How Did Lenin Influence The Bolsheviks

In the early nineteen hundreds, Russia was ruled by Czar Nicholas II. He was the last in line of a long line of monarchs called Romanovs. By 1915 , most of the Russian people had lost complete faith in the Czar. Many factors include the corruption of the Russian government, approximately 3 quarters of Russia was poverty stricken, substandard working conditions and wages, and the dreadful involvement in World War I. Russia’s political problems during the Russian Revolution caused a major shift in people’s lives government, and religion. In 1917, there were two revolutions that took place in March and October.

One man, Vladimir Lenin saw that Russia was spiraling downwards, having lost two battles in a row and having the highest death count out of all the European countries he saw that a change was needed. Lenin was the leader of the Bolsheviks who were a communist group that wanted to draw out of the war and over thrown Czar Nicholas II. Preaching peace, and food he wanted, ¨the offer of peace, the salvation of Petrograd, salvation from famine, and the transfer of land to the peasants who depended on them,¨ (Document 8). People were drawn into this and, ¨increasingly taken in by the propagandists of the united Socialist Party and their internationalis ideas,¨ (Document 9). This combined with high death rates, starvation, communist ideals started the overthrow of Russia and the end of the war.

The Russian Revolution of 1917 marked one of the most radical turning points in the country’s 1,300-year history and established the Soviet Union as a Communist state. Russia in the 19th century was a massive empire stretching from Poland to the Pacific. Ruling such a massive country was quite the undertaking, especially because the long-term problems within Russia were approaching the surface. In 1917, these problems finally produced a revolution, which completely wiped the old system away. The Russian Revolution was a rebellion executed by the Russian people against the Russian elite.

The infamous actions on Bloody Sunday had been set in stone. There was no changing the fact that thousands of workers had marched peacefully to the Winter Palace to deliver their petition for reformed working conditions, which had ultimately left many killed by the Russian military. However, it was the changing perspectives in the 1900s and the present day that illustrate how dynamic the event truly was. By analyzing what Bloody Sunday meant politically to the Russian populace, the major political figure of the country, and foreign nations, it seems evident that the event had once been understood as a failed event that ended in tragedy. Nonetheless, the event was now regarded well and a method towards revolution, and the newly positive perspective ultimately revealed how time has diminished the true tragedy of Bloody Sunday.

Trotsky’s role in the Russian revolution was extensive in its nature. As best overall described by the encyclopedia Brittanica, “Trotsky hailed the outbreak of revolution in Russia in February as the opening of the permanent revolution he had predicted. He reached Petrograd in mid-May and assumed the leadership of a left-wing Menshevik faction. Following the abortive July Days uprising, Trotsky was arrested in the crackdown on the Bolshevik leadership carried out by Aleksandr Kerensky’s liberal government. In August, while still in jail, Trotsky was formally admitted to the Bolshevik Party and was also elected to membership on the Bolshevik Central Committee.

Early 20th century Russia was a hotbed for political discontent. The 1900s saw an increase in rebellion, riot, and opposition to the incompetent and unpopular Tsar Nicholas II (McCauley). New political parties, based on the theories of Marxism, began to gain power amongst the lower class workers and peasants (McCauley 17). By 1917, a series of unfavorable policies including Russia’s involvement in WWI led to the eventual crumbling of the Tsarist regime (McCauley). In February of 1917, the Tsar was forced to abdicate his position as head of the state, and a new provisional government, led by members of the former Duma, was set up in his place (McCauley 14).

1924, Lenin has passed away, Stalin now will pursue to take his power. “Switzerland, appointed Joseph Stalin to serve on the first Central Committee of the Bolshevik Party.” Stalin began have state control of individuals by enforcing rapid industrialization hoping this

Without the brutal help of Cheka it would be very difficult for Bolsheviks. After the civil war everything had changed. The old state, upper classes, and much of the intelligentsia were gone dead or abroad. In their place was the new party-state the core of which was the Communist Party.

The Russian revolution resulted in the overthrow of the country’s monarchy and the establishment of the Soviet Union. It started off with many protests and strikes that forced Tsar Nicholas II out of power. As a result, a provisional government was put in place but it was weak and ineffective so the Bolsheviks took control and established a socialist government. The Bolshevik Revolution was caused by a combination of unstable and corrupt monarchies, unfair treatment of the populace, and a lagging industry, which eventually led to the creation of the USSR.

Andre Abi Haidar PSPA 210 INTRODUCTION It is always difficult to write about and discuss Karl Marx, or more importantly the applications of Marx’s theories, due to the fact that he inspired and gave rise to many movements and revolutionaries, not all of which follow his theories to the point. Although Marx tends to be equated with Communism, it might not seem righteous to blame him for whatever shortcomings occurred when his theories were put to the test; Marx passed away well before the revolution in Russia, and he played no role in the emergence of the totalitarian regime at the time. When discussing Marx, however, Vladimir Lenin is one of the biggest highlights when it comes to studying the outcomes of Marx’s theories.

The overthrow of the Russian Tsarist autocracy by the urban proletariat in 1917 was the most significant event in Russian history. There were many phases of the revolution during 1905 and 1917. Since the foundation of industrialization in Russia during the late 19th century, a number of important events had taken place which would inevitably add to cause a rebellion against the Tsar Nicholas’s system of government. One of the fundamental problems that initiated the October Revolution of 1917 was due to the fact that Russia was ruled almost exclusively autocratically. With only one ruler controlling the large nation of 125 million people, this simply was not enough.

Revolutionists explanation of October Revolution is based on the importance of the force of the masses which created the revolutionary nature of the society leading to cardinal reforms. Lenin was indeed a key figure and the Bolshevik party was able to meet the demand of the masses which raised their popularity. This view shows a direct conflict between a revolutionist and liberal ‘totalitarian’ schools that implements Lenin and Stalin as the only people that caused terror and emplaced control over

Trotsky also accepted Lenin’s retreat from ideal communistic ways in favor of the New Economic Policy. This however didn’t stop Trotsky from losing political influence at the tenth Party Congress in March 1921. (Daniels

6). Even though important figures in the government did not join ranks with the Bolsheviks, many workers and soldiers began to support the Bolshevik party after the February Revolution when Vladimir Ilich Lenin protested for peace and insisted that Soviets, workers’ councils, should take authority and could improve the country. Months after the February Revolution, in October, the Bolsheviks officially ruled Russia, (Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica par. 4). After the October Revolution in 1917, As dictator, Lenin fought in a civil war against the White Army, an anti-Bolshevik force.

The Russian Revolution, which was started by Lenin and his followers, was a rebellion that occurred in 1917 which forced higher powers to act to the needs of the lower class. For instance, many citizens were worried for their protection in consequence to the lack of survival necessities due to an early drought. Furthermore, their current czar during the time was incapable for his position as a czar and made horrendous decisions as czar. For example, when the czar, Nicholas, entered in World War I, he sent untrained troops into countless battles of failure which costed in mass amounts of lost life (paragraph 23).