1917-1921 - Impact on National Minorities

• Lenin's promise of self-determination was fulfilled by his Decree on Nationalities in November 1917 due to the weakness of Bolshevik power in these areas.
• Several areas wanted full independence from Russian control, including Finland, Ukraine and Georgia.
• As a Georgian himself, Stalin seemed a natural choice to become Commissar for Nationalities in the new Bolshevik government.
• The Civil War complicated the situation as it provided a further opportunity for the national minorities to gain greater self-government.
• Finland and the Baltic States gained independence in the Civil War which lasted until World War Two during which the USSR only regained the Baltic States back.
• Georgia was under the control of the Mensheviks during the Civil War and also seemed likely to declare independence.
• Stalin's heavy-handed methods to keep control of Georgia shocked Lenin but ultimately, alongside other important areas such as Ukraine, it remained under Russian Communist control.