Revolution & Civil War in Russia 

Essential Questions What does USSR stand for? How does Tsarism in Russia Come to an End? How did the Communist Party—not the people have all the power in the Soviet Union?

Landowning nobles, priests & the autocratic Tsar controlled the government & economy

The majority of Russian citizens were peasants The were very poor

As Russia started to industrialize a small urban middle & working class began to emerge

The Revolution of 1905 Rapid growth of (discontented) working class Vast majority of workers concentrated in St. Petersburg and Moscow Impoverished peasants No individual land ownership Rural Famine

The Unrest Deepens Nicholas II became tsar in 1884 Believed he was the absolute ruler anointed by God After the Revolution of 1905 Nicholas failed to solve Russia’s problems

Conservatism Continues: 1905-1917 The elected Duma has no real power Nicholas II is a weak leader He paid no attention to the Duma; Used secret police to impose his will Revolutionaries plotted to overthrow the tsarist regime Numerous Marxists began to appear Tried to start a revolution among the proletariat or working class. Conservatism Continues: 1905-1917

World War I: “The Last Straw” War revealed the ineptitude and arrogance of the country’s aristocratic elite Corrupt military leadership had contempt for ordinary Russian people Average peasants had very little invested in the War

World War I ill-trained, ineffective officers, poorly equipped (Russ. was not ready for ind. war) – the result was mass desertions and 2 million casualties by 1915 Result: Chaos and Disintegration of the Russian Army Battle of Tannenberg (August, 1914) – massive defeat at hands of the Germans

Nicholas II went to the front lines to boost morale--has opposite effect (September, 1915) The Tsar was more incompetent than is generals Left the Tsarina Alexandra in charge of domestic affairs

Alexandra: The Power Behind the Throne Even more blindly committed to autocracy than her husband Relies on advice of Gregory Rasputin Illiterate peasant Believes he is a holy man Rasputin helps the Tsarina’s son with his hemophilia

Alexis: Alexandra’s Son with Hemophilia

The Collapse of the Imperial Government Alexandra and Rasputin throw the government into chaos Alexandra and other high government officials accused of treason

The Collapse of the Imperial Government Rasputin assassinated on December 29, 1916

The Revolution Heats Up Complete mismanagement of the wartime economy Industrial production plummeted, inflation and starvation were rampant, and the cities were overflowing w/ refugees March 1917, Cities became a hotbed for pol. activism, ignited by serious food shortages Workers were going on strike (St. Petersburg-then called Petrograd) The government is helpless

The Two Revolutions of 1917 The March Revolution (March 12) The November Revolution (November 6)

The March Revolution Origins: Food riots/strikes Duma declared itself a Provisional Government on March 12 Tsar ordered soldiers to intervene; instead they joined the rebellion…the Tsar abdicated on March 17 Alexander Kerensky headed the Provisional Government, along w/ Prince Lvov Very Popular Revolution Kerensky favored gradual socialist reform/ saw the war effort as #1 priority

The Petrograd Soviet-Councils of Workers & Soldiers leftists in St. Petersburg formed the Petrograd Soviet, which they claimed to be the legit. gov’t Ger. was aware of the Russ. situation and began to concentrate on the W. Front Ger. even played a role in returning Lenin to Russia, so he could help the rev. Having been granted “safe passage”, Lenin returned in April 1917

The Provisional Government 1. A 12 member government led by Kerensky 2. Planned to rule until elections could be held Dual Government The Petrograd Soviet A council of 2,500 deputies. Determined to share power with the Provisional Government

Soviet Political Ideology More radical and revolutionary than the Provisional Government Most influenced by Marxist socialism Two Factions -- “Mensheviks”—conservative-democrats -- “Bolsheviks”

Founder of Bolshevism: Vladimir Lenin Born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov in 1870 At age 17 his brother was hanged for plotting to kill the tsar Adopted the name Lenin when he became a revolutionary Committed to Class Struggle and Revolution

As a young he man read Karl Marx & participated in student demonstrations 1895 was arrested & sent to Siberia w/ future wife Nadezhda Krupskaya After release exiled to Switzerland Moved to London in 1902 and befriended Leon Trotsky

Marx collaborated w/ FRIEDRICH ENGELS – Both were German but lived and wrote in England, esp. in the industrial city of Birmingham 1848 – Communist Manifesto is published for the Communist League Marx chose the term “communist” since it sounded radical: it implied the abolition of private property & the reorg. of society based on a workers’ revolution

Marx thought history was cyclical and that the time for comm Marx thought history was cyclical and that the time for comm. had arrived – he advocated achieving comm. in a violent rev. where the workers (PROLETARIAT) would overthrow the capitalist/owners (BOURGEOISIE)

