R2

• Successful in consolidating power

  The 1918 Constitution.

  Sovnarkom.

  Decrees - Removal of opposition.

  Support from workers and peasants.
• Unsuccessful in consolidating power

  Undemocratic removal of the Constituent Assembly Jan 1918.

  Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

  Tensions between Lenin and Trotsky.
• To what extent was Russia a democracy by July 1918?

  partial extent.

  Proletariat received the vote (5-1 vs peasants).

  Sovnarkom officials were elected (however, by the Congress).

  Constituent Assembly held 5th of January.

  C.A removed.

  Sovnarkom made of bolsheviks.

  Bourgeoisie lost right to vote In July 1918.

  Decree on Press October 1917.
• How significant was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in creating tension between individuals in the Bolsheviks Party?

  Significant - Lenin and Trotsky disagreed about ending involvement in WW1. Created a divide: Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin, Zinoviev vs Bukharin, Dzerzhinsky.

  Other factors - Personal ambitions of individuals. Mem ers didn’t agree with military seizure of power (Oct/Nov Rev)
• Who benefitted from the One-Party state?

  Benefit - Proletariat, Bolsheviks, Peasants, Military.

  Didn‘t Benefit - Clergy, Bourgeoisie, Other political parties, especially left-wing SRs.
• Timeline

  24th October - 5th November 1917 = October revolution and consolidation of authority.

  January 1918 - Constituent Assembly, Decree on workers control of railways, creation of red army, separation of Church and State.

  Feb 1918 - Decree on naturalisation of industry.
• Timeline

  March 1918 - Treaty of Brest-litovsk, Bolsheviks become the communist party with capital in Moscow.

  July 1918 - Constitution of Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic adopted.
• Establishing One-Party Control

  ‘Democracy‘ was an alien concept to Lenin.

  He was convinced that the establishment of a ‘dictatorship of the proletariat’ would require the active repression of ‘counter-revolutionary‘ elements.

  He believed that the Bolsheviks were acting in the interests of the working class and this was all the authority he needed.
• Removal of Constituent Assembly

  Votes occurred November 1917.

  SRs got 53% while Bolsheviks got 24%.

  Met on 5th of January 1918. Victor Chernov chaired it.

  Forcibly closed on the same day.
• Consolidation of Bolshevik

  Made increasingly difficult for groups such as Mensheviks and SRs to exist at all.

  Decree on Press from October 1917 curbed their ability to publish their own newspapers.

  Bourgeoisie lost their right to vote on July 1918.

  Eventually in 1921 all other political parties were banned.
• Military Consolidation - Ending involvement in WW1

  Different opinions - Lenin was convinced that revolution would soon engulf Germany. Trotsky was appalled at the idea of accepting a truce that would involve harsh terms. Lenin knew the Russian army could not stop the Germans.
• Trotsky

  Trotsky had negotiated an armistice with the Germans at the beginning of December 1917.

  Trotsky dragged things out.
• Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (1)

  Lenin called it a ‘robber peace’ but argued that Russia had to accept. He threatened to resign twice before he eventually got his way and the Treaty was agreed.
• Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

  Due to this left-wing SRs walked out of Sovnarkom in protest at the Treaty.

  March 1918 Bolsheviks formally adopted the title of ‘Communist Party’
• Consolidation of the Once-Party State

  Red Army formed.

  Capital transferred to Moscow.

  Church and State separated.

  Separation decree removed Churches judicial powers, right to own property, many assets were seized.

  Religious printing presses were closed.

  Russia moved to the Gregorian calendar February 1918.

  Decrees nationalised industry, abolished land ownership.

  Land given to those who wish to cultivate it for the benefit of the community.
• 1918 Constitution (1)

  Oversee the transitions to a socialist society.

  Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic.

  Stated the supreme power rested with the All-Russian Congress of Soviets, made up of deputies from elected local Soviets across Russia.
• 1918 Constitution (2)

  Looked eminently democratic. But had its limitations.
• Limitations of the 1918 Constitution

  Bourgeoisie were excluded from voting.

  Workers vote weighted in the proportion of 5-1 against peasants.

  Sovnarkom was officially appointed, chosen by Central Committee.

  Sovnarkom consisted solely of Bolsheviks.

  Congress met at intervals. Authority remained with Sovnarkom.

  Structure was centralised, real focus of power was the party
• 1918 Constitution (3)

  — Established the principle of “he who does not work shall not eat”. This was a serious threat when the population largely depended on ration cards for food.

  — The constitution welcomed the non-Russian nationalities. This was a sensitive issue as many people amongst these national groups who did not want to be part of a Russian-controlled state.

  — The extent to which they should be forced to join this new organisation was to become a source of friction amongst the leading Bolsheviks themselves.
• Formation of the Whites

  — Many of these individuals and groups had very little in common, except for their hatred and fear of the Bolsheviks.

  — Leadership was taken over by former Tsarist army officers - Denikin, Kolchak, Wrangel and Yudenich.
• Formation of the Whites.

  Reasons for opposing the Bolsheviks. (1)

  — Bolsheviks had gone back on their promise to give “all power to the Soviets”.

  — Bolshevik ideology alienated the Mensheviks, they were continually pushed out of any discussions.

  — Many wanted a return to the old Tsarist regime.

  — The Social Revolutionaries had been ignored in the short lived Constituent Assembly which went against the wishes of the electorate.
• Formation of the Whites.

  Reasons for opposing the Bolsheviks. (2)

  — Army officers objected to the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

  — The Social Revolutionaries in Sovnarkom were expelled by Lenin after they opposed the Treat of Brest-Litovsk.

  — The Bolsheviks had seized power by force in Petrograd and Moscow. It could be legitimately claimed that they had no right to rule Russia.

