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06 THE BIRTH OF THE SOVIET UNION, image, image, image - Coggle Diagram
06 THE BIRTH OF THE SOVIET UNION
The Russian Civil War and foreign intervention
After years of war and months of revolutionary upheaval, the economic situation in Russia was chaotic
opposition of certain political sectors to the revolutionary decrees and the growing power of the Bolsheviks led to the emergence of counterrevolutionary armed groups
Foreign powers saw the October Revolution as a serious threat
in the long term it aspired to create a communist society without social classes
more immediately, Russia’s exit from the war and the announcement that the debts contracted by the tsar would not be paid, were detrimental to the Triple Entente allies
Soviets made no secret of their intention to extend the revolution to the whole world
led several countries to intervene militarily in Russia to end the revolution
British, Americans, French and Japanese sent troops to support the Russian counterrevolutionaries in a civil war
was fought by two groups
White Army
made up of counterrevolutionaries that had the backing of foreign powers
Red Army
organised by the revolutionary government
The Soviet state
From a political point of view, the civil war helped to consolidate the regime that emerged from the October Revolution
ounterrevolutionary forces were led by former aristocrats and landowners who wished to regain power and wealth
alienated them from the people
presence of foreign armies was still perceived as an aggression
revolutionary institutions were consolidated and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) or the Soviet Union was formed in 1922
On an economic level, the response to the war situation was a policy called War Communism
state militarised industry, seized food and imposed forced labour
Most people went hungry and protests spread even among members of the Communist Party
government consolidated a one-party dictatorship
Congress of Soviets was controlled by the Bolsheviks
Secret Police, the Cheka, persecuted dissidents, critics and counterrevolutionaries
At the end of the civil war, the economic situation was critical
solution was the New Economic Policy (NEP)
a mixed system combining elements of capitalism and socialism
lasted from 1921 to 1928
was a remarkable economic recovery, which resulted in a considerable increase in agricultural production and the emergence of wealthy agricultural owners known as kulaks
electrification plan of the Soviet Union was carried out
was key to the country’s economic transformation
Lenin died in January 1924, and the first stage of Soviet history was closed
he expressed concern for the failure of the long-awaited world revolution and criticised the Soviet state he was leaving behind
He also warned about the problems that could arise with two of the most important members of the Soviet Government, Trotsky and Stalin
