war communism/nep UPDATE WITH SME NOT DONE

describe war communism

• what was it

• when was it

• who introduced it

• economic policy of the Bolsheviks in which the state took control of the means of production, (e.g all factories, transport and farming.)

  • The government decided what was produced, when and by whom, and who would receive the goods

• june 1918-march 1921

• lenin and the bolsheviks introduced it

why was war communism introduced: civil war

• The peasants were seen as resisting the Bolsheviks by not supplying enough food for the cities, towns and the Red Army.

• The policy would ensure that the Red Army was supplied to fight in the civil war.

why was war communism introduced: economic/ideological

• The economy had collapsed due to the disruption caused by the First World War and the civil war

  • the Bolsheviks needed a way to deal with the shortages of food and goods.

• War Communism as a policy seemed to fit the communist theory:

  • no one individual made a profit from their labour

  • the state controlled the means of production (the factories)

  • the state distributed produce according to the needs of the individual.

3 aims of war communism

• economic

• military

• political

• To gain control of the economy to enable them to win the war.

• To ensure enough supplies to resource the Red Army.

• To increase the Communist Party's control of the country.

features of war communism: agriculture (3) + impacts

Grain requisitioning

• This policy, combined with poor weather, caused the Great Famine of 1921-1922.

• Historians estimate that between five to eight million Russians died.

• The Bolshevik government did nothing to stop this famine

The re-introduction of food rationing

• Peasants had very little food for themselves before the civil war. This contributed to the Great Famine

The banning of all private trade

• Under the Tsarist governments, kulaks were encouraged to trade.

• The Bolshevik government politically attacked kulaks, beginning a process called dekulakisation

industrial terms of war communism (4) + impacts

• the nationalisation of industry under the Vesenkha

  • workers had production targets and lost control of factories

• An increase in factory discipline

  • Workers lost the right to strike and could work longer than eight hours

• The re-introduction of food rationing

  • Workers received the second largest ration

• The banning of all private trade

  • they traded on black markets which grew in popularity

positive impacts of war communism

• They were able to supply and feed the Red Army during the civil war which helped them to defeat the Whites and the Greens.

• They were able to centralise their control of the economy.

negative impacts of war communism: economic

• Production levels collapsed even more.

  • For example, coal production was 29 million tons in 1913 but by 1921 it was only 9 million.

• Food production collapsed to 48% of the 1913 productions levels.

  • In 1913, 80 million tons of grain had been produced but in 1921, it was 37.6 million.

• A black market developed because of the shortages in goods and food.

negative impacts of war communism: social

• disaster

• riots (2)

• urban-rural migration

• it caused famine by 1921

  • 29 million experienced famine and 5 million died.

• There was an increase in violence and unrest in the countryside as peasants resisted food requisitioning.

  • They hid their grain and slaughtered their animals rather than handing them over to the Bolsheviks.

• Workers from the cities and towns migrated to the countryside in search of food because there was less food in the towns.

• It resulted in peasant uprisings in 1920 and 1921, including the Tambov Uprising, and the Kronstadt Uprising by sailors in March 1921.

why was it necessary to enforce war communism in the cities

• The Bolsheviks needed the support of Russian towns in the civil war

  • There was still a shortage of industrial goods caused by the First World War and strikes

  • The Bolsheviks wanted to control the armament industry to ensure that the Red Army got the best supplies

  • The Decree on Workers allowed many workers to pay themselves high wages for doing little to no work

why was it necessary to enforce war communism in the countryside

• The Bolsheviks needed the support of the Russian peasants

  • The Bolsheviks would conscript many peasants into the Red Army

  • The Red Army needed a guaranteed food supply to keep their soldiers strong

  • Some peasants fought against the Bolsheviks. The harsh terms of War Communism would increase Bolshevik control across Russia

what was russia like by 1921 due to the civil war

• industrial

• social

• military

all areas of Russian society felt the impacts of War Communism:

• Industrial output had dropped below 1913 levels

• Millions had died due to famine

• Russia had suffered seven years of continuous fighting

political impact of the kronstadt uprising

forced lenin to abandon war communism and introduce nep, which was radically different

motives of the kronstadt uprising

• sailors objected to the red terror

• 22nd jan: bolsheviks further reduced rations

• 23rd feb: SRs and mensheviks organised strikes

• 1st mar: kronstadt sailors mutinied to force the bolsheviks to follow true communism

difference between kronstadt revolution and kronstadt rebellion

kronstadt rebellion july 1917 → pro bolshevik

kronstadt mutiny july 1921 → anti bolshevik

kronstadt uprising events (4) + when

1. sailors created a petition demanding a democratic government and human rights

2. around 15,000 soldiers held a meeting and came up with a slogan ‘all power to the soviets, not to the parties’

3. lenin issued the soldiers with an ultimatum to stop their mutiny. the soldiers ignored lenin

4. trotsky assembled 20,000 red army soldiers to crush the kronstadt uprising

1921

kronstadt uprising impacts: lenin

• the mutiny shocked lenin. the sailors had traditionally been loyal bolshevik supporters

• lenin abandoned war communism and introduced the new economic policy

what happened on march 1921

lenin banned factions

• all the party members had to follow lenin, or they would be kicked from the party

kronstadt uprising impact on sailors

many sailors were sent to siberia

some escaped to finland

list 4 aspects of nep

• It reintroduced aspects of capitalism into Russia's economy

• It allowed private ownership of small factories and businesses

• Peasants were allowed to sell their surplus grain for profit

• The state still controlled heavy industries

features of nep: agricultural

The end of grain requisitioning

• Grain requisitioning was replaced by a ‘tax in kind’.

