The Russian Civil War 1918-20

• Anger at the concessions of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk of March 1918 merged with the existing political opposition to create a force of Whites.
• Russia's previous wartime allies, Britain, France and the USA, gave support to the Whites.

  • ideological - as capitalist nations they opposed the doctrine of communism 
  • The desire to force Russia back into the fight against Germany in the First World War
  • Defend their own interests in Russia (since the Bolsheviks refused to pay back money borrowed in tsarist times and nationalised foreign-owned industries)
• In the spring of 1918, an anti-Bolshevik Volunteer Army had been created in the south of the country, partly financed by Germany. In anticipation of the growing threat, the Bolsheviks moved their capital from Petrograd to Moscow in March 1918.
• By the end of 1920, thanks mainly to the Bolsheviks' geographical advantages and superior organissation, most of Russia was in Communist hands.
• The war did continue to 1921 but it was more of a nationalistic struggle against Polish armies. The Poles defeated the Red army which led to the Treaty of Riga, giving Poland independence. Led to conroversy in the Bolshevik party.