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What did the civil war result in?
Bolshevik success
What were the causes of the Russian Civil war?
Political opponents were not willing to accept Bolshevik absolute rule
Lenin wanted to destroy opponents to strengthen communist state
Some fought to achieve independence others fought to prevent it
Why did Lenin support civil war?
Wanted to get rid of political opponents in order to strengthen communist rule
Who thought was going to lose the battle at the beginning of the war?
the reds
Why did people think the reds were going to lose?
Red army only controlled 1/5 of all of Russia
What did Lenin’s new government control however?
Most of the northern and central Russia
What parts of the state did Lenin control?
Most industrialised areas of Russia - provided railroads
Densely populated- provided recruitment
What type of areas did the whites control?
Less populated and urbanised
Less industrialised- fewer factories and less ability to produce munitions
White regions were divided and were difficult to coordinate- Lenin had better control
What areas did the greens control?
Small areas mainly in Ukraine
Resources limited
Surrounded by whites- very limited mobilisation
What areas did nationalists control?
Georgia, Armenia etc
What did the whites/reds have that greens/nationalists didnt?
control of significant land
Who wanted to put Nicholas II on trial?
Trotsky
What did Lenin want to do with the Romanov’s?
Eradicate them
What happened to Nicholas II and his family?
Executed for their crimes on the order of Lenin in the middle of the night.
What ere the strengths of the red army?
More disciplined - conscription introduced by Bolsheviks
Had ex-tsarist officers with experience
Trotsky’s leadership
Common unified cause
Remained in control of key areas such as Moscow and Petrograd
What did the red army number by 1920?
5 million- much stronger force
Who were the red army being led by?
Experienced officers (war the year before so plenty of experience)
What did Trotsky spend a lot of time doing?
Travelling to the front lines encouraging discipline from his troops
Boosting morale
How did the Bolsheviks see the war?
Ideological conflict
Why did seeing the war as ideological conflict benefit Bolshevik’s ?
Further encouraged discipline and support
showed they were fighting for a common cause
What did the red army have greater control of?
the railways and the industrial areas- could utilise more resources
Railways meant army could travel faster and remain co-ordinated
Moscow and Petrograd
What was the advantage of Bolshevik’s remaining in control of Moscow and Petrograd
Majority of population lived there so there was more people to conscript into the army and gain support of
Who did the whites receive more support from?
The allies
Why was the Whites having foreign support from allies a disadvantage?
As soon as the ww1 ended, the foreign support ended as they didnt see the need to support the whites
What did the Bolshevik’s do if the whites did receive any foreign support?
Used this as propaganda- further unified red army
What did the white army not have?
no unity or coherent ideology- didnt see it s an ideological conflict
No central leadership
How was there whites scattered ?
Geographically- made communications impossible- functioning was poor
What did no leadership under the whites lead to?
No discipline
Led to a large number of desertions
Who played a role in supporting the regime during the war?
The rede army
Cheka
What did Cheka eliminate in Bolshevik controlled areas and what did this ensure?
political opposition
100% control in Bolshevik areas
How was discipline reinforced in the red army?
You would be shot if you deserted
What was the victory of the reds mainly due to?
Lenin’s ability to centralise power
What are principles of centralisation against?
Communist ideas
What continued even after the victory of civil war?
Centralisation- Lenin claimed it as initially necessary to win civil war and then because the revolutionary government was still in danger.(Lenin’s assassination attempt)
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Flashcard (201)