Russian Civil War

What were the most important causes of the Russian Civil War?

1. Bolshevik Rule

2. Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

3. Denial of Democracy

Why was Bolshevik rule the most important cause of the Civil War?

Without it, no other issues would exist

Who were the main powers during the Civil War?

• The Reds - Bolsheviks

• The Whites - Tsarists and Allied forces

• The Greens - Peasant forces

• The Czech Legion

Why were the Czech Legion in Russia?

They had arrived during WWI and joined the Whites after the Bolsheviks attempted to arrest them

Which rail did the Czech Legion seize?

The Trans-Siberian Railway

Who were the White leaders?

Denekin

Yudenich

Kolchak

Where was Denekin based?

The South

Where was Yudenich based?

The West

Where was Kolchak based?

The East

What was the Whites' main issue?

Lack of unity and communication

Who supported the Whites from the North?

Allied soldiers

Who was the main leader of the Green army?

Alexander Antonov

Who did the Greens target?

Everyone

Who led the Red Army?

Trotsky

When was the Red Guard disbanded and the Red Army created?

January 1918

When did Trotsky become Commissar for War?

March 1918

What were the main motivations for the Whites?

• Get Russia back in the war

• Destroy Communism

• Take over with a puppet ruler

When did the Russian Civil War begin?

April 1918

When was Red Army conscription introduced?

May 1918

When did the Czech Legion start to capture the Trans-Siberian Railway?

April 1918

When did American troops arrive in Russia?

August 1918

When did British troops arrive in Russia?

August 1918

Where were the British troops based?

Archangel

What did the British troops do when they arrived?

Established an anti-Bolshevik government

Who seized Omsk?

Kolchak

When was Omsk seized?

November 1918

What did Kolchak declare himself in November 1918?

Supreme Ruler

Where were people positioned at the beginning of 1919?

Whites rapidly advanced on major cities, Reds counter-attacked

When did Denekin take Kharkiv?

Summer 1919

Apart from Kharkiv, where did Denekin capture in summer 1919?

Tsaritsyn

What did Trotsky attempt to do in the summer of 1919?

Resign

What happened in Archangel in 1919?

The Whites evacuated

Who reached the outskirts of Petrograd in summer 1919?

Yudenich

Who had been successful by 1920?

The Reds

Who was executed by the Bolsheviks in February 1920?

Kolchak

Where did the Red Army invade in February 1920?

Georgia

Who was successful in November 1920?

The Bolsheviks

When and how did Kornilov die?

April 1918 - Blown up

How did Trotsky travel Russia during the Civil War?

The Trotsky Train

How many miles did Trotsky travel during the Civil War?

65,000

How was desertion from the Red Army punished?

Shot by the Cheka

Who was used for labour during the Civil War?

The middle class

Why were ranks reintroduced during the Civil War?

They were necessary for order

How many former tsarist officers did Trotsky recruit?

50,000

Who was appointed to each army unit to oversee them?

Political Commissars

Why were Political Commissars assigned to army units?

To ensure the Tsarist officers wouldn't rebel

In what way did the Reds have a geographical advantage?

• They could easily move soldiers and motions to the Front

• The areas they occupied were heavily populated so conscription was easier

• They held the central area with main railway networks

In what way did the Whites have a geographical disadvantage?

They were scattered around the edges of Red areas so communication was difficult

What were the weaknesses of the Whites?

• Bad propaganda

• Supported by Allies (Reds seemed more patriotic)

• Threats to Petrograd were small

• Reminded people of Tsarism

• Couldn't communicate because of geography

How was the Red army more organised than the White?

They had a single, unified command structure

How were peasants convinced to support the Reds?

The Whites wanted to return seized land to its original owners

Which groups did the Whites lose support of?

Nationalists

What was siege mentality?

Systematic terror to remove opposition, encouraging paranoia within the party about enemies

How many Bolshevik party members fought in the Civil War?

50,000

What was the ratio of Bolshevik officials to workers in the army during the Civil War?

2:1

What did the Politburo do?

Centralise party power

Who were the first elected members of the Politburo?

Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin

What happened to Sovnarkom during the 1920s?

It met less frequently

When was the Politburo created?

1919

How many members were there in Sovnarkom vs the Politburo?

Sovarkom: 15-20

Politburo: 7-9

Which city became the new capital during the Civil War?

Moscow

Why was the capital city changed during the Civil War?

Petrograd was too vulnerable

What was the biggest danger of bureaucracy?

Unelected people made decisions, leading to dictatorship because the government decided who was in power

When were the Tsar and his family murdered?

17 July 1918

Where were the Tsar and his family imprisoned?

Yekaterinburg - The House of Special Designation

Why were the Tsar and his family murdered?

• The Czech Legion had surrounded Yekaterinburg so the family could not be safely evacuated

• To demoralise the Whites, who used the Tsar as a figurehead

When did the Bolsheviks report the Tsar's murder?

19 July 1918

Which newspaper reported the Tsar's murder?

Isvestia

How did Isvestia report the Tsar's murder?

It said that the Tsar was dead but that others had been evacuated

How long did Isvestia's story remain public belief?

Until 1926

What did the murder of the Romanovs indicate?

The beginning of Terror

What was the catalyst for the Red Terror?

Fanya Kaplin's assassination attempt on Lenin

Who carried out the Red Terror?

The Cheka

What were the two objectives of the Red Terror?

• Remove political enemies

• Class warfare

Why did the Bolsheviks have to rely on Terror?

All other methods failed

What does the Terror suggest about Bolshevik policy?

They were not opposed to violence to solve problems

Why did Lenin abandon War Communism?

• Problems in the economy

• Threats from peasants

• Opposition from workers

• Problems from Kronstadt

• Divisions within the party

What were the problems with the economy that led to the abandonment of War Communism?

• The transport system almost collapsed

• Factories lacked materials - industry ceased production

• Grain production was very low

• Hundreds of thousands died of diseases

• People were not willing to abide by the policies

What were the problems with the peasants that led to the abandonment of War Communism?

• Poor harvests meant peasants were reluctant to surrender grain

• Bolsheviks deliberately set requisitioning amounts to be very high

• Tambov

What happened at Tambov?

• Led by Alexander Antonov

• Red Army destroyed villages and used poison gas to deal with people hidden in forests

• 70,000 rebels vs 100,000 Red Army troops

Why did Tambov start?

Peasants had no grain to reserves to give and it led to violent protests

How long did the revolt at Tambov last?

Almost a year (August 1920 - July 1921)

What were the problems with the workers that led to the abandonment of War Communism?

• Repeated strikes from 1920 - 1921

• The Cheka had to break up food demonstrations - regular soldiers refused to fire on the people

What did urban workers especially hate?

• Food shortages

• Hijacked unions

• Militarised factories

When did the bread ration decrease by 1/3 in some cities?

22 January 1921

What is martial law?

Civilian government replaced by military presence

Where was martial law imposed?

Moscow and Petrograd

What were the problems with the Kronstadt soldiers that led to the abandonment of War Communism?

• Soldiers supported worker strikes

• A large revolt against the Bolsheviks broke out

When was the revolt against the Bolsheviks?

March 1921

What did the rebels demand?

• Free elections

• Freedom of speech

• Liberation of political prisoners

• Multi-party democracy

• Peasant freedom

Who was sent to Kronstadt to put down the demonstrations?

Marshal Tukhachevsky

What happened to ringleaders of the Kronstadt rebellion against the Bolsheviks?

They were shot without trial

Where were other participants of the Kronstadt rebellion against the Bolsheviks sent?

Solovetsky (the first big Russian labour camp)

What were the problems with the party that led to the abandonment of War Communism?

Alexander Shlyapknikov and Alexandra Kollantai started the Workers' Opposition

Why did Shlyapknikov and Kollantai create the Workers' Opposition?

• They wanted workers to have more control of their own affairs

• They supported complaints about single managers and violent organisation of factories

• They criticised Trotsky's plan to make trade unions agencies of the state

How long was the trade union a topic of debate within the party?

Until the end of 1920