Bolshevik Consolidation of Power and Decrees

Decree on workers’ control

All factories were to be placed under the control of elected committes of workers

Decree on land

540 million acres of land taken from the tsar, the nobles, the Church and other landlords. Peasants to set up committees to divide the land fairly

Decree on employment insurance

Employment insurance was to be introduced for all workers against injury, illness and unemployment

Decree on marriage

Couples could have non-religious weddings and divorce was easier

Decree on titles

All titles and class distinctions were abolished. Women were declared equal to men

Decree on peace

Sovnarkom intended to make peace immediately with Russia’s opponents in the war

Decree on work

Introduction of an 8-hour day and 40-hour week for all industrial workers. There were restrictions on overtime and there was to be holiday entitlement for workers

Decree to set up the political police

The Cheka (secret police) was formed

Decree on the press

All non-Bolshevik newspapers were banned

Decree on political parties

Russia’s main liberal party, the Constitutional Democratic Party, was banned

Decree on banking

All banks in Russia came under Sovnarkom’s control

Who won the most seats in the November elections?

The Socialist Revolutionaries

Why did Lenin claim that there was no need for the Constituent Assembly?

Because there were soviets in Russia

How many of the votes did the Bolsheviks win in the elections to the Constituent Assembly?

175 - a quarter

Why did Lenin sign the treaty of Brest-Litovsk?

Any prolongation of the war would mean that the army would not continue to support him. Also, much of the support the Bolsheviks had gained came from their opposition to conflict

How much land did Russia agree to give Germany?

1 million square km

How much money did Russia agree to give Germany?

War damage of 3 billion roubles

How much of the population did Russia lose?

50 million of the population

How much of her arable land did Russia lose?

27% of her arable land

How much of her railways did Russia lose?

26% of her railways

How much of her iron and coal did Russia lose?

74% of her iron and coal

How much of her agriculture did Russia lose?

1/3 of her agriculture

How much of her industry did Russia lose?

1/2 of her industry

When was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk signed?

March 1918

Why were the Russian citizens horrified by the terms of the Treaty?

Giving away large chunks of Russian homeland antagonised many Russians

Why did Lenin decide to execute the royal family?

To reinforce the idea that the monarchy was destroyed and could not be rebuilt (they had a claim to the throne)

Why did the Bolsheviks not acknowledge their role in the execution of the tsar for a long time?

They were afraid it would lose them public sympathy and they didn’t want to upset the Germans because the tsarina was German

By June 1918, how much had the workforce in Petrograd shrunk by?

60% - the overall population had also declined by between 2 and 3 million

Why did the decree on peace alienate nationalists?

They wanted to continue the war and objected to losing land to the Germans

Who were the Whites?

The Russian groups who opposed the Bolsheviks

Who were the Greens?

The national minorities seeking independence from Russia

Who were the foreign powers?

Russia’s ex-allies

Who were the Czech Legion?

42,000 soldiers who had fought on the Russian side during WWI (deserters of the Austro-Hungarians)

Why did the Czech Legion fight?

Self-preservation (they would be considered traitors to Austria-Hungary)