The Making of a Totalitarian State

• Russia was still at war with Germany and Austria-Hungary - Germans were only 1000 miles from Pet
• peasants were seizing land across the country
• industrial production slumped, inflation and unemployment rose
• bolsheviks didn't have mass support across the country - mostly just in major cities
• lenin was too vulnerable to cancel elections for constituent assembly - results showed bolsheviks only had support of 1/4 of those who voted - SR's did better

Decrees passed to overcome problems:

• the Decree on Land - redistibuted land to all  peasants
• the Peace Decree - emphasized that bolsheviks wanted to end role in ww1
• the decree that establushed a new government organisation

• sovnarkom = council of peoples Commissars - have most power in bolshevik gov
• Lenin acted as chairman of this group and was overall leader of new gov
• All Russia Congress of Soviets = below the Sovnarkom - dominated mostly by bolsheviks
• at the bottom of the new gov were representatives from cities, villages and local soviets

the purpose of the Sovnarkom:

• designed to allow the Bolsheviks to extend their power and control across Russia - Lenin and leading bolsheviks decided who was included in sovnarkom and therefore what important decisions would be made

• the SR's gained 40.4% of the vote - the bolsheviks gained 24% and were the 2nd largest party

Bolshevik strengths:

• considerable support from northern and western military fronts
• support from military in petrograd and moscow
• support from Baltic fleet and Krontadt sailors
• approx 10 million had voted for them
• opposition parties such as mensheviks and SR's were divided so failed to effectively oppose them
• Lenin formed coalition with left-wing SR's

how it closed down:

• lenin ordered that the constituent assembly must be subservient to the sovnarkom and soviet
• they refused this by a vote of 237 to 137
• lenin then used Red Guards to close them down by force
• hopes of a democracy were ended

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, March 1918

• Lenin wanted to withdraw from the war and secure peace - knowing that this would help secure more support - he also needed the military to secure the power of the bolsheviks, not fight against the Germans

what the Germans demanded: - the Baltic states - inc. latvia, estonia and lithuania - Poland - Ukraine - (important agricultural region This meant that Russia would lose: - 32% of its arrable land - 26% of railway system - 33% of factories - 75% of coal and iron ore mines - 60 millions Russian citizens

the Cheka:

• secret police - established dec 1917 - Felix Dzerzhinsky was head of it originally
• inititally focussed on ending strikes by gov workers
• also used to eliminate political opponents of the bolsheviks and shoot deserters of Red Army
• after failed assassination attempt on Lenin - cheka launched 'Red Terror' - anybody who criticised gov could be arrested - many shot without trial
• also used to check on loyalty of party members - used to spread fear
• Cheka changed name to OGPU, NKVD and KGB

policies enforced:

• peasants continued to seize land and workers took over factories during 1st 6 months of rule
• a Supreme Economic Council to help restore Russia's economy
• nationalisation of the banks
• banning of the Kadet political Party
• establishment of the Red Army
• establishment of revolutionary tribunals to try political enemies
• ending of all foreign and domestic debts

despite these, bolsheviks struggled to exert control over Russia, by end May 1918, Russia was descending into Civil War

• rebellion of Czech Legions on 25th May 1918 signalled start of Civil War
• counter-revolutionary armies were established in Siberia, Estonia and Ukraine
• Lenin forced to make Moscow capital because Whites were threatening petrograd
• Reds = communist forces - Trotsky was head - only occupied 1/5th of Russia
• Whites = communist opponents - led by Admiral Kolchak
• Greens = supporters of economic power being transferred to local groups of peasants

Causes:

• Russia had become a 'one-party state' dominated by Lenin - other parties supported whites and wished to remove communists from power
• others wanted to return to tsarist regime or return of prov gov
• Brits and French wanted Ru to remain in war and not have communist regime - Japan wanted to expand territory
• Brit and France supplied Whites - British occupied Murmansk, French at Odessa and Japan controlled Vladivostock
• Czech Legion created out of Austria-Hungary prisoners who wanted to create their own country - consisted of 40,000 men and opposed Red Army - nationalities also wanted own country
• many opposed Treaty of Brest-Litovsk - left-wing SR's abandoned coalition with communists and opposed Lenin
• bolsh clashed with peasantry - Lenin authorised forcible collection of grain stocks for cities and Red Army
• Lenin increased oppression of peasants - grain prod declined - some peasants supported Greens or Whites

White weaknesses:

• lacked structure and command - including failure to co-ordinate attacks
• too spread out over large area of land
• not supported by many Russians who identified them with tsarist supporters or foreign invaders
• failed to work effectively with Greens

