembly first meet?
January 1918
What proposal did the Sovnarkom make to the Constituent Assembly?
For them to pass the Bolshevik key decrees
Did the Constituent Assembly pass the Bolshevik key decrees?
No. It was rejected by a majority of over 100
What did Lenin claim of the Constituent Assembly?
That it did not represnt the will of the people and was dominated by counter-revolutionaries
Who did Lenin send in to close the Constituent Assembly?
Red Guards
Who did Lenin ban after he sent in the Red Guard to close the Constituent Assembly?
All opposition parties: Socialist Revolutionaries, Mensheviks, and Kadets
When was the next time that multi-party elections were held in Russia?
1991
Who did Lenin send to negotiate with Germany?
Trotsky
Where did Trotsky go to negotiate with Germany?
Brest-Litovsk in Poland
Where was the capital of Russia moved to after Petrograd looked likely to be caught by the Germans?
Moscow
What did Russia have to concede to Germany in order to leave the war?
Ukraine, its Polish and Baltic territories, the Caucasus, and Finland
Had to pay 300 million gold roubles
How many people were lost from Russia after Brest-Litovsk?
62 million (1/6 of its population)
What percentage of farmland was lost after Brest-Litovsk?
27%
What percentage of railway mileage was lost after Brest-Litovsk?
26%
What percentage of iron ore and coal was lost after Brest-Litovsk?
74%
Why was it important for Russia to withdraw from the war?
- It was one of the main reasons for the fall of the Tsar
- German troops advanced into Russia
- Lenin thought a civil war was invetible
- Lenin did not think the treaty would last long
How did the Russian people feel about the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?
It was shameful
What became worse after the Treaty of Brest-Litvosk?
Food shortages because of lack of farmland
How many people left Petrograd by July 1918?
1 million people
The number of people working shrank by 60%
Who was split by the treaty?
The Bolshevik Party
Lenin believed the Bolsheviks had no choice.
