Entire Russian Revolution

when was the civil war?

1918-20

what was a foreign policy trigger for the civil war?

anger at the treaty of Brest-Litovsk 3rd March

armistice - concessions to Germany

lost 1/6 of population

1/3 of agriculture

26% of railways

74% of iron ore and coal supplies

Whites support

wartime allies supported them (Britain, France, USA - capitalist fighting communism/ Bolsheviks refused to pay the Tsars' fees) as they wanted Russia to rejoin the war.

But support was minimal and it gave the Bolsheviks a propaganda platform.

Reds support

Bolsheviks mostly supported by peasants since White associated with the Tsar

Russian capital

moved from Petrograd to Moscow as it's further from Germany

Czech legion

another trigger of the war

30,000 fighting Austro-Hungary for independence

Russia allows them to use Russian railways as can't go back to Germany-controlled Czechoslovakia but then the Bolsheviks try to arrest them - Trotsky orders disarmament - they join SRs

Civil war deaths

10 million from hunger, disease and fighting

April 1918

first battle of civil war in Yekaterinedar

16th July 1918

Nicholas II and family killed

could have been used as a bargaining chip but too dangerous

George V wouldn't have them in London

Greens

mostly peasants who want to end requisitioning

Whites

Mensheviks, SRs, ex-Tsarist - very different aims

Trotsky role

commander of Red Army

introduced conscription - 275,000 enlisted only 40,000 turn up

reverse democratisation of army - bring 48,000 ex-tsarist officers back but hold their families hostage to ensure loyalty

mobile control

Trotsky mobile HQ to move to front quickly

Agiprop trains of propaganda to motivate peasants

November 1918

Germany's defeat in the war - Russia gets land back and foreign support for whites stops and Czechs return home

advantage of war communism

procurement of grain

ration based on class

nationalisation of industry

labour discipline

advantage of geography

reds control Petrograd and Moscow - hub of railways & factories and highly populated

(whites only control the land they stand on)

advantage of Trotsky's organisation

brave & inspiring

used death penalty on unwilling peasants

brings back ex-tsarist experts

Yudenich

western whites leader

15,000 men - smallest army

reached outskirts of Petrograd in 1919

Denikin & Wrangel

southern volunteer army (whites) leaders

150,000 men - mostly Cossacks

Besiege Tsaritsyn in 1918 but Bolsheviks successfully protect

320km from Moscow in 1919

pushed back to Crimea by Trotsky

Kolchak

Eastern whites leader

140,000 men

built on successes of the Czech legion

took Kazan and Samara in 1918 but retreat by summer 1919

internal quarrels with Czechs

Kolchak captured and killed February 1920

Makhno

Green insurgent army leader

guerrilla warfare

strong support from peasants and Ukraine

challenge Bolshevik centralisation

fought for Reds in the end and then crushed

Makhno escaped to Romania

1919 gov

23 different groups claim to be the government

Reds disadvantages

paramilitary version of the Bolsheviks

lack generals

Whites disadvantages

disagreements as only thing in common is anti-Bolshevik. White Generals operate independently

Green purpose

don't want to be conscripted and don't want land to be taken.

fighting for themselves

Foreign support for whites

Britain in Archangel (north)

France in Odessa (south)

July 1919

advances from Caucuses - capture Tsaritsyn

criticism of Trotsky for losses - offers to resign

May 1920

Polish invade and occupy Kiev

defeat Red Army in Warsaw by August

March 1921

Treaty of Riga

peace between Poland and Soviet union

Bolsheviks and USA/UK/France

Refused to pay back borrowed money from tsarist times

1921 output

output decreased 20% from pre-war levels

typhus

swept through cities killing 3 million

1920 population in Petrograd

57.5% lower than 1917

effect on agriculture

1/3 of land abandoned and cattle & horses abandoned in their 1000s

1921 harvest

only 48% of 1913

Reason for Bolshevic victory

Strength of reds, weakness of whites, foreign intervention failed

Strengths of Reds

united ideology , controlled, urban areas , strong leadership under trotsky, control of rail, access to vast weaponary

Weakness of whites

low morale, lack of unity, were seen as a good alternative to the Bols, lacked popular support, cossacks reluctant to fight far from home.

Trotsky’s leadership

Founded red army , 500k-5m 1918-1920

Serfs

The poor, uneducated peasants who were legally bound to the noble whose land they worked.

Serfdom

Many people believed this was the key to modernizing Russia; the czars refused to end it.

Autocrat

A ruler with absolute power; in Russia, they were called czars.

Alexander I

The Romanov czar who gained international respect after defeating Napoleon; his time in power was plagued with civil unrest.

Nicholas I

The Romanov czar who ruled with an "iron fist" after soldiers staged a revolt; he opposed all reform including a parliament and constitution.

