The Russian Revolutions and the Development of the Soviet State

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The Russian Revolutions and the Development of
the Soviet State
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Aims to understand and explain the two
Revolutions of 1917

• importance
• causes
• nature
• outcomes
• consequences

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Importance the most consequential event of the
20th century (Smith, p. 1)

• Directly affected millions
• offered ideological blueprint for change
• led to destructive civil war
• aroused fears of European conservative elites
• led to military intervention
• led to long-standing isolation of USSR
• split European socialism Europe
• offered new development model

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The Russian Empire 1800/1900
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Causes

• Structural problems
• socio-economic change
• massive discontent
• lack of effective political response to 1905
  revolution
• 1906 Duma weak irrelevant
• growing unpopularity of war
• death
• dislocations
• profound shortages
• growing isolation of the Tsar

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Alliances in the First World War
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Nature February 1917

• coup following street protests and strikes
• forced abdication of tsar
• Provisional Government led by liberals from Duma
• no independent legitimacy (promised elections)
• but early support from Petrograd soviet of workers

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The Petrograd Soviet

• Soviet council that represent workers
• Originally, assembly of delegates (not trustees)
• Installed after uprising of workers and soldiers
  in February
• Executive committee dominated by socialist
  parties
• Lenin returns from exile on April 3
• Bolsheviks become more important over the summer
• Willing and able to use (para-)military force
• Crucial in the events of October

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Karl Marx (1818-1883) Communism

• History Sociology as science (laws)
• Philosopher/Sociologist turned agitator
• Dictatorship of the Proletariat
• Communism as end-point of history
• Classless society, state dying down
• No more conflicts, From each according to his
  ability, to each according to his need
• Capitalism a necessary, transitory stage
• Revolutionary action of the proletariat
• Timing
• Class-consciousness

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Lenin(1870-1924) Communism

• Split of Russian Social Democrats in 1903
  (Bolsheviki the majority)
• Involved in 1905 revolution, fled to Switzerland
  in 1907
• Return in 1917 backed and sponsored by Germany
• No advanced capitalism/class consciousness in
  Russia ? elite party to replace proletariat
• Democratic centralism
• Marxism-Leninism

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Developments February - October

• three main failures
• war
• land reform
• elections
• deteriorating economy
• crumbling army
• conflict with Soviet (dual power)
• growing role of Bolsheviks (Peace, Bread, Freedom)

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October

• first a popular URBAN revolution led by
  Bolsheviks
• charismatic leadership (Lenin, Trotsky)
• Bolshevik majorities in many urban soviets
• spread to countryside with support of Socialist
  Revolutionaries
• consolidated in Russia after Treaty of
  Brest-Litovsk

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Brest-Litovsk

• Signed in March 1918
• Treaty between Russia and the Central Powers
  (Germany, Austria, Turkey, Bulgaria)
• Russia gave up a third of her population, half
  her industry, most of her coal
• In effect, German control over Baltic States,
  Finland, Poland, Ukraine, Belarus
• But these became independent soon afterwards

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October

• first a popular URBAN revolution led by
  Bolsheviks
• charismatic leadership (Lenin, Trotsky)
• Bolshevik majorities in many urban soviets
• spread to countryside with support of Socialist
  Revolutionaries
• consolidated in Russia after Treaty of Brest
  Litovsk
• and by civil war (regained parts of the Ukraine
  and Caucasus)

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Civil war 1917-22

• White Movement loose coaliton of monarchists,
  republicans, liberals etc.
• Terrible losses on both sides
• Initial success for the Whites (supported by
  western forces)
• But Red Army much stronger

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Keys to Victory

• superior organisation and tactics of Red Army
• peasant support for Bolsheviks
• support of nationalities gained with promises of
  independence
• then reconquered by force
• USSR established 1922

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Summary of the 1917 revolutions

• urban revolution
• agrarian revolution
• national revolution
• ideological revolution
• imposed revolution (military conquest)

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Policies

• War Communism (1918-21)
• brutal mobilisation central economic control
• growing popular discontent
• elections to Constituent Assembly ignored
• New Economic Policy (1921-28)
• economic relaxation
• partial restoration of capitalism private
  ownership
• increased political control coercion
• banning of opposition parties and opposition
  within Communist Party

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Emergence of Stalinism (1924-28)

• internal power struggle after Lenins death
  (1924)
• shift of power from government institutions to
  the Communist Party
• used appointments power to recruit support
  (Nomenklatura)
• skillful use of alliances with top leaders
• new ideology for mobilization Socialism in One
  Country

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Characteristics of Stalinism (1928-53)

• repression, based on secret police
• ruthless elimination of opponents through purges
• forced collectivization of peasants and control
  of industrial labour
• new system of centralized bureaucratic planning
  for rapid industrialization
• Forced resettlement of suspicious ethnic groups
• Figures vary wildly, but at least about 4 million
  people killed deliberately at least 6 million
  died from famine

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Characteristics of Stalinism (1928-53)

• party control of bureaucrats
• ideological control through censorship
  education
• personality cult

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Conclusion

• 2 revolutions, similar causes
• urban, agrarian, national, ideological, military
  aspects to October revolution
• profound outcome on nature of Soviet politics
• national and international consequences