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    History: Revolution and Foundation (1917-1927)

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    mindenreis159
    The document provides a history of the Soviet Union from its foundation in 1917 through the Stalin era until 1953. It discusses the Russian Revolution and establishment of the Soviet state under Lenin. It then describes the Russian Civil War, formation of the USSR in 1922, and the early years of Soviet power under the New Economic Policy. Finally, it outlines Stalin's rise to power as General Secretary in the 1920s and his implementation of collectivization and rapid industrialization through five-year plans in the late 1920s and 1930s, which led to famines and social upheaval.

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    History: Revolution and Foundation (1917-1927)

    Uploaded by

    mindenreis159
    52 views4 pages
    The document provides a history of the Soviet Union from its foundation in 1917 through the Stalin era until 1953. It discusses the Russian Revolution and establishment of the Soviet state under Lenin. It then describes the Russian Civil War, formation of the USSR in 1922, and the early years of Soviet power under the New Economic Policy. Finally, it outlines Stalin's rise to power as General Secretary in the 1920s and his implementation of collectivization and rapid industrialization through five-year plans in the late 1920s and 1930s, which led to famines and social upheaval.

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    The document provides a history of the Soviet Union from its foundation in 1917 through the Stalin era until 1953. It discusses the Russian Revolution and establishment of the Soviet state under Lenin. It then describes the Russian Civil War, formation of the USSR in 1922, and the early years of Soviet power under the New Economic Policy. Finally, it outlines Stalin's rise to power as General Secretary in the 1920s and his implementation of collectivization and rapid industrialization through five-year plans in the late 1920s and 1930s, which led to famines and social upheaval.

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    52 views4 pages

    History: Revolution and Foundation (1917-1927)

    Uploaded by

    mindenreis159
    The document provides a history of the Soviet Union from its foundation in 1917 through the Stalin era until 1953. It discusses the Russian Revolution and establishment of the Soviet state under Lenin. It then describes the Russian Civil War, formation of the USSR in 1922, and the early years of Soviet power under the New Economic Policy. Finally, it outlines Stalin's rise to power as General Secretary in the 1920s and his implementation of collectivization and rapid industrialization through five-year plans in the late 1920s and 1930s, which led to famines and social upheaval.

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    History

    Main article: History of the Soviet Union

    Revolution and foundation (1917–1927)


    Main articles: Russian Revolution and History of Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union (1917–
    1927)

    Vladimir Lenin, founder of the Soviet Union and the leader of the Bolshevik party.

    Leon Trotsky, founder of the Red Army and a key figure in the October Revolution.

    Lenin, Trotsky and Kamenev celebrating the second


    anniversary of the October Revolution
    Modern revolutionary activity in the Russian Empire began with the 1825 Decembrist revolt.
    Although serfdom was abolished in 1861, it was done on terms unfavourable to the peasants and
    served to encourage revolutionaries. A parliament—the State Duma—was established in 1906
    after the Russian Revolution of 1905, but Emperor Nicholas II resisted attempts to move
    from absolute to a constitutional monarchy. Social unrest continued and was aggravated
    during World War I by military defeat and food shortages in major cities.
    A spontaneous popular demonstration in Petrograd on 8 March 1917, demanding peace and
    bread, culminated in the February Revolution and the abdication of Nicholas II and the imperial
    government.[14] The tsarist autocracy was replaced by the social-democratic Russian Provisional
    Government, which intended to conduct elections to the Russian Constituent Assembly and to
    continue fighting on the side of the Entente in World War I. At the same time, workers' councils,
    known in Russian as 'Soviets', sprang up across the country, and the most influential of them,
    the Petrograd Soviet of Workers' and Soldiers' Deputies, shared power with the Provisional
    Government.[7][8] 50,000 workers had passed a resolution in favour of Bolshevik demand for
    transfer of power to the soviets.[15][16]
    The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, pushed for communist revolution in the Soviets and on the
    streets, adopting the slogan of "All Power to the Soviets" and urging the overthrow of the
    Provisional Government.[17][18] On 7 November 1917, Bolshevik Red Guards stormed the Winter
    Palace in Petrograd, arresting the Provisional Government leaders and Lenin declared that all
    power was now transferred to the Soviets.[10][8] This event would later be officially known in Soviet
    bibliographies as the "Great October Socialist Revolution". Lenin's government instituted a
    number of progressive measures such as universal education, universal healthcare and equal
    rights for women.[19][20][21] Conversely, the bloody Red Terror was initiated to shut down all
    opposition, both perceived and real.[22] In December, the Bolsheviks signed an armistice with
    the Central Powers, though by February 1918, fighting had resumed. In March, the Soviets ended
    involvement in the war and signed the separate peace Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

    Dissolution of the elected Russian Constituent Assembly by


    the Bolsheviks on 6 January 1918
    A long and bloody Civil War ensued between the Reds and the Whites, starting in 1917 and
    ending in 1923 with the Reds' victory. It included foreign intervention, the murder of the former
    Emperor and his family, and the famine of 1921–1922, which killed about five million people.[23] In
    March 1921, during a related war against Poland, the Peace of Riga was signed, splitting
    disputed territories in Belarus and Ukraine between the Republic of Poland and Soviet Russia.
    Soviet Russia sought to re-conquer all newly independent nations of the former Empire, although
    their success was limited. Estonia, Finland, Latvia, and Lithuania all repelled Soviet invasions,
    while Ukraine, Belarus (as a result of the Polish–Soviet
    War), Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia were occupied by the Red Army.[24][25] Additionally, forced
    requisition of food by the Soviet government led to substantial resistance, of which the most
    notable was the Tambov Rebellion, ultimately put down by the Red Army.[26]

