Unit 3: Area of Study 2 - Consequences of the Russian Revolution

Question 1

Model to use when Responding to Area of Study 2

Answer 1

1. Challenge
2. Response
3. Outcome

Question 2

Years that Resulted from the Revolution

Answer 2

1917-1927

Question 3

Dates of Issing New Decrees

Answer 3

October 1917 - January 1918

Question 4

Challenge of Issuing New Decrees

Answer 4

The Bolsheviks needed to expand their support base, as they only had support in the big industrial cities and needed to consolidate the power of Sovnarkom

Question 5

Response to Issuing New Decrees

Answer 5

Every day from when they seized power until January 1918, Sovnarkom issued 116 new decrees, which was about nearly 2 per day. The Declaration on the Rights of the People’s of Russia (November 2, 1917) recognised the right of non-Russian ethnic minorities to self-determination, which leads to the recognition of Finland declaring their independence

Question 6

Examples of New Decrees (List 2)

Answer 6

• The Decree on Peace (October 26, 1917) called for immediate peace negotiations to end WWI
• The Decree on Land (October 26, 1917) authorised the redistribution of Gentry, church and crown land by local Peasant Soviets
• The Decree on the Hours of Work (October 29, 1917) introduced the 8-hour work day, guaranteed paid overtime work and other general working rights

Question 7

Outcome of Issuing New Decrees

Answer 7

Lenin and the Bolsheviks has projected the image of that they were trying to help the lower classes but secured limited support from the broad mass of poor Peasants and workers

Question 8

Date of the Formation of the Cheka

Answer 8

December 7, 1917

Question 9

Challenge of Felix Dzershinsky and the Cheka

Answer 9

Lenin was setting up a coercive apparatus, a way of eliminating Counter-Revolutionaries or threats from trators to the Revolution

Question 10

Response to Felix Dzershinsky and the Cheka

Answer 10

Just 6 weeks after his Government was established, he created the Extraordinary Commission for Combating Counter-Revolution and Sabotage (The Cheka). At the start, it was very small and by January 1918, it only had 120 agents. It was led by Felix Dzershinsky who instructed Cheka agents to see themselves as “soldiers” on the ‘internal front’ of the Civil War with the Bourgeoisie. To start with, the Cheka started out with maintaining surveillance of suspected Counter-Revolutionary groups, which included rival Socialist Parties such as the SR’s. They would torture people to extract confessions and would spy on people

Question 11

Outcome of Felix Dzershinsky and the Cheka

Answer 11

The Cheka gradually developed into a secret police force that modelled the Tsarist Okhrana. If helped transform the Soviet Government into a single-party dictatorship by eliminating dissent

Question 12

Challenge of State Capitalism

Answer 12

Lenin set an economic policy by December 1917 as he believed that Russia’s economy was not advanced enough to make the transition to Socialism and Communism

Question 13

Responses to State Capitalism

Answer 13

• Lenin originally affirmed that free trade and private enterprise would remain legal in Russia, but they would be regulated so that the evils of Capitalism would be minimised and that Capitalism would serve the needs of the dictatorship of the Proletariat. This meant that he adopted a contradictory approach as he wanted to continue Capitalist development but he stood for the rights of the workers. This was called State Capitalism
• To placate factory workers, in November 1917, Lenin issued the Decree of Workers’ Control, which stated that every factory would be run democratically with an elected factory committee setting rules such as the length of the work day and the pay rates

Question 14

Outcomes of State Capitalism

Answer 14

• Factory Committees voted to give factory workers huge pay increases, to get rid of unpopular rules and to not do as much work. This led to the Russian economy falling rapidly as the productivity in the factories decreasing
• State Capitalism therefore proved to be insufficient to meet the demands of the Sovnarkom and the Red Army during the Russian Civil War. The Soviet Government needed to prioritise which industries would receive scarce fuel supplies. State Capitalism was short-lived and replaced by War Communism in 1918

