life under Lenin

• October 24-26th Bolshevik revolution
• problems:

  • peasants want land
  • workers in cities want food
  • war continuing
  • revolutionaries influencing
  • need loyalty of army
• The government promised land reforms but gave no date
• government could not grantee food supplies as Soviets controlled railways
• government promised political reform in attempt to stop revolutionaries; failed to take positive action
• troops in Petrograd in control of Soviet and refused to obey government
• Peasants who were angry with government began to seize land
• workers joined the Bolsheviks
• Bolsheviks and other groups gathered support
• government losing control in Petrograd
• Due to the Kornilov revolt:

  • Bolsheviks seen as heroes
  • popularity increased
  • well armed force
• Lenin escaped to Finland after July days
• November 1917 Russian congress of Soviets due to meet in Petrograd. By seizing power before then the Bolsheviks could claim they were acting in name of the soviets
• Key buildings: power stations, tram and railways stations taken by Bolsheviks. Aurora fired blanks at Winter palace. The Bolsheviks stormed Winter palace 25-26th night october.
• 26th October All-Russian congress of Soviets met and handed power to the Soviet council of people's commissars. Lenin made chairman with Trotsky, Stalin and Rykov included
• all non- Bolshevik papers banned
• land was taken from church and nobility etc to give to peasants
• establish CHEKA
• they create Sovnarkom= new government
• October reforms by Bolsheviks:

  • max 8 hour working day
  • social insurance
  • press banned
  • decree on peace
  • decree on land
• November 1917 reforms:

  • self-determination to everyone in Russian empire
  • abolition of titles and class distinctions
  • workers to control factories
  • abolition of justice system
  • women equal to men and able to own property
• December 1917 reforms:

  • CHEKA
  • banks nationalised
  • democratisation of army
  • marriage and divorce became civil matters; not linked to church
  • church land nationalised
• January 1918 reforms:

  • workers control railways
  • creation of red army
  • church and state seperated
• Febuary 1918 reforms:

  • nationalisation of industry
  • socialisation of land
• 1918 Cheka had 120 employees and by 1921 risen to 143,000
• CHEKA killed 50,000 in 1918
• in the november elections SR's claimed 40.4% of votes and the Bolsheviks 23.2%
• 47 million people voted in November in Russia
• 5th Jan assembly elected SR leader Chenov and 6th Bolshevik sailors prevented is meeting again
• Lenin able to close CA as appeared to be expression of old regime
• Treaty of Brest-Litovsk:

  • lost 62 million people
  • 27% of land
  • 26% railway
  • 74% iron ore and coal reserves
• workers councils replaced with Veshenka under state capitalism- workers could not have a say
• Lenin dissolved the CA
• women declared equal to men
• free and compulsory education until age of 12
• war communism- nationalisation of industry and state monopoly of markets and goods and services
• 90% of all wages paid to workers by the start of 1921 were in kind
• NEP allowed private ownership of small scale industry
• Nepman were responsible for over 60% of retail trade by 1923
• Lenin- workers controlled factories and railways