A Level History - Russia chapter 7

WHy

What is a socialist economy?

an economy in which there is no private ownership and everyone shares in the State's resources

What was state capitalism?

a compromise economy which embraced some elements of socialism by having some state control, but retained elements of capitalism eg private markets and profit incentive

When was state capitalism?

1917-1918

When was War Communism?

1918 - 1921

When was the New Economic Policy introduced?

March 1921

Why did Lenin initially start with state capitalism?

he knew socialism could only develop properly in an industrialised society, which Russia was not, so he intended to keep the economy kinda capitalist until the conditions were ripe for socialism

How did many Bolsheviks feel about state capitalism and what did they demand?

disapproved greatly and wanted radical measures like nationalisation of banks and abolition of money

How did Lenin envisage the transition to socialism?

envisaged a long transition to it

How was the decree on land sort of capitalist?

abolished private ownership of land but allowed it to pass into the use of the peasants cultivating it

How was the decree on workers control of factories sort of capitalist?

acknowledged that many factories had already been taken over by workers and said that those in control were "responsible to the state for the maintenance of the strictest order and discipline and for the protection of property"

When was the decree on land?

October 1917

When was the decree on workers' control of factories?

November 1917

When was the nationalisation of banks?

December 1917

When was the nationalisation of external trade?

June 1918

When was the nationalisation of railways?

June and September 1918

When was Veshenka established?

December 1917

What did Veshenka take responsibility for?

all existing institutions for the regulation of economic life

What was GOELRO?

a special state commission which was to organise production and distribution of electricity throughout Russia

When was GOELRO set up?

1920

What did Lenin say about GOELRO?

"communism equals soviet power plus electrification"

What were the problems with state capitalism regarding workers? (4)

workers failed to organise factories efficiently and output shrank; some workers gave themselves unsustainable pay rise; some workers took stock and equipment; workers lacked skills for successful management

Did state capitalism work?

no

Why did industrial production fail drastically during the civil war? (3)

disrupted communications meant raw materials were in short supply; workers went to fight in the army; non-essential businesses had to close

What happened as a result of fall in industrial production? (3)

brought rampant inflation; peasants with surplus produce weren't prepared to sell it; peasants turned to subsistence farming

How could peasants survive during the economic breakdown during the civil war years?

could scavenge for food and burn wood for warmth

What was the effect of the blockade of trade?

reduced supplies to cities

What was the bread ration in Petrograd in early 1918?

50 grams per person per day

How much of what was consumed in cities came from the black market in early 1918?

two thirds

Who were sackmen?

peasants with sacks of goods to sell who tried to make money in cities from undercover trading

When were army units established to prevent the trading of sackmen?

1918

Why did the authorities fail to stamp out the black market?

there was no alternative

Where did workers go in order to escape the bad conditions in cities during the civil war? (2)

went to villages or joined the Red Army

Why did some workers join the Red Army during the civil war and the economic breakdown?

rations were higher

How much of the Petrograd workforce left the city by April 1918?

60%

By how much did Russia's urban proletariat decline by between January 1917 and January 1919?

from 3.6 million to 1.4 million

How many Russians died from starvation and diseases during the Civil War?

5 million

What diseases did people die from during the civil war? (4)

typhoid, cholera, typhus, dysentery

How many people died in action during the civil war?

around 350,000

When did a typhus epidemic cause over 3 million deaths in cities?

1920

How may people died in 1920 of the typhus epidemic?

over 3 million

Why was disease so bad in the civil war years? (3)

scarcity of soap, medicines were hard to obtain, few doctors left to treat the ill

Why were former nobility and bourgeoisie worse off during the civil war?

had no ration cards so were forced to beg or sell possessions

How many times did Kiev change hands during the war?

16

What types of atrocities were common in villages and the countryside during the civil war? (3)

rape, murder, Jews suffered from lots of white pogroms

What was Lenin's response to the disastrous effects of state capitalism?

introduced war communism

How did the Bolsheviks treat the economy during the years of war communism?

as though it was a single enterprise

What was war communism?

the system adopted by the Bolsheviks during the civil war in order to keep the towns and the Red Army provided with food and weapons

What were the key features of war communism? (4)

requisitioning, nationalisation, labour discipline, rationing

When was the socialisation of land decree?

February 1918

When was a food supplies dictatorship set up?