Question 15

Date of the Dismissal of the Constituent Assembly

Answer 15

January 5, 1918

Question 16

Challenge of the Dismissal of the Constituent Assembly

Answer 16

The Bolsheviks were forced to permit elections for the Constituent Assembly in November 1917

Question 17

Responses to the Dismissal of the Constituent Assembly

Answer 17

Lenin does not want to appear as a dictator, so he lets the elections go ahead in November 1917. The Bolsheviks win 24% of the votes. However, the SR’s won 47% of the votes. Lenin refused to accept the authority of a SR dominated authority. He said that it would be a “Bourgeois parliament” and it would be a “retrograde step” from a Soviet democracy. He refused to give up control

• The Constituent Assembly convened on January 5, 1918. After it refused to accept the authority of the Soviet Government, Lenin used 5,000 troops to dismiss the Constituent Assembly

Question 18

Outcome of the Dismissal of the Constituent Assembly

Answer 18

Lenin has prevented any public challenge to Bolshevik authority. However, he has done so in a way that shows that he is building a one-party dictatorship, which alienates the other political parties in Russia who to start off with are willing to give Lenin the benefit of the doubt but increasingly during 1918 start to mount attacks on the Bolsheviks, establishing rival Governments

Question 19

Date of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Answer 19

March 3, 1918

Question 20

Challenge of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Answer 20

Lenin needed to fulfil his promise to withdraw from WWI

Question 21

Response to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Answer 21

Peace negotiations to withdraw from the war began in December 1917. The German Government however offered fairly harsh terms in exchange for peace. Essentially, they wanted the Soviet Government to pay massive indemnities to make up for all of the damage that Germany has suffered and the Germans will annex (take over and build on) all the territory that they have captured. These negotiations went on for months and Germany impatiently resumed an offensive in February 1918 and captured Ukraine in 5 days. Fearing that the Germans would advance and capture Petrograd, Lenin argued “It is a question of signing the peace terms now or signing the death sentence of the Soviet Government three weeks later.” On March 3, 1918, the representatives of Sovnarkom signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with the Central Powers, making peace with Germany, officially ending its involvement in WWI

Question 22

Outcomes of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Answer 22

• A positive outcome of this is that by signing the Treaty, it saved the Soviet Government from being overthrown and fulfils Lenin’s promise of peace, which helps increase the legitimacy of the Soviet Government, which makes all the workers, Peasants and soldiers increasingly see the Soviet Government as a force for good
• A negative outcome of signing the Treaty is that it has had a profoundly bad impact on the Russian economy. The Germans turned Ukraine into a ‘puppet state’, which meant that Germany had control over its actions. Ukraine previously supplied Russia with 40% of its food and produced 40% of its coal output. Without food and coal imports, the Russian economy was about to collapse. This is why Lenin had to implement the extreme policies of War Communism

Question 23

Years of the Russian Civil War

Answer 23

1918-1920

Question 24

Summary of the Russian Civil War

Answer 24

By mid 1918, the Soviet Government had consolidated its authority in the big cities such as Petrograd and Moscow, but the rest of the Empire was disintegrating. Russia was now thrown into a Civil War.The supporters of the Soviet Government who sought to defend the Socialist Revolution were called ‘The Reds’ whilst the opponents of the Soviet Government who wanted to restore the old Regime were called ‘The Whites.’ The White Armies were a loose Coalition of anti-Bolshevik forces who were united by their hatred of Socialism and the Revolution and their desire to restore the old Regime. The leaders of the White Armies are all old Tsarist Generals. The Whites were supported by the Foreign Interventions such as the UK, France and the USA. They provided guns, ammunition and warships to the White Armies. The Soviet Government only controlled Central Russia and was victorious by the end of the Civil War

Question 25

Challenge of Leon Trotsky and the Red Army

Answer 25

In January, the Red Army was created. However, by mid-1918, Sovnarkom was confronted by well-organised White Armiesand were completely ineffective in the early battles against them. In March 1918, Lenin appoints Leon Trotsky as the People’s Commissar of War and puts him in charge with building up an effective Army

