Rise of the USSR: From Tsarist Russia to Soviet Power
The Fall of Tsarist Russia
Opposition to the Tsar
Russia’s Tsar ruled under an absolutist political regime, creating a stark divide between rural and urban life. The peasantry faced unfair conditions, while significant industrial development occurred in cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg. The Tsarist regime relied heavily on the Tsarina and the bureaucracy. In the latter half of the 19th century, opposition movements emerged.
- Among the peasantry: Populists advocating for land redistribution and anarchists employing terrorism.
- Among the working class: The influence of Marxism led to the founding of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP), which later split into Bolsheviks and Mensheviks. The Bolsheviks advocated for a socialist revolution, while the Mensheviks believed a bourgeois revolution was necessary first.
The 1905 Revolution
Causes: Economic hardship, the influence of opposition movements, the need for change, defeats against Japan, and a deep economic crisis.
Development: Bloody Sunday, marked by the army’s repression of peaceful protesters, ignited widespread unrest.
Result: The formation of the first Soviets (led by Trotsky), a decisive break between the Tsar and the people, and the initiation of legislative and social reforms.
The Revolutions of 1917
February 1917
Context: World War I, territorial losses, a plummeting economy, and a significant demographic impact fueled discontent among the population and the army.
Causes: The failure of reforms, widespread hunger, military defeats, and the Tsarist regime’s ineffectiveness.
Trigger: A general strike in St. Petersburg involving workers, peasants, and soldiers.
Consequences: The abdication of the Tsar and the emergence of two competing powers: the Provisional Government, which proposed bourgeois freedoms and an eight-hour workday, and the Petrograd Soviet, controlled by the Bolsheviks. Between February and October, these two powers battled for control.
October 1917
The Socialist Revolution: Lenin, guided by his April Theses, played a central role. A crisis within the Provisional Government led to Kerensky becoming the new president. An unsuccessful attempt to restore the Tsar followed. Bolshevik influence grew, culminating in the October Revolution.
The October Revolution: The socialist revolution began in Petrograd, where Trotsky, as President of the Petrograd Soviet, opposed the Council of the Republic called by Kerensky. Uprisings by sailors and workers, with the crucial participation of the Red Guard (founded by Trotsky), led to the storming of the Winter Palace.
The Aftermath
Civil War
Cause: Resistance from the anti-Bolshevik White Army, composed of Tsarist military officers, the aristocracy, wealthy peasants, and Cossacks. The White Army received foreign support from France, England, the USA, Poland, and Japan.
Defense of the Soviet State: The Red Army, controlled by the Bolsheviks, defended the Soviet state.
Consequences: The disappearance of the royal family, White Army offensives and foreign intervention in Odessa, Baku, and Petrograd, and the ultimate defeat of the White Army.
War Communism
The Bolsheviks took full control of the Soviet state and economy. Measures included the nationalization of industry, agricultural production controls, nationalization of banking, commerce, and transport, and control over workers.
Consequences: The end of the war, shortages in some cities, and a shift in economic policy.
Creation of the USSR
Lenin and the Bolsheviks viewed the Russian Revolution as the first step towards a world revolution. European powers, alarmed by this revolutionary spirit, supported the counter-revolutionaries, leading to civil war. Trotsky organized the Red Army and secured victory. The USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) was then created with a federal structure and a new constitution.
The New Economic Policy (NEP)
The NEP combined elements of socialism and capitalism. Its goals were to raise the population’s standard of living and increase production.
Negative Consequences: Social and economic inequalities emerged, particularly among small businessmen and farmers.
Political Changes: A new federal state was established.
Post-Lenin Power Struggle and Stalinism
After Lenin’s death in 1924, a power struggle ensued. Stalin consolidated power by 1928 and established a totalitarian regime.
Features of Stalinism:
- A cult of personality identifying Stalin with the state and society.
- A monopolistic party and mass propaganda.
- Marxism-Leninism became solely Stalin’s interpretation, with dissenters executed or exiled.
- Repression of perceived enemies of the USSR (millions died between 1930 and 1940).
- The concept of “Socialism in One Country” (USSR).
- A planned economy implemented through Five-Year Plans, collectivization of land (creating kolkhozy (collective farms) and sovkhozy (state farms)), and prioritizing heavy industry over consumer goods.
Early Soviet Government
The Bolsheviks implemented Marx’s theses in April 1917.
- The Decree on Nationalities was issued.
- Power was divided between an executive branch (Council of People’s Commissars) and a legislative branch (Council of Soviets).
- After the November elections, which the Mensheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries won, the Bolsheviks dissolved the parliament using the Red Guard.
- In March 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed, resulting in Russia losing 15% of its territory and 25% of its population.
- In July 1918, a constitution was adopted, establishing the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR).
From War Communism to the NEP and the USSR
In 1921, the Soviet government transitioned from War Communism to the New Economic Policy (NEP), incorporating capitalist elements.
NEP Measures:
- Free trade of surplus agricultural produce.
- Free disposal of land.
- Reintroduction of currency.
- State control of heavy industry.
Problems: High prices and speculation.
The USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) was formed in 1922.
Third International:
Founded in Moscow in 1919, the Third International aimed to improve political, economic, and labor conditions, and to unite revolutionary political forces internationally, under the leadership of Lenin and Trotsky.