Zusammenfassung der Ressource
Growth in support for the Bolsheviks
- LENIN
- Living in exile during feb.rev
- HISTORIANS;disagree about specifics but
all agree that Germans helped Lenin
back to Russiain the hopes that he would
distabilise the country + help them win
the war
- Upon L return, people cheered as he
came off the train in the Petrograd
- Also greeted
by Mensh.
chairman who
said they
didnt need his
help
- L pushed him aside + made a welcome speech stating that revolution was far from complete
- APRIL THESIS
- Called for;
worldwide socialist
rev, immediate end
to the war, end to
co-operation w PG,
the soviet to take
power, land to be
given to the
peasants
- 'Pravda' published thesis on 7th April
- L attitude alienated prominent socialists, members of the PS =
even some of his own party
- many saw him as too radical to be taken seriously
- H/ever slogans like 'Peace, bread + land' appealed to soldiers,
ind. workers + peasants
- PHILLIPS: argues that L realised Russias 3 major problems needed
answered immediatley + wasnt willing to wait for the supposed process
of history to occur
- PHILLIPS: Theses was less Marxist + more anti-pg propaganda
- L called for a revolution + end to war
- FIGES: many saw this as too far removed from the Marxist ideal
- TROTSKY: saw it as
holding up the
Bolsh. ideology.
- PIPES: Lenin controlled a well
organised + disciplined rev. party
who directed the masses
- SERVICE + READ: Lenin was a key figure, saying that w/o his drive + persistence there probably
wouldnt have been an oct.rev
- EARLY ATTEMPTED COUPS
- 1st attempt- in late April due to a disagreement w PG
about how to get Russia out of the war
- Bolsh. tried to agitate
demonstrating military
personnel by demanding an end
to the PG h/ever crowds
dissipated w/out the coup
- Several other coups were attempted during spring + summer as they wanted to entice the masses
into bringing another rev.
- FITZPATRICK: it was the people -worker,
soldiers + peasants- who created the
circumstances in which the Bolsheviks
could operate
- SERVICE + READ: hallmarks of a coup are present in the way that the Bolsh. seized power
- WAR
- SEE 'Problems with the PG' + 'October Rev.'
- Struggle between Soviet wanting early peace + Minister of war wanting to fight on (Lead to his
resignation)
- Mensh. + SRs lost lots of support after the June offensive
- LAND + TRADE
- The land issue combined w food shortages fueled unrest in cities + at
the front
- Growing radicalism due to breakdown in trade + frsutration at
national policies (inflation, war etc) - lead to july days
- MAYBE NO GROWTH ??
- Oct.rev. was more against the PG than for Bolsh.
- for many Oct.Rev was a coup as
Lenin + his evil 'minority' took
over
- Workers didnt think Bolsh. would run Russia
alone + when they did this led to
consternation
- They seemed Bolsh. in mood but they only supported them if certain conditions were met
- Constituent assembly elections
reveal the ltd support for the Bolsh.
they gained 24% of the votes whilst
the SRs gained 53%
- WILLIAMS: "Workers + soldiers might support the oct.rev + vote for the Bolsh.
but this did not necessarily imply support for one party to rule or indeed for
Bolshevik policies