Question 26

Response to Leon Tritsky and the Red Army

Answer 26

Trotsky modelled the Red Army on the old Imperial Army. In June 1918, mass conscription was introduced and by December 1919, 3 million Peasant soldiers were recruited into the Red Army. Trotsky also conscripted Tsarist Army Officers and ensured that they were loyal by pairing them up with Bolshevik ‘Political Commissars’, who were empowered to shoot them if they betrayed the Soviet Government. The death penalty was reintroduced after it was banned in 1917 and soldiers who deserted or who were convicted of cowardness could be shot. Trotsky also made extensive use of propaganda and also motivated the Peasants by telling them that if the Whites win, they will take their land whereas he expressed to them that they were the ones who gave the land to them. He preached the same kind of thing to the workers as they gave them the 8-hour work day whereas ten Whites will take it away

Question 27

Outcome of Trotsky and the Red Army

Answer 27

Trotsky was very successful in transforming ten Red Army into an effective fighting force. By 1919, the Red Army outnumbered the Whites 2-1 in all major battles as they were better supplied with ammunition, machine guns and artillery. Red Army soldiers also had equal or superior disciplines as the White Armies in combat

Question 28

Years of the Polish-Soviet War

Answer 28

1919-1921

Question 29

Challenges during the Polish-Soviet War

Answer 29

• In February 1919, the newly created Polish Republic invaded Russia and captured Kiev and Minsk, tried to liberate all the territory that was inhabited by ethnic Poles and wants to secure a defensible eastern boarder for Poland
• At the start, it was purely a defensive war and Poland was a low priority for the Soviets. Once they defeat the Whites in 1920, Lenin becomes convinced that the Polish invasion is actually an opportunity for him to launch a counter-offensive, send the Red Army to invade Poland so he can begin liberating Europe from Capitalism and inspire the Revolution. Lenin orders the invasion of Poland by 2 field Armies

Question 30

Response to the Polish-Soviet War

Answer 30

Lenin underestimated the power of Polish Nationalism as a motive for the Polish forces. The Polish Army crushed the Red Army at the Battle of Warsaw in August 1920. The Red Army suffered 110,000 casualties, compared to the 36,000 casualties that the Polish suffered

Question 31

Outcome of the Polish-Soviet War

Answer 31

Lenin ordered peace negotiations and signed the Treaty of Riga on March 18, 1921, which recognised Polish independence. Later Treaties affirmed the independence of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. Lenin abandoned his plan to export Communism to Europe and instead focused on consolidating the Revolution within Russia

Question 32

Date of the Formation of the Red Terror

Answer 32

September 5, 1918

Question 33

Challenge Surrounding the Formation of the Red Terror

Answer 33

In mid-1918, the Bolshevik’s were faced by growing political opposition within their own territory, mostly from the SR’s. The right SR’s established the rival Komuch Government in Samara in June 1918 and the Left SR’s attempted a Coup d’ état in Moscow in July 1918, which fell apart in 48 hours. SR member Fania Kaptan attempted to assassinate Lenin in August 1918. Lenin got shot at twice by which two shots hit him. He survives the shooting but Sovnarkom is now convinced that they are surrounded by enemies. These events prove the SR’s as major threats

Question 34

Response of the Frmation of the Red Terror

Answer 34

While the Red Army is fighting externally, Sovnarkom issued the Decree on Red Terror instructing the Cheka to fight the internal enemies. This Decree ultimately gave the Cheka unlimited power. Cheka agents could arrest anybody without any evidence, could execute anybody without a trial if that person was deemed to be an immediate threat and could put people into concentration camps if prison cells were full

