The Russian Revolution of 1917 consisted of two revolutions, first in February, which overthrew the imperial Tsarist Government. The second one, in October, between the Reds and the Whites, which placed the Reds (Bolsheviks) in power. As result, Russia was removed from the war and its traditional monarchy was replaced to turn it into the Union of Soviet Socialists Republics. The Whites’ weakness and lack of cohesiveness was a key reason for the Reds winning the Russian Civil War, but it was the leadership of the Bolsheviks under Lenin and Trotsky that ultimately brought the Red’s victory.
The White Army appeared to have a number of advantages in the Civil War, such as having control over huge areas of Russia and having experienced military
…show more content…
One of their tactics was to systematically eliminate all political parties and to arrest their leaders, replacing the Constituent Assembly by a one-party state that operated through a hierarchy of soviets, all under Bolshevik control, this happened as a result of the Constituent Assembly being organized by the Provisional Government to draw up a constitution for Russia. However, when it was elected, the majority of delegates happened to be Social Revolutionaries. Therefore, the Bolsheviks, fearing opposition of their plans, closed the …show more content…
Other examples included public gestures such as Lenin’s famous order to the Penza Cheka to hang at least a hundred men, saying “and make sure that the hanging takes place in full view of the people.” Therefore, creating a law based on
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 Bolshevik October Revolution brought Vladimir Lenin to power. Lenin’s vow to end the war and open negotiations with the Germans provoked the Allies and led to the detachment of a military excursion to oppose the newly established government and aid rebels who had begun a civil war to oust the Bolsheviks.
the fact that they held the central heartland of Russia, which included Petrograd and Moscow. Provided a upper hand to the reds as it gave them human resources, control of the industrial heartland, control of a vast amount of inherited war materials and control of the railways. The Bolsheviks held territory that contained some 70 million people, compared to around 20 million in white controlled areas. This therefore meant that the reds had more manpower this can be seen through major battles between reds and whites as the red army invariably had a huge numerical advantage over its opponents. Also all resources that remained from Russians participation in the first world war fell into Bolshevik hands this includes arsenal of the old tsarist army an estimate suggests 2.5 million rifles. However the Bolsheviks didn’t heavily rely on these resources as Russia’s engineering and armaments factories were located in sovdepia and this gave them capacity to manufacture new weapons. This acted as an advantage to the reds as they were well equipped evidence of this is seen through the white army’s defeat in Crimea in and by December 1919
Therefore, morale in Russia was not a reason why there was an outbreak of revolution in 1917. Nevertheless, the few military successes could not make up for the shocking casualty list revealed later on in wartime. Also, when the economic and military problems arose they could have been tolerable for the general public if they were encouraged by the people at the top such as the Tsar but no leadership was shown. Though this was a problem in Russia the morale in Russia was not too bad although people did begin to focus more on taking care of themselves because of the effects of the war on everyday life. On the other hand, the fact that central leadership was not being provided to the Russian public, criticisms began to be pointed directly at the Tsar. Nicholas failed in being commander-in-chief of the Russian armed services. He did not encourage war effort and did not prove to be the appropriate representative for the Russian people. In addition, the fact that he took on this important role meant that he was responsible for the wars consequences and the survival of Tsardom depended on military success. Due to the lack of success, Nicholas II was blamed and not his generals. This was a reason for the revolution in February 1917 to happen as it appeared to the citizens of Russia that they did not have a strong leader, also the tsarist system’s claim to the loyalty of the Russian people had been forfeited thus
In 1917, the Bolsheviks managed to take complete power over Russia. A multitude of events lead to the overrun of Russia. These events include Russia’s failure in World War I, The weakness of Tsar Nicholas II and The failure of the duma. These events were significant because it gave the Bolsheviks the upper hand in attempting to overrun the Russian empire.
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.
With the October revolution in 1917, Lenin managed to execute a successful coup d’état against the provisional government of Russia and with the death of the constituent assembly early 1918; Lenin and his Bolsheviks had finally control over Russia. However this was just the beginning of various problems he would be facing. This raised the debate on whether Lenin could deal with these problems or not. Many of the quarrels originated from the Tsar’s regime and the provisional government such as Russia’s participation in WW1 as well as economic underdevelopment. Immediate problems such as the raging civil war existed as
Upon the creation of the USSR, Lenin introduced new rule that would ensure greater totalitarian control. Only communists would be able to stand for the soviets, and so this meant that the communist party had the true control over the
tried to create a western style society. Nevertheless, this government led by Alexander Kerensky lasted for only seven months, by which at the end Lenin and the communist Bolsheviks seized power over Russia. When the peasants claimed land from the government the government refused which made the Bolsheviks extremely mad making them riot against the government. The Provisional Government lost to the
This is a picture of Bolshevik forces of the red army during the Russian Civil War. The war was between the Red Army, fighting for the Bolsheviks and the White Army, fighting for anticommunism. Allied forces and even German armies intervened in the war. The war lasted from 1918-1920 in Russia, Siberia, and Ukraine. However, despite help from the allied forces, the White Army was defeated in
In 1917 the Russian revolution had began, this was the biggest factor in the fall of the Romanov dynasty. The white Russians arrested the tsarist and abdicated him from his throne putting Nicholas and his family on house arrest and he was no longer known as the Tsar, replacing him with a Bolshevik government. The red Russians had captured Nicholas and his family causing a civil war between the white and red Russians. In July 1918 Lenin and his red Russian squad had won the civil war, and shot Nicholas and his family, leaving Russia a communist country until the 1990’s.
The Russian Revolutions of 1917 There were two revolutions that occurred in Russia in 1917. The first one, in February, overthrew the Russian monarchy. The second one, in October, created the world’s first Communist state. The Russian revolutions of 1917 involved a series of uprisings by workers and peasants throughout the country and by soldiers, who were predominantly of peasant origin, in the Russian army.
Ten years in exile had not swayed Lenin?s determination to create and direct a powerful revolution. Lenin returned to Russia from exclusion in February 1917, believing that the time was ripe to seize power. The Russian economy was in ruin after the army was nearly defeated and the people exhausted as a result of the First World War. The country was in an unstable state, suitable for a revolution (Levinthal 119). Around October 20, Lenin, in disguise and at considerable personal risk, slipped into Petrograd and attended a secret meeting of the Bolshevik Central Committee held on the evening of October 23. Not until after a heated 10-hour debate did he finally win a majority in favour of preparing an armed takeover. Now steps to enlist the support of soldiers and sailors and to train the Red Guards, the Bolshevik-led workers' militia, for an armed takeover proceeded openly under the guise of self-defense of the Petrograd Soviet. Even at great personal risk, Lenin was adamant in spurring a successful revolution.
The Success of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia in October 1917 The Bolshevik seizure of power or coup de’tat of October 25th, 1917 was a culmination of both internal and external failure to satisfy the needs of an oppressed Russian society. In contrast to the spontaneous revolts earlier in 1917, the Bolshevik revolution was ‘a carefully planned plot carried out by ‘professional’ revolutionaries. ’[1] The victory of the Marxist Lenin’s
In 1905 and 1917 Russia was tormented by chaotic revolutions. The workers and the intelligentsia had arrived at the point of hating the autocracy because they could no longer endure the suffering, hunger and repression that the tsarist policies brought with them. Years later Lenin referred to the revolution of 1905 as a “dress rehearsal for the October Revolution” of 1917. In 1905 tsardom nearly fell. Nicholas II succeeded in remaining in power, stabilizing the situation, only thanks to various concessions. However, his continuing to rule harshly and unwisely brought him to be forced to abdicate in the February of 1917, signing the end of the Russian monarchy.