Bolshevik Consolidation of Power

Lenin was able to consolidate Bolshevik rule in Russia by combining popular policies and repression: To what extent do you agree with this statement.

From the initial seizure of power in 1917 until 1924, the Bolsheviks were confronted with a series of crises that threatened their ability to control and govern in Russia. The response and resolutions to these crises included Initial Reforms, Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Civil War, Red terror, War Communism and the NEP. Under the leadership of Lenin, the execution of these responses were made possible and the Bolsheviks were able to maintain and expand their power. The Civil War however was the direct consequence of the Bolshevik’s actions as they tried to maintain their grasp on power. The victory in the Civil War was extremely pivotal for the Bolshevik consolidation of power as it brought control and power but more importantly it eliminated

The Marxists in Russia divided into two different political parties: The Mensheviks and Bolsheviks. Lenin led the Bolsheviks, they believed that the only way Russia would prevail was if it where to be governed by a small elite core of revolutionaries. February of 1917, workers gave protesting another try and actually had the soldiers side with them. The Tsar finally admitted defeat and stepped down from the throne and a provisional government was put into place. The leader of the provisional government was Andrew Kerensky, and when he decided to continue fighting World War I many soldiers deserted him and everyone turned to the Bolsheviks. The only political party to be completely against the provisional government as well as World War 1.

The Russian Revolution of 1917 set the country on a course that few other countries took in the 20th century. The shift from the direction of a democratic, parliamentary-style government to a one party communist rule was a drastic change that many did not and could not predict. Looking back on this key moment in Russian history, many historians ask the question ‘why did the political power in Russia shift to the Bolsheviks’? Since the revolution in 1905 Russia was becoming progressively more democratic, distributing power throughout the political sphere. This came to an abrupt halt when Vladimir Lenin was put into power by the Bolshevik takeover of the Provisional Government. Many authors have had different takes on this event. Two particularly interesting ones were Arthur Mendel and John D. Basil. Their pieces On Interpreting the Fate of Imperial Russia and Russia and the Bolshevik Revolution give various perspectives on the Russian Revolution and attempt to answer the question of the power shift. This key point in Russia’s history sets the tone for the next 100 years. Russia became a superpower, an enemy of the United States, started multiple wars directly and indirectly, and started using an economic system used by various countries around the world. Today we still see the effects of the 1917 Revolution. Looking at both Mendel’s and Basil’s attempt to answer why the power shifted to the Bolsheviks. Since both historian 's account of the events is different they cannot

In 1917, the USSR began a revolution. Following World War I Russia realized it was far behind the major powers of the world. Russia was stuck in imperialism while the major powers of the world changed through industrialization. Russia had sustained the greatest losses of World War I to include lives, economy, and land. These essential elements led to a revolution of the laboring force as they sought socialism and industrialization. It began with small riots and led to massive closures of factories while people were starving. The Russian government, in one of the easiest coups in history, stepped aside leading to a socialist reform. Before the year ended, the extreme Bolshevik party seized control of the government. During the next four years, the leader of the Bolshevik party, Vladimir Lenin, set a twenty-five year goal for Russia to industrialize and reach communism. By 1922, Joseph Stalin took control of the government and began a

One of the main reasons that the Bolsheviks gained support in 1917 was due to the fact that Lenin rejected any compromise with the propertied classes, and insisted that the power should be held by the proletariat and the peasants, which was the majority of Russia’s population. Another reason for the Bolshevik’s growing support was because the Mensheviks and Social Revolutionaries continued to support the Provisional Government. The Provisional Government had failed to enact land reforms demanded by the peasantry and had failed to keep the military from falling apart. As previously mentioned, the Bolsheviks had harnessed the revolutionary mood of the workers and garrison soldiers in order to successfully go through with the October Revolution (Connor 1). The Petrograd Soviets and the Red Guards also supported the overthrow of the Provisional Government as they did not feel it represented their interests. This gave even more support to the Bolsheviks as they promised the overthrow of the traditional order. Lenin created the Sovnarkom, which would be the new type of government in Russia, and would replace the Provisional Government (Provisional Government). The Sovnarkom’s initial objectives represented a revolt against tradition. This is because the objectives included land collectivization, where land is taken from the nobles, church, and tsar and given to the peasants, and to empower workers to set up factory committees to take control of factories.

How Lenin and the Bolsheviks Remained in Power Between November 1917 and Lenin's Death in 1924

Despite having other methods of control such as: Lenin’s power and the soviet constitution, the Bolshevik leadership’s main method of control was terror. Although this was the main method of control the Bolshevik leadership only had a certain degree of control over the party that was not great between 1917, when the party seized power to 1924, when the soviet constitution was established. Bolshevik use of terror enabelled the leadership to reinforce their hold over the party. This was due to Cheka; Lenin’s secret police who were formed in 1917. Their role was to deal with counter-revolution, sabotage and speculation.

The Russian Civil War of 1918 was the cumulating of the Russian monarchial government’s slow reformation to institute civil reforms and freedoms for the intelligentsia, the creation and subsequent closing of the Constituent Assembly by the Socialist Revolutionary Party, the embarrassing Treaty of Brest Litovsk, and the Czarist support of the nobility, who were stripped of their land after the Bolsheviks coup. These emotions came to a head when a coalition of multiple Russian political parties joined together to topple the Bolshevik power control, led by Vladimir Lenin. The power that Lenin and the Bolsheviks had held for little more than a year had come under attack. The Bolsheviks were now faced with another war in which the direction of Russia

The Bolshevik triumph Stalin envisaged was a product of dedication and hard work during the February and October revolutions of 1917. Robert Service states in his book, A History of Twentieth-Century Russia, that “the February Revolution had disappointed all Bolsheviks. Against their expectations, the monarchy’s overthrow had not been followed by a ‘provisional revolutionary democratic dictatorship of the proletariat and peasantry’; and the Bolsheviks had failed to gain control over the Petrograd Soviet” (47). This loss forced the Bolshevik faction to work diligently on spreading their ideology to achieve their means, which is the overthrow of the Provisional Government. Several Mensheviks who disliked the current and official leadership party’s

1917-1918, the Russian Revolution emerged centering around two essential events: the February Revolution, in which the Czar was overthrown, and the October Revolution, in which the Bolsheviks took over power resulting in the creation of the world’s first communist country led by Vladimir Lenin. This resulted to the brutal, cruel and bloody Civil War. What was left was an extreme regime that was to rule Russia until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, which also meant the end of communism. Despite the creation of an extreme regime including suppression, forced labor camps, execution of people with different ideologies, bribes etc., the communists had a great goal at first. The Communist Party wanted to achieve social and financial equality in a classless and stateless society in which the fulfillment of human needs including satisfying work and an equal share of benefit derived from labor was essential.

1917-1918, the Russian Revolution emerged centering around two essential events: the February Revolution, in which the Czar was overthrown, and the October Revolution, in which the Bolsheviks took over power resulting in the creation of the world’s first communist country led by Vladimir Lenin. This resulted in the brutal, cruel and bloody Civil War. What was left was an extreme regime that was to rule Russia until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, which also meant the end of communism. Despite the creation of an extreme regime, including suppression, forced labor camps, execution of people with different ideologies, bribes etc., the communists had a great goal at first. The Communist Party wanted to achieve social and financial equality in a classless and stateless society in which the fulfillment of human needs including satisfying work and an equal share of benefit derived from labor was essential.

The Bolsheviks were concerned about their abilitiy to remain in control. This is because the October Revolution (1917) came too late to prevent the elections of the All-Russian Constituent Assembly from going ahead in November as planned. The voting (12-15 November 1917) occurred and the results dismayed the Bolsheviks. Although they had won 175 seats in the assembly, they were outvoted by nearly two to one by the SRs who won 370/707 seats and had the majority with 52%. Lenin was worried about the results and believed that they had no need of an assembly because “to hand over power to the Constituent Assembly would again be to compromise with the malignant bourgeoisie.” With this mentality in mind, Lenin urged the Bolsheviks to dissolve the Constituent Assembly. This occurred on 5 January 1918 when, after a long day of negotiations and disagreements between the Bolsheviks and Left SRs and Mensheviks and Right SRs, the meeting ended at 5am. When the delegates arrived at 5pm for the reconvened session, they found that the Tauride Palace was locked and guarded by Bolshevik troops who presented them with a decree declaring that the Constituent Assembly has been dissolved. The Bolsheviks believed that “the machine gun became for them the principle instrument of political persuasion,” (Richard Pipes) which outlined their motives behind dissolving the assembly. This contributed to formation of the Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic (RSFSR), who formally came into being (19 July 1918), which allowed the Bolsheviks to remain firmly in power. Thus, concluding that the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly allowed the Bolsheviks to establish the RSFSR, which ultimately consolidated their power at that

The Russian economy was already in a critical state at the time of the Revolution but the crisis worsened as World War was replaced by Civil War. In 1917 Lenin introduced ‘War Communism ' which meant that special measures were needed to deal with a national emergency. The period between 1918 and 1921 came to be known as the period of War Communism. Farms and factories were put under state control and private trade was banned. Food was taken for soldiers and industrial workers. Peasants who refused to hand it over to the red Army were shot or sent to labour camps. The Cheka

The Russian Civil War raged from 1918 until the start of 1921. During this time the Bolsheviks faced massive opposition to their rule in the form of the White Armies, led by the former officers of the Tsarist state, and also from intervention by the forces of foreign countries. The Bolsheviks were surrounded, and often outnumbered by their opponents. At times, their situation seemed hopeless. Yet, by the start of 1921, the Bolsheviks had defeated their enemies and gained a complete victory. This victory can be attributed to the party’s aims, leadership, geography, and support.