Question 35

Outcome of the Formation of the Red Terror

Answer 35

There was a 3-year campaign of terror full of random political violence that was intended to terrorise the population into submission. 140,000 Counter-Revolutionaries were executed by the Cheka between 1918 and 1921. Additionally, at any given time, 50,000 prisoners are interned in 84 different concentration camps. The Cheka’s ‘fighting division’ expanded to 250,000 men and became a Gendarmerie (armed police force), which was equivalent to the Tsarist Cossacks. Rebellious regions were put under Martial Law, which forced them to collect food for Peasants

Question 36

Years of War Communism

Answer 36

1918-1921

Question 37

Challenge of War Communism and Agriculture

Answer 37

In mid-1918, extreme economic measures were adopted. In the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Russia ceded control of Ukraine, which saw food supply decline by 40%. This caused difficulties in feeding the industrial workers and the Red Army soldiers

Question 38

Response of War Communism and Agriculture

Answer 38

In May 1918. Lenin passed the Decree on Food Supply which declared that all ‘surplus’ grain would now be requisitioned by the People’s Commissariat of Food. The Government sent requisitioning parties out to go and seize it by force; however the parties stole grain reserves and seed grain as they were only hungry volunteer workers. Peasants were unhappy that their food got stolen so they hid the grain and murdered 15,000 Government requisitioning agents. Lenin blamed the Kulaks (rich Peasants) for the resistance and ordered the creation of armed Food Battalions to terrorise the Kulaks into handing over grain

Question 39

Outcomes of War Communism and Agriculture

Answer 39

• A positive outcome of this is that it helped and feed the Red Army and at least minimal food in the cities, feeding the factory workers who supplied the Army with the essentials they needed, ultimately helping them achieve victory in the Civil War
• Grain requisitioning deprived the Peasants of their grain reserves. This was proved to be detrimental because when there was the drought in Volga in 1921, crop failures occurred, which led to 5 million people starving to death as they had no grain reserves to rely on as backup food to eat
• The grain requisitioning alienated the Peasantry which triggered the outbreak of 50 Peasant rebellions in 1921 as they did no longer see this as it being good for the Revolution

Question 40

Challenges of War Communism and the Industry

Answer 40

• Lenin was faced with declining industrial productivity, as the workers were not working hard enough as they all voted to give themselves pay rises and to do less work. This made it difficult to meet the needs of the Red Army in the Civil War
• Due to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Russia ceded control of Ukraine to Germany, causing a 90% drop in Russia’s coal supply. Sovnarkom now needed a way to prioritise the scarce fuel supplies that were running Russian factories, most importantly the War production factories

Question 41

Responses to War Communism and the Industry

Answer 41

• Lenin issued the Decree on Nationalism of Industry (June 1918) and declared that all factories in Russia are now Government production so Sovnarkom could prioritise War production. Those factories that were considered not essential were shut down and those that were considered as essential were militarised and the workers were treated like they were in the Army and very strict rules were imposed on them
• In November 1918, the Decree on Abolition of Private Trade was introduced, which outlawed buying and selling food, clothing and anything else. This also meant that workers were now paid with rations

Question 42

Outcomes to War Communism and the Industry

Answer 42

• The Sovnarkom now has total control of Russian industry, which was the world’s first Government run economy
• This had a profoundly negative effect as it alienated Russian workers, which increased worker discontent as they did not receive enough food with the ration system and only got 50% of their nutritional needs. Workers turned to the black market to find enough food to survive, and ¾ of factories were affected by strikes as workers demanded better rations

Question 43

Date of the the Kronstadt Uprising

Answer 43

March 1921

Question 44

Chalenge of the the Kronstadt Uprising

Answer 44

By 1921, discontent with the Bolshevik Party had bubbled to the surface. Lenin and the Bolsheviks had overcome the threats of the White Armies and rival Socialist Parties. However, their own supporters are turning against them. Discontent with the policies of the Red Terror and War Communism led to 17,000 sailors of the Kronstadt Naval Base mutinied. They issued a Manifesto on March 1, 1921 which demanded political, social and economic reforms