  — Russians who owned land, money or businesses stood to lose everything from Bolshevik economic and social policies.
• The Greens

  — Russian fighters who had no affiliation to either the Reds or Whites.

  — Included Ukrainians and Georgians who wanted independence from Russia, and peasants who fought to keep both Reds and Whites out of their areas.
• Course of the Civil War. (Czech Legion)

  — Czech legion, army group, were given permission to travel through Siberia to fight against enemies.

  — Bolshevik officials tried to arrest some of them and fighting broke out.

  — Czech Legion seized the railway line, joined forces with anti-Bolshevik groups and began to advance towards Moscow.
• Two main stages of the Civil War.

  1918 - 1920 — Bolsheviks held the area around Moscow and were attacked on different sides by the Whites.

  1920 - 1921 — A nationalist conflict against the Polish armies that had invaded western Ukraine. Reds were able to drive the Poles back and the Treaty of Riga was signed.
• Timeline of the Civil War 1918 (1)

  April - May — Bolshevik tried to arrest Czech soldiers travelling across Russia on the Trans-Siberian railway. They seized parts of railway. Joined the whites, Began advancing to Moscow.

  July — Ex-Tsar Nicholas II and the Romanov family were executed where they had been under house arrest since March 1917.
• Timeline of the Civil War 1918 (2)

  August — Denikin and Kolchak’s White armies made rapid advances. Denikin‘s forces attacked from south-west, Kolchak from east.

  November — Kolchak declares himself ‘Supreme Ruler’ of Russia. Red counter-attacks prevented Denikin and Kolchak from linking up.
• Timeline of the Civil War 1919

  October — Denikin‘s army advances to within 200 miles of Moscow. Red counter attack forced Denikin to move south towards the Crimea. Yudenich’s army advance to the outskirts of Petrograd, Reds were able to hold them back due to there only being around 15000 men.
• Timeline of the Civil War 1920 (1)

  February — Kolchak who had been in retreat for almost a year was captured and handed over to the Bolsheviks. Executed by shooting.

  March — White armies continued to retreat. Denikin’s army is evacuated to the Crimea.
• Timeline of the Civil War 1920 (2)

  May — New Russo-Polish war began which distracted the Reds.

  October — Wrangel took over from Denikin in the Crimea. His army are defeated by Makhno’s Green peasant army and evacuated by British and French ships. Reds defeat the Whites and establish control but continue fighting against the Poles until 1921.
• Timeline of the Civil War 1921

  March — Treaty of Riga is signed granting independence to Poland.
• Role of Trotsky

  — Already proven his value to the Bolshevik cause through his crucial role in organising the Bolshevik operations.

  — Role as a speaker and as a theorist was unquestioned.

  — Although he did not have a military background, he proved himself a skilful organiser and propagandist.

  — Lenin gave Trotsky a free hand to mould the Red Army into an effective fighting force of over 3 million men.
• Role of Trotsky (2)

  — Directed the war from a special train which covered over 65000 miles.

  — Travelled with an elite force.

  — Ensured that the Red Army was well fed and well-armed.

  — Trotsky could inspire and boost the morale of troops and other Bolshevik leaders who were not as convinced as he was that the Reds could win.

  — No leader amongst the whites to match his effectiveness.
• Role of Trotsky (3)

  — Prepared to use whatever methods necessary.

  — Recruited 50,000 former Tsarist army leaders for their experience and used them to train new recruits.

  — Appointed political commissars to army units. These were committed Party loyalists who could be relied upon to obey orders.
• Role of Trotsky (4)

  — Discipline was harsh.

  — Any sign of disloyalty or desertion was punishable by death.

  — Summary executions were carried out in order to discourage any wavered in the ranks.

  — Cheka were used to execute deserters.
• Role of Trotsky (5)

  — Trotsky made the Red Army a professional force, reintroducing traditional ranks and practices.

  — When necessary, to build up numbers, conscription was introduced in some areas.

  — The Red Army, just like the Whites, indulged in brutal atrocities, including torture and massacres.

  — Civilians in occupied areas were often badly treated in order to encourage the rest of the population to keep in line.
• Government and Control during the Russian Civil War.

  Moscow Becomes the Capital City 


  — Centralisation of power was established early in the Civil War.

  — This was partly due to the fact that Petrograd was closer to Russia’s western frontier and more vulnerable to attack than Moscow.

  — Symbolic change from a city that had been built to open up Russia to the western world to a regime which believed itself superior to that world.

  — From Moscow a military style of government evolved.
• Government and Control during the Russian Civil War.

  Growth of Bureaucracy 


  — Over half a million Party members fought for the Red Army.

  — They became used to obeying orders and acting with whatever force was deemed necessary.

  — Government bureaucracy grew to the point where officials outnumbered workers by two to one.

  — Sometimes suggested that the extension of government control created a ‘dictatorship of the bureaucracy’.
• Government and Control during the Russian Civil War.

  Creation of the Politburo


  — 1919, another body was created, this became the real centre for party policy.

  — Known as Politburo, it’s first elected members included Lenin, Stalin and Trotsky.

  — Since the Politburo members were also key government officials, this Politburo assumed increasing control over state affairs.

  — Sovnarkom gradually met less frequently during the 1920s.
• Government and Control during the Russian Civil War.

  Creation of the Soviet Union


  — Areas conquered, as a result of the Civil War, by the Red Army were either absorbed into the ‘Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic’ (name given to the Bolshevik state in July 1918) Or allowed to remain as separate republics.

  — Stalin wanted them directly controlled by Moscow, but Lenin favoured a federation of Soviet republics and he won.

  — At the end of 1922, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was formally established.