    Russian Civil War in the European part of Russia


    The Civil War had a devastating impact on the economy. A black market emerged in Russia,
    despite the threat of martial law against profiteering. The ruble collapsed, with barter increasingly
    replacing money as a medium of exchange[27] and, by 1921, heavy industry output had fallen to
    20% of 1913 levels. 90% of wages were paid with goods rather than money. [28] 70% of
    locomotives were in need of repair[citation needed], and food requisitioning, combined with the effects of
    seven years of war and a severe drought, contributed to a famine that caused between 3 and 10
    million deaths.[29] Coal production decreased from 27.5 million tons (1913) to 7 million tons (1920),
    while overall factory production also declined from 10,000 million roubles to 1,000 million roubles.
    According to the noted historian David Christian, the grain harvest was also slashed from 80.1
    million tons (1913) to 46.5 million tons (1920).[30]
    Treaty on the Creation of the USSR
    On 28 December 1922, a conference of plenipotentiary delegations from the Russian SFSR,
    the Transcaucasian SFSR, the Ukrainian SSR and the Byelorussian SSR approved the Treaty on
    the Creation of the USSR[31] and the Declaration of the Creation of the USSR, forming the Union
    of Soviet Socialist Republics.[32] These two documents were confirmed by the first Congress of
    Soviets of the USSR and signed by the heads of the delegations,[33] Mikhail Kalinin, Mikhail
    Tskhakaya, Mikhail Frunze, Grigory Petrovsky and Alexander Chervyakov,[34] on 30 December
    1922. The formal proclamation was made from the stage of the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow.
    An intensive restructuring of the economy, industry and politics of the country began in the early
    days of Soviet power in 1917. A large part of this was done according to the Bolshevik Initial
    Decrees, government documents signed by Vladimir Lenin. One of the most prominent
    breakthroughs was the GOELRO plan, which envisioned a major restructuring of the Soviet
    economy based on total electrification of Russia.[35] The plan became the prototype for
    subsequent Five-Year Plans and was fulfilled by 1931.[36] After the economic policy of 'War
    communism' during the Russian Civil War, as a prelude to fully developing socialism in the
    country, the Soviet government permitted some private enterprise to coexist alongside
    nationalized industry in the 1920s, and total food requisition in the countryside was replaced by a
    food tax.

    The Russian famine of 1921–22 killed an estimated 5


    million people.
    [37][38]

    From its creation, the government in the Soviet Union was based on the one-party rule of
    the Communist Party (Bolsheviks).[z] The stated purpose was to prevent the return of capitalist
    exploitation, and that the principles of democratic centralism would be the most effective in
    representing the people's will in a practical manner. The debate over the future of the economy
    provided the background for a power struggle in the years after Lenin's death in 1924. Initially,
    Lenin was to be replaced by a 'troika' consisting of Grigory Zinoviev of the Ukrainian SSR, Lev
    Kamenev of the Russian SFSR, and Joseph Stalin of the Transcaucasian SFSR.
    On 1 February 1924, the USSR was recognized by the United Kingdom. [citation needed] The same year,
    a Soviet Constitution was approved, legitimizing the December 1922 union.
    According to Archie Brown the constitution was never an accurate guide to political reality in the
    USSR. For example, the fact that the Party played the leading role in making and enforcing policy
    was not mentioned in it until 1977.[39] The USSR was a federative entity of many constituent
    republics, each with its own political and administrative entities. However, the term 'Soviet
    Russia' – formally applicable only to the Russian Federative Socialist Republic – was often
    applied to the entire country by non-Soviet writers due to its domination by the Russian SFSR.
    Stalin era (1927–1953)
    Main article: History of the Soviet Union (1927–1953)
    See also: Excess mortality in the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin

    The Soviet famine of 1930–1933, with areas where the effects of


    famine were most severe shaded
    On 3 April 1922, Stalin was named the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet
    Union. Lenin had appointed Stalin the head of the Workers' and Peasants' Inspectorate, which
    gave Stalin considerable power.[40] By gradually consolidating his influence and isolating and
    outmaneuvering his rivals within the party, Stalin became the undisputed leader of the country
    and, by the end of the 1920s, established a totalitarian rule. In October 1927, Zinoviev and Leon
    Trotsky were expelled from the Central Committee and forced into exile.
    In 1928, Stalin introduced the first five-year plan for building a socialist economy. In place of
    the internationalism expressed by Lenin throughout the revolution, it aimed to build Socialism in
    One Country. In industry, the state assumed control over all existing enterprises and undertook
    an intensive program of industrialization. In agriculture, rather than adhering to the 'lead by
    example' policy advocated by Lenin,[41] forced collectivization of farms was implemented all over
    the country.
    Famines ensued as a result, causing deaths estimated at three to seven million;
    surviving kulaks (wealthy or middle-class peasants) were persecuted, and many were sent
    to Gulags to do forced labor.[42][43] Social upheaval continued in the mid-1930s. Despite the turmoil
    of the mid-to-late 1930s, the country developed a robust industrial economy in the years
    preceding World War II.

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