CLIL: Russian Revolution

1. Preview

In 1862 the tzar Alexander the 2° abolished the serfdom in order to transform the country in an industrial power (until the middle of the XIX century the economy of Russia was predominantly agricultural with primitive tools.

(NOTE: serfdom is a legal status according to which a man belongs to the land and not to a master. Between slavery and liberty).

The majority of the industries were situated near Petrograd (but also around Moscow and Rostov.

Alexander dreamt Russia to become a great military power so all the industries were heavy (infrastructure, steel, military).

The first consequence of this decision was that peasants in the rural areas lost their economic security: previously they were considered to be workforce and therefore job security was ensured to all; from then on, that was no longer the case. 

He totally destroyed the MIR experiences (MIR were rural areas where peasants used to share fields and tools).

This revolution was inspired by Marxist theories but, paradoxically, these theories wanted a revolution in an industrial country with workers and bourgeoisie. 

Encouraging the military industry was Tsar’s decision aimed at leading Russia to be a world power and in 1904 the Tzar Nicola the II invaded Manchuria (China) against Japan. Russia was defeated and this humiliation brought numerous protests calling for political reforms. Nicola did not want to satisfy any of these requests. That is why workers start the "Russian revolution" (as written in several Newspapers in Europe). It was during that revolution that the factories lead by workers with the assemblies of Soviets appeared for the first time.

Nicola decided to adopt some reforms, one of which was aimed at establishing a parliament (DUMA) by universal suffrage.

Actually, this Duma was closed many times (every time it took wrong decisions in Tzar's opinion) but it made it possible to maintain a period of internal peace until 1917.

2. First World War

Russia entered the First World War on the 1° of August 1914, in order to defend Serbia attacked from Austria. On the same day Germany declared war against Russia and France started its war plan called Schlieffen plan.

According to this plan Germany had to have all its army deployed on the eastern borders before the arrival of the Russian Army. However, since on the western front (against France) Germany had troubles arriving in Paris on time, in the east the war was longer than expected.

The Russian army was large but not well equipped , which is why Russia paid the war with a huge death toll  (1 million every six months). 

As if to say: Russia resists many months on the front only because it has an infinite number of soldiers to send to die.

Until 1917, when something happened.

3. February 1917

The revolution began on the 23 of February in Petrograd as a result of a general strike that was a great trouble also in order to supply the army at the front.

Nicholas tried to force the strike calling the army from the front but also a strike of the workers on the railroad prevents the repression. 

The string spread to the rest of the country and the 2° of March, the tzar abdicated in favor of the prince Lvov. At the Duma a new assembly was called to decide the new order.

Meanwhile, in the factories we had the new experience of the Soviets where a new conflict was between Mensheviks (in favor of gradual reforms) and Bolsheviks (in favor of a dictatorship of the proletariat).

The 3° of April, Lenin, returned from Switzerland (