• Peasants gave 50% of their grain to the state.

  • This amount was much less than the amounts taken by requisitioning.

• They could sell any surplus on the open market.

  • This created NEPmen

End of rationing

• Due to the end of the civil war, there was no need for rationing.

• People had to buy food and goods from their own income.

  • This allowed food and goods to flow more easily between the countryside and the towns

features of nep: industrial

Changes to state control of industry

• The state kept control of large-scale heavy industry.

• It also retained control of transport and the banking system.

• Lenin organised industries into trusts.

• Each trust had to buy materials and pay their workers from their own budgets. If they overspent, the state would not step in

Small businesses reopened

Lenin realised that peasants would not sell their products unless there were goods they wanted on sale. Small, privately owned businesses could reopen and make a profit if they made goods such as shoes, nails and clothes

4 reasons why nep was introduced

• economic

• social (workers/peasants)

• protest

• The previous economic policy of War Communism had resulted in economic collapse and famine in some areas of the USSR.

• War Communism had also resulted in massive unrest among the workers and the number of strikes increased.

• The peasants had risen up in protest against War Communism with one of the most serious revolts in Tambov, requiring 50,000 Red Army soldiers to crush it.

• The Kronstadt Mutiny in March 1921, by the sailors in the Kronstadt Naval base made the Bolsheviks realise the dangers of continuing with the policy of War Communism.

what was nep + when did it last

the Soviet government's economic policy.

• It represented a temporary retreat from its previous policy of War Communism

1921-1928

did people oppose the nep

• Some communists were disappointed with the NEP.

  • They opposed it because they felt it betrayed their communist principles.

• Trotsky was one of those who opposed the NEP.

positive effects of nep: economic

• In 1922 the government introduced a new currency, called chervonets, which helped to stabilise the value of money

• Trade with foreign countries increased, which helped the USSR financially.

  • 1921: Lenin agreed to the Anglo-Russian Trade Agreement

positive effects of nep: industrial

• The prices of factory-made goods increased and there was greater demand for manufactured goods, especially from the countryside.

• production improved, reaching pre-war levels by 1926

positive effects of nep: countryside

• Grain production had increased by 50% by 1923.

• There were fewer strikes and less discontent in the countryside.

why was war communism bad for the peasants + why was the nep better

• war communism had helped the communists win the war but it had harmful effects on the people.

• The Great Famine of 1921-1922 was partially a result of War Communism

  • This made the NEP important because it allowed the countryside to recover.

• Peasants sold some of their grain for profit leading them to have more money and a better quality of life

how did the nep affect women

• they were forced to give up their jobs for demobilised soldiers.

• The government did not see women's rights as a priority, and investment in the service industries was reduced.

• Following the revolution, gender equality only improved slightly.

negative effects of nep: economic

• Trade with other countries remained lower than that of 1913.

• Inequality also increased as some private business owners became richer. These were called NEPmen.

• 1923: the 'Scissors Crisis'.

  • This was when food prices fell due to the supply of food increasing.

  • However, the price of manufactured goods increased due to a shortage of manufactured goods.

  • This made it difficult for peasants, who were earning less, and struggling to buy manufactured goods.

negative effects of nep: industrial

• Grain production increased, but it still wasn't enough to export large enough quantities abroad to get enough hard currency to fund industrialisation.

• Agriculture was still incredibly backwards.

• Due to the Scissors Crisis the government forced the peasants to cut food prices.

  • The peasants responded by feeding grain to their animals as meat was more expensive, meaning they made more money.

  • By 1927, the amount of grain the government received decreased.

negative effects of nep: political/social

• Politically, Lenin came up against a lot of criticism as he was seen to have moved away from communist principles.

• unemployment remained high. nep didn’t solve problems to do with crime

why was there opposition to the nep:

• bolsheviks

• workers

• peasants

• women

• Some Bolsheviks saw the NEP as a return to capitalism

  • it allowed people and small, privately owned businesses to make a profit.

  • This was not acceptable to them and they believed the policy of War Communism was more aligned to their beliefs.

• workers still suffered because of the increase in food prices, while unemployment increased and real wages only passed the 1914 level by 1928.

  • In reality, workers were struggling to afford basic necessities.

• Some peasants were getting richer and there was growing inequality between the richer peasants called 'Kulaks' and ordinary peasants.

• Women were hit particularly hard as many were forced out of their jobs when the Red Army demobilised after the civil war and they ended up on the streets.