Question 45

Response of the the Kronstadt Uprising

Answer 45

Lenin could not afford for this to happen so he ordered Leon Trotsky to crush the mutinies and on the nights of March 16 and 17, 1921, 50,000 Red Army soldiers stormed across the ice in the Gulf of Finland and crushed the mutineers. Half of the mutineers fled to Finland and the other half were either shot or deported to concentration camps by the Cheka

Question 46

Outcomes of the Kronstadt Uprising

Answer 46

• This reinforces the message that War Communism is not working and the aggressive attempts to impose a Government controlled economy had alienated the workers and Peasants and destroyed the economy. Lenin realised that he needed to take a step back to Capitalism and the measures of the New Economic Policy (NEP) helped ensure that this would not be repeated
• With the crushing of the mutiny, Lenin sent a powerful message that challenges to Bolshevik rule will not be tolerated

Question 47

Years of Alexandra Kollontai and the Workers’ Opposition

Answer 47

1920-1921

Question 48

Challenges facing Alexandra Kollontai and the Workers’ Opposition

Answer 48

Alexandra was originally the People’s Commissar for Social Welfare, which meant she was one of Lenin’s Government Ministers. She becomes disenchanted with Lenin as the result of the Red Terror and War Communism. She believes that he perverted the ideas of the Revolution. She demanded political, social and economic reforms

Question 49

Response of Alexandra Kollontai and the Workers’ Opposition

Answer 49

In the lead up to the 10th Party Congress in March 1921, she began writing anti-Lenin pamphlets, which encouraged people to vote for change within the Party. At the 10th Party Congress, Lenin crushed all descent and convinced the Party to vote for the Resolution on Unity which banned Factionalism that would weaken the Party and open it up to counter-revolution. This was followed by a ‘Purge’ and over the following year, ⅓ of the members of the Bolshevik Party were kicked out for disloyalty

Question 50

Outcome of Alexandra Kollontai and the Workers’ Opposition

Answer 50

Lenin secured the authority of the Central Committee and the Politburo and silenced dissent within the Bolshevik Party. Purges became a permanent feature of the Soviet system, as low-ranking Party Members were kept obedient by their fear of disobeying the high-ranking Party Members and losing their privileges. This contributed to the rise of Joseph Stalin and the establishment of his dictatorship in 1927

Question 51

Date of the New Economic Policy (NEP)

Answer 51

March 1921-1927

Question 52

Challenge of the New Economic Policy (NEP)

Answer 52

This was introduced at the 10th Party Congress in 1921. It was a recognition of the fact that War Communism is unpopular as it caused strikes, the Kronstadt Uprising, Peasant rebellions and it had been economically destructive. It also realised that War Communism caused 5 million deaths due to famine in 1921, a 75% decline in industrial output between 1917-1921 and undermined the support for the Soviet Government

Question 53

Response of the New Economic Policy (NEP)

Answer 53

Lenin convinces the Bolsheviks to abandon War Communism and to introduce the New Economic Policy (NEP) which is essentially a return to State Capitalism, however the Government will regulate the economy. Grain requisitioning was ended and Peasants were instead required to pay a 10% tax in kind of their harvests. They were also encouraged to grow extra grain and sell it on the free market for money. The rationing system was also abandoned and workers were instead paid in money. Bourgeois ‘specialists’ were appointed to manage factories. Cash bonuses and piece rates were paid to encourage high productivity instead of assuming that all workers should be paid the same

Question 54

Economic Outcome of the New Economic Policy

Answer 54

The New Economic Policy was successful in restarting the Russian economy. By the time of Lenin’s death in 1924, agricultural and industrial production had almost reached pre-WWI levels. By the time the New Economic Policy ended in 1927, the Russian economy grew beyond where it was before the War and the Revolution

Question 55

Ideological Outcome of the New Economic Policy (NEP)

Answer 55

However, the New Economic Policy was resented by many Bolsheviks and their supporters as they felt that it was a reversion to Capitalism and it had abandoned their Socialist ideals of the Revolution