Lenin’s View of Marx Karl Marx Spontaneous revolution of the working class “Let the ruling classes tremble at the prospect of a communist revolution. Proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have the world to win. Proletarians of all lands, unite!” Vladimir Lenin Adopted Marxist ideas to fit Russian needs Planned revolution by professional revolutionaries Revolution of all oppressed classes of society

Lenin’s View of Marx Russia does not have a large urban proletariat Revolution can occur in non-industrial societies “Dictatorship of the proletariat” Small percentage of radical socialists, but “Bolshevik” means “majority” after close election w/ Mensheviks for rule of Russian Social Democratic Labour Party

Western Europe thought socialism could be achieved through gradual & moderate reforms Higher wages, increased suffrage, social welfare The MENSHEVIKS in Russia favored this approach Bolsheviks reject this---Believe that only revolution could bring about change

Leon Trotsky Intellectual, head of the Red Army Favored the doctrine of World Revolution felt that Russia could not survive as the sole communist state Russia must therefore seek to export the revolution. WW1 was a capitalist war and proletarian brothers lost their chance to unite Trotsky’s fate: Lenin’s death in 1924 led to a power struggle w/ Stalin (exile, Mexico City death in 1940)

Lenin Steps into This Vacuum Lenin arrives in Petrograd 1917 “Peace, Land, Bread” “All Power to the Soviets” He preached that the war was a capitalist/imperialist war that offered no rewards for the peasants/workers; he also felt the war was over w/ the Tzar’s abdication Bolshevik party membership exploded; their power was consolidated

Bolsheviks take over the Provisional Government The November Revolution The Provisional Government fails to end the war and resolve internal problems Bolsheviks take over the Provisional Government Moscow becomes their headquarters

November Revolution Bolsheviks end private ownership Workers given control of factories Renamed Communists in 1918

The November Revolution

November Revolution Lenin’s 1st task was to get Russia out of the war so he could concentrate on internal reform… The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk negotiated with the Germans, giving them much Russian territory, population, and resources (March 1918)

Russian Civil War Civil War followed, 1917-1920 “Reds” versus “Whites” Complete breakdown of Russian economy and society

Civil War 1918-1921 Reds=Communists Whites=Counterrevolutionaries (Tsarist imperial officers, Mensheviks, democrats) Allies hoped the Whites would overthrow the Bolsheviks. Romanovs killed

Civil War Political Police organized: CHEKA Trotsky created a well-organized and disciplined army increasing the size of the Red Army by conscripting thousands of workers and peasants as well as former Tsarist soldiers Bolsheviks increased their support among workers and peasants by promising land and a brighter future Used terror against opponents Bolsheviks had mammoth task of rebuilding country Feliks Dzerzhinsky

Interpreting the Russian Revolution The official Marxist interpretation  The importance of a permanent international revolution A Social Revolution…

Building the Communist Soviet Union Russia is in chaos Millions of people have died since the beginning of WWI Famine/Disease Lenin faces the huge challenge of rebuilding a shattered state and economy

New Government, Same Problems 1922-Much of the Russian empire becomes the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) Create a constitution with both democratic and socialist principles Elected legislature (Supreme Soviet) All citizens over 18 given the right to vote All political power, means of production & resources would belong to workers and peasants Multinational state where member republics shared equal rights

Soviet Union Map

Eventually, the Communist Party, not the people had all the power Used army & Cheka to enforce their will Russia dominated all the republics

Lenin’s Economic Policy Under party control, factory and mine output had fallen Peasants stopped producing grain, knowing the government would seize it 1922- New Economic Policy (NEP) Allows some capitalist ventures Gov’t kept control of banks, foreign trade, and large industries Small businesses were allowed to reopen for private profit

NEP Cont… Gov’t stopped seizing peasant grain Peasants held onto small plots of land & freely sold their surplus crops Lenin’s “compromise” with capitalism helped the economy recover Armed resistance to the new gov’t ends The standard of living improves But Lenin sees NEP as temporary retreat from Communism

Stalin Takes Over Lenin Dies in 1924 @ age 54

Death sets off power struggle among communists Chief condenders: Joseph Stalin Leon Trotsky

Joseph Stalin Behind-the-scenes political organizer Trotsky & Stalin differ on their approach to communism Trotsky=Worldwide communist revolution Stalin=Build socialist state at home first Stalin strips Trotsky of party membership and he flees to Mexico Lenin warns of Stalin’s potential to abuse power and his ruthless behavior

Examine American society from a communist perspective. Charlie Nusser: "I became a communist . . . because of what I saw around me here in the United States of America. There was misery, there were children going to bed hungry, there was poverty, and there was no reason for it. We were the richest country in the world." Write an outline of solutions communists might propose to end poverty, hunger, and homelessness in the United States today, and the negative and positive consequences of those solutions. You must come up with two proposals for each.

Create a newspaper front page that captures a the significant event in the Russian Revolution & or Civil War