Alexander II

The Romanov czar who tried to modernize Russia; he ended serfdom, improved education and civil service; his rule was a disappointment.

Alexander III

The Romanov czar who ruled harshly as a result of his father's assassination; he opposed reform, increased censorship and decreased education.

Nicholas II

The Romanov czar who was forced to abdicate his throne as a result of a series of mistakes that evenutally lead to the Russian Revolution.

Abdicate

To resign or to give up one's throne.

Russo-Japanese War (cause)

Nicholas II wanted to be an imperial power, to have a warm water port, and to distract the Russia people from their internal problem. As a result, he fought a war with Japan over Korea.

Russo-Japanese War (effect)

Nicholas II lost the war; As a result, Russia lost most of its naval fleet, civil unrest at home increased, Russia has to stay out of Manchuria and acknowledge Japan's right to rule Korea.

Revolution of 1905 (cause)

As a result of poor, unsafe working conditions and inflation, some workers were fired; others went on strike. 200,000 workers marched peacefully to the czar's winter palace asking for better working conditons, universal sufferage and an end to the Russo-Japanese War (aka: Bloody Sunday).

Revolution of 1905 (effects)

As a result of Bloody Sunday, strikes, uprisings and mutinies were occuring throughout Russia. To end the revolution, Nicholas II agreed to create a Duma and to make reforms for the people.

World War I (cause -- military)

Nicholas II committed an unprepared Russian army to war; the army was no match for the German machine guns. As a result, the army suffered heavy losses and low moral. Nicholas traveled to the frontline to inspire his troops leaving his wife (and Rasputin) in charge.

World War I (cause -- economic)

Eventually shortages in food and fuel as well as Nicholas II's refusal to leave the war, led to protests that escalated into the overthrow of the czar. He could not meet the needs of the soldiers or the civilians.

Duma

The Russian parliament (i.e. legislative body of the Russian national government).

Soviet

The council of elected workers in the major cities of Russia; they controlled Russia.

First Revolution

Part one of the Russian Revolution; it began with the abdication of Nicholas II; As a result, the Duma created a provisional government under the leadership of Alexander Kerensky (aka February Revolution).

Alexander Kerensky

A respected member of the Duma and a Soviet; he was chosen to be the leader of the provisional government that replaced Nicholas II.

Provisional Government

A temporary government created by the Duma after the abdication of the czar; it made the decision to remain in World War One, costing it the support of the soviets and the people.

Lenin

A revolutionary leader who was exiled from Russia and the leader of the Bolshevik Party; he returned to Russia with the help of the Germans during World War I.

Bolshevik Party

A political party that wanted Russia to lead an immediate worldwide revolution; it gained control of Russia by getting elected to the soviets by promising to leave World War I.

Second Revolution

Part two of the Russian Revolution; it began when Lenin overthrew the provisional government and established Russia as a socialist state under the Bolshevik Party (aka: October Revolution).

Peace, Land and Bread

The slogan used by Lenin to win the support of the people; Peace appealed to the soldiers; Land appealed to the peasants; and Bread appealed to the workers.

USSR

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republic; the new name given to Russia under Lenin.

Social Democrats

A group of Marxists who believed that a worldwide revolution would begin in Russia with the workers; they were divided into the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks.

Social Revolutionaries

A group of Marxists who believed that a worldwide revolution would begin in Russia with the peasants; they won the elected of 1917 following the Second Revolution but Lenin arrested them and tried them as enemies of the state.

Russian Civil War

The battle between the Bolsheviks (Red Army) and their opponents (White Army); the Bolsheviks won, however, 15 million Russians were dead, the economy was in ruins, trade was at a standstill and there was a shortage of skilled labor.

New Economic Policy

In response to the failing socialist policies, Lenin established a temporary compromise with capitalism; Under the NEP, farmers could sell their surplus, individuals could buy and sell for profit and some private ownership of land and business was allowed.

Communist Party

The new name given to the Bolshevik Party; Lenin also moved the capital of the USSR to Moscow.

Leon Trotsky

A revolutionary leader who organized the October (Second) Revolution and the Red Guard (Civil War); he was a popular and capable leader but people feared he would rule as a dictator.

Joseph Stalin

A revolution leader who was cold and impersonal; As party secretary, he worked behind the scenes to appoint his supporters to positions of power; he succeeded Lenin.

Totalitarian State

A type of government ruled by a dictator; the government controls every aspect of life; there is one-party rule and surpemacy of the state over the individual. In the USSR, there was collective ownership, centralized planning, censorship and secret police.

Five Year Plans

Stalin's attempt to modernize the Soviet Union; these set almost impossible quotas for industrial workers and agricultural farmers to meet; As a result of these, the USSR did modernize.

Weapons of Totalitarianism

Indoctrination, Propaganda, Censorship, Religious Persecution (refer to your assignment for details).