Russia Under Lenin

Russia under Lenin  The Bolshevik’s Revolution was successful  Lenin became the leader of the country; Trotsky was appointed Commissar of Foreign Affairs and War; and Stalin was the commissar of Nationalities

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk  After setting up a communist government Lenin concluded the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk with Germany in March 1918  By the treaty Russia ceded Poland and her Baltic lands (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) to Germany. Finland and the Ukraine gained independence  There was a huge reparations to Germany (6,000,000,000 Deutsche Marks)

According to the Treaty, Russia had to surrendered:  25% of her territories;  44% of her population;  33% of her agricultural production;  73 and 75% of her iron and coal production Nevertheless, Lenin fulfilled his promise of bring peace to Russia

The Constituent Assembly  In the election to the Constituent Assembly in December, 1917, the Bolsheviks got only 25% of the seats.  As the Bolsheviks could not control the Assembly, Lenin dissolved it and announced that the Soviet would take up the job of drafting the new constitution  Russia became a one-party dictatorship country

The political organization under Lenin  Lenin adopted the Soviet system as the Russian political structure:  Workers, peasants and soldiers (the proletariats) established their soviets and sent representatives to the all Russian Congress of Soviets, which elected the Central Executive Committee  The Central Executive Committee elected the Council of Commissars

 In 1922, the socialist republics formed the Union of Soviet  As the Bolshevik Party (the Russian Communist Party after 1918) was the only legal political party, the Party controlled the whole Russia

The Civil War  After the October Revolution, the Bolsheviks controlled only about 30% of Russian territory.  There were still many local governments and military leaders either loyal to the Czar or the Provisional government  With the support of foreign countries, these oppositions formed the “White” to fight against the “Red” (the Communist)  A Civil War broke out in 1917

 Several White Russian governments were established in different parts of the country  Foreign countries , such as France, Britain, the U.S. and Japan intervened into the Civil War and supported the “Whites”  Lenin’s government survived because the “Whites” did not have good co-operation, and the foreign retreated their support after WWI

“War Communism” 

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The Bolshevik government under Lenin carried out an experiment, Moreover, to ensure that the Red Army had adequate war supplies: Private property and trade were abolished; Natural resources and land were declared owned by the government; All manufacturing industries, transports, banks, public services were made state operated; Cash economy was replaced by barter

5. Workers were paid with wage-cards instead of cash 6. Peasants had to surrender all their surplus grain and live-stocks; 7. People had to ration for food, shelter and cloth with cards 8. The Red Army was allowed to get their supplies from the people without any payment. Any opponent to War communism would be executed by Cheka

 On one hand , War Communism achieved its aim of ensuring adequate supplies to the Red Army  One the other hand, It met a great opposition from the people  The Soviet economy was near total collapse

Lenin’s NEP  Lenin introduce the New Economic Policy (NEP)  Capitalist measures were taken to revive agricultural and industrial production  After paying a fixed tax in grain, peasants were allowed to keep the surplus or sell it on the free market  Small businesses and non strategic industries were allowed to operate again

 Lenin regarded the NEP as a temporary measure, or taking “One step backward in order to take two steps forward”  The result was that the Soviet Union was on the road to economic recovery.  By 1927, the national economy was back to its 1913 levels.

Foreign relations under Lenin  Lenin realized the importance of foreign recognition of his country, particularly after the Civil war  Through diplomatic channels, he first resumed trade relations with other countries, followed by diplomatic relations

 Since Russia wanted to promote ‘World Revolution’, the Third Communist International was established in Moscow in 1919  The propaganda of the Comintern antagonized other countries, which then became hesitant in establishing diplomatic relations with Soviet Russia