Red Strengths:

• Trotsky used officers that had fought for tsar = experienced leaders
• they controlled railway routes making it easy to transport troops
• successfully defeated all white armies by 1920 and stopped them working together 

War Communism:

• WC describes economic policies that communists introduced during civil war to help victory
• communists controlled industrial centres
• industry was nationalised and factories converted to produce military supplies
• policy of requisitioning grain from peasants to feed army

Red Leadership:

• unified leadership under Lenin
• Trotsky was effective leader - sending reinforcements to pet and stopping General Yudenich from seizing control of pet
• trotsky enforced strict discipline
• used an armoured train to visit and support areas under threat
• lenin used cheka to eliminate political opposition

Foreign Intervention:

• by end of 1919 - Brit, France and USA had left Russia
• they stopped supporting whites after armistice signing to end WWI
• foreign leaders realised whites wouldn't win - Kolchak originally had support from 30,000 foreign troops then got defeated by Reds
• 1919 polish forces invaded Ukraine and caputured Kiev - 1920 Red Army advanced to Polish capital and defeated it - 1921 'Treaty of Riga' signed between Poland and Russia

problems facing Russia in 1921:

• Famine: war communism resulted in peasants hoarding grain which by 1921 resulted in widespready famine and unrest

• opposition from outside the party: rebellions occured e.g. Kronstadt Rebellion 1921 - many of the soldiers were from peasant backgrounds and knew impact of war communism, also they had supported the communists in oct rev, therefore they rebelled when Lenin demanded:
• - end to political domination of communists
• - relaxation of war communism and centralised economic control
• - restoration of freedom of speech and press

• opposition from within the party: many communists thought that the NEP was a betrayal to communism because it allowed peasants to sell some produce for profit - also permitted owners of small factories to sell goods for profit

Repression:

• lenin ordered Trotsky to end Kronstadt rebellion by force - 50,000 Red Army to attacked them - took 3 weeks - thousands were killed or sent to gulags

Economic Reform:

• at 10th party congress Lenin announced end to war communism
• announced intro of the NEP - hoped to strengthen economy and reduce opposition to comms
• peasants could sell some produce for profit but had to pay tax
• private traders called 'nepmen'
• a new currency was introduced 1922

Ban on Factions:

• he didn't want comm party weakened by divisions so banned them from forming groups that weren't controlled by Lenin
• also supported 'democratic centralism' - banned other political parties and decisions made by Lenin and politburo must be supported by all communists

positives:

• food shortages and famine stopped by end of 1921
• 1923 - 85% of companies were owned privately
• cultivated land and livestock increased
• 1926 - economy had returned to production levels of 1913

negatives:

• more crops = fall in agricultural prices = less money for peasants
• industrial goods cost increased to level that peasants couldn't afford
• some comms thought that NEP was leading Russia into capitalism 

• after 1921 - only communist party could field candidates for election to soviets
• all other political parties were banned
• increased propaganda that glorified Lenin and comms
• only comm newspapers could be published e.g. Pravda
• cheka replaced by GPU which remained a political police force
• gulags expanded - 1920 = 84 camps, 1923 = 315 camps
• show trials of leading members of clergy and SR's took place
• universities lost all autonomy

• establied in Dec 1922
• consisted of:
• Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
• Ukrainian Social Republic
• Belorussian Soviet Social Republic
• Transcaucasian Soviet Socialist Republic
• these areas were former Russian empire and the comm party had regained control of them
• many different nationalities lived in the USSR
• lenin believed that the USSR could help overcome ethnic division
• each republic within the USSR had their own gov as part of a federal system
• their individual republics sent representatives to the Congress of Republics
• Congress of Republics + Congress of Soviets = national parliament of USSR
• real political power was still retained in politburo
• after 1922 - Lenin had complete control over the comm party and government

• in 1918 and SR shot him in the neck, he recovered by in 1921 he began to suffer side effects of the attack and reduced his involvement in the gov
• he suffered three strokes in 1922 - he then started to dictate his last testament:
• - he acknowledged that Trotsky was talented by arrogant and failed to create good relationships with leading communists
• - he criticised zin and kam for not initially supporting bolshevik takeover in oct 1917
• - he stated Stalin should be removed from top branches of comm party because he was   'too coarse'
• March 1923 - suffered another stroke which left him speech-impaired - he was no longer an active member of the gov
• died jan 1924
• Stalin, Zin and Kam kept the content of Lenin's Testament secret