May 1918

What did the food supplies dictatorship do?

organise the requisitioning of grain (part of war communism)

What was collective farming?

a single unit, usually consisting of a number of farms which would be worked by a community under state supervision

Why was collective farming encouraged?

there was a hope that peasants would farm more efficiently if they pooled their resources

How did the Cheka exploit/abuse the peasants? (in terms of requisitioning) (2)

they often seized more than grain than agreed and offered inadequate vouchers rather than money

Who was the worst hit by the Cheka's abuse of requisitioning?

the kulaks (entire stocks could be seized)

Who were the kulaks?

wealthy Russian peasants who could own a farm and hire labour

Why were the kulaks labelled "enemies of the state"?

because they gained personal wealth from their farming, which was seen as capitalist

How did peasants react to the requisitioning? (3)

hid their supplies, grew less or murdered members of requisitioning squads

What was the first industry to be nationalised under war communism?

sugar

When was the sugar industry nationalised?

may 1918

What was the second industry to be nationalised?

oil

When was the oil industry nationalised?

June 1918

By when were almost all factories and businesses nationalised?

November 1920

What happened as a result of labour discipline? (part of war communism) (3)

strikes forbidden, working hours extended, ration-card workbooks replaced wages

What were fines imposed for in terms of labour discipline? (part of war communism) (3)

slackness, lateness, absenteeism

What prevented workers from moving back to the countryside under war communism? (2)

strict checks on freedom of movement and internal passports

Who got the highest rations under war communism? (2)

Red army soldiers and factory workers

Who got the smallest rations under war communism? (3)

the nobility, bourgeoisie and the clergy (the 'former people')

What happened to production under war communism?

declined

What happened to production under war communism by 1921?

total output had fallen to 20% below pre-war levels

What happened as a result of decline in production under war communism?

rations had to be cut

By the end of 1920, how much had the population of Petrograd fallen by since 1917? (%)

fallen by 57.5%

By the end of 1920, how much had the population of Moscow fallen by since 1917? (%)

44.5%

How much did the harvest of 1921 produce in comparison to that of 1913? (%)

48% of that in 1913

What was Russia's population in 1913 and what did it fall to by 1921?

170.9 million in 1913, 130.9 million in 1921 (malnourishment and disease as a result of war communism)

How did the Bolsheviks enforce the policies of war communism?

coercion (force and terror)

What was the Red Terror used to do? (2)

attack political enemies and carry out class warfare

What did the Cheka do to political enemies during the red terror? (2)

imprisoned and shot them

Roughly how many political enemies were killed by the Cheka between 1918 and 1920? (according to the textbook - we don't actually really know)

about half a million

What system was also set up during the red terror?

concentration and labour camps

How many uprisings were there in February 1921?

155

When was the Tambov revolt?

August 1920 - June 1921

How many peasants were involved in the Tambov revolt?

70,000

Who led the Tambov revolt?

Alexander Antonov

What caused the Tambov revolt?

requisitioning squads demanded requisitions at a time when there were basically no grain reserves left

How many Red Army troops had to be sent to deal with the Tambov revolt?

100,000

By how much was the bread ration cut in several cities as a result of the food crisis in 1921? (war communism period)

1/3

When was martial law declared to combat the strikes and riots as a result of war communism?

January 1921

How many soldiers at Kronstadt rebelled against war communism?

30,000

When did the Kronstadt sailors send a manifesto to Lenin demanding an end to one-party communist rule?

March 1921

Which slogan did the Kronstadt sailors use in their manifesto to Lenin in 1921?

"soviets without Bolsheviks"

Who led the Red Army against the Kronstadt rebellion?

Marshal Tukhachevsky

How many Kronstadt rebels were taken prisoner?

15,000

Who led the "Workers' Opposition" Group? (2)

Alexander Shlyapknikov and Aleksandra Kollontai

What did the workers' opposition group argue for? (5)

greater worker control, removal of managers in factories, removal of military discipline in factories , removal of state appointed trade unions, removal of war communism

Why was Lenin alarmed that the Kronstadt sailors opposed him?

they had greatly supported the Bolsheviks during the October revolution

What was gosplan?

the state general planning commission which helped coordinate economic development

When was gosplan established?

February 1921

What was gosplan originally established to do?

to advise on a new economic policy