Evaluate the role of Leon Trotsky in Bolshevik success in the period 1917-1924.

The red terror started, as a result form an assassination attempt on Lenin from Fanni Kaplin in August 1918. From Lenin’s hospital bed he told the Cheka ‘prepare for terror’. There was no government that could argue against the work of the Cheka, they arrested and executed 800 people in St. Petersburg in 1918, the Cheka explained that they were ‘enemies of the state’ ‘enemies of the revolution’. The red terror lasted from September 1918 to October 1918. Lenin supported the Cheka and argued on their behalf. They were also supported by Gregory Zinoviev. War communism is were the Bolsheviks took control over the factories, mines, workshops and railways.The Bolsheviks took over the banks, private trade was not allowed, workers were forced to work in factories. The red army needed supplies to fight against the White army. The Bolsheviks were communists and they wanted to take control of industry and food production in Russia.

As mentioned previously, Lenin won the civil war in 1918. This was crucial for the Bolsheviks to secure their power over Russia. However this did come with a price as well. Lenin essentially came to power through a coup d’état so it was only natural for there to be political opposition, ranging from monarchists to even foreign nations, collectively named the whites. However a

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 power still has to be snatched from the hands of the old rulers and handed over to the revolution. That is the fundamental task. A general strike only creates the necessary preconditions; it is quite inadequate for achieving the task itself”(Trotsky). The ineffectiveness of the strikes can be found in the fact that in nearly every occasion the soldiers were ordered to shoot on the crowd, stopping the revolts and leaving the tsar as obnoxious to the situation as before. Also the peasants in the countryside suffered land-hunger due to the growth of population caused by the decreased of mortality rates. Backwardness was also caused by the “open field system”, which didn’t motivate the peasants to improve their machinery or seeding methods since their land would be taken away from them and redistributed when a member of the community died. Nicholas II was a weak, indecisive and obstinate ruler who, being very conservative and reactionary, used extensively the secret police (“Third Section”) and the army to suppress uprisings and political enemies. He alienated the intelligentsia and angered the liberals with his lack of political participation and exaggerated reliance on the Fundamental laws, which said that the tsar was appointed by god and was rightfully in charge of the country. As a response, the liberals initiated a banquet campaign that started in November 1904, and ended in January 1905 with the aim of making the tsar give

Thirdly, the Tsar had the benefit of controlling the army and the secret police force, the Okhrana. The Tsar was the commander and chief of the Russian army, he had total control of it and they had been loyal to the Tsar for many years (Nicholas I had an input in creating the Okhrana). The army and the Okhrana were used very efficiently by the Tsars. If anybody opposed the Tsar with violent protests or demonstrations, the army would be called in and many of the protesters would be shot and trampled on by horses. As well as removing current threats to the Tsar, the armies input effected possible opponents, as they knew what their own fate would be if they also tried to oppose the ‘Dear father’. The Okhrana was also very effective, it was known for infiltrating opposition groups and dividing them even further. If an opposition group member was caught, they would be exiled to Siberia to die a cold and

The Bolshevik revolution came to prominence because of the Provisional Government’s inability to gain support from the Russian population. ‘The government enjoyed little confidence amongst the masses; and many of its members were largely unknown to the new Russia that had burst upon the political scene.’[3 ] Kerensky himself comments on the problematic circumstances his government experienced, ‘the old (governmental machine) had disappeared; the new was not yet established.’ The support of the peasantry was critical in establishing popular rule, as historian Richard Abraham comments, ‘the largest social class in Russia was still the peasantry.

His organisational capacity was immense and despite his ruthless tactics he transformed the Red Army into an effective fighting force. However other factors did enable Trotsky to carry out his plan effectively. Their geographical location gave them access to munitions and war supplies and also it was due to the fact that the reds maintained full control over the railway lines that they were able to keep themselves supplied and t=denied the whites of that benefit. However without Trotsky taking full advantage of the railways to transport troops and repress the White forces supplies, then success would not have been guaranteed also if the whites weren’t such a weak opponents they could have posed a huge threat to the reds however their lack of coordination and Trotsky input prevented this from happening which lead to the whites winning the civil

Most modern historians agree that the peasants, workers and soldiers played a major part in the revolution and therefore it was the job of the Bolsheviks to capture this power and manipulate and use it for their own ends. This was made much easier as a result of Trotsky’s excellent rhetoric and Victor Serge, in ‘Memoirs of a Revolutionary’ (1945), recalled that ‘Trotsky was all tension and energy […] an orator of unique quality [whose voice] always infused with a truly spontaneous passion. He outshone Lenin through his great oratorical talent, through his organising ability, first with the army, then on the railways, and by his brilliant gifts as a theoretician. ’ Naturally, as a Bolshevik it was easier for Serge to agree with Trotsky and therefore, find his words inspiring and interesting. However, to make special note of his rhetoric suggests an unusually good quality to his work and this is further demonstrated by the number of people he managed to rally around his cause. Wood writes

This essay shall address the issue of how the far the brutality of Bolshevik Regime ensured the maintaining of it’s power between the years of 1917-24. This essay shall explore topics concerning the ‘Dictatorship Of The Proletariat’, The Cheka, War Communism, The Red Terror and other potential reasons for the Bolsheviks remaining in power. This essay shall also explore the various views put forth by various Historians such as Robert Conquest and Richard Pipes.

The Life of Leon Trotsky Leon Trotsky is well recognised as one of the greatest Marxists that ever lived. After being arrested, sentenced to exile twice and supporting the Mensheviks, Trotsky was deported to New York Citywhere he was to be a peaceful, productive member of society. Following the removal of the Tsar during the Russian Revolution, Trotsky returned to Russia in May 1917. In August 1917, Trotsky joined the Central Committee of the Bolshevik party whose leader was none other than Vladimir Lenin.

After examining the reasons for the Bolshevik victory in the Russian Civil War, one can certainly say that it is due to the superior leadership, organization, and support that they achieved victory. Lenin and Trotsky provided the

There are four main topics in which Lenin was able hold on to his power; Trotsky’s organisation

Account For the Success of the Bolsheviks in October 1917 At the beginning of 1917 most of the Bolsheviks were in exile but by the end of 1917 the Bolshevik party had not only consolidated control of Moscow and Petrograd, but they were also advancing on the rest of the country. This success was due to several linked factors; the Bolshevik policy of non-cooperation, weakness of the Provisional Government, division of alternative opposition, Lenin's leadership skills, the power of the Petrograd Soviet and Trotsky as its leader, failure on deliver of land reform and the oppressed, armed workers in Petrograd. Bolshevik success is dictated by whether they met their aims; these included the

The Success of the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 Part 1 Karl Marks was not Russian and he died 34 years before the Russian revolution, he was a German who spent most his life in England. He worked as a journalist but wrote books on history, religion, economics, society, and philosophy. Marx hated the system of capitalism because he thought that it was capitalism that had produced the problems of industry, poor living conditions and the social gap of the rich and poor. He thought that the system destroyed people and made them greedy and that people only wanted something if it was worth money. Karl Marx realised that there was not enough money to make everyone rich but he did thin k the world

Lenin believed that Trotsky was the best suitable to take the Communist party to the next level. Trotsky was not all that popular among party members though and Stalin was in a position as Gen Sek, or General Secretary, to place his people in powerful positions throughout the party. Also, Stalin worked extremely hard at achieving power whereas Trotsky was rather lazy. Because of these reasons along with Stalin's "zero tolerance" attitude towards everyone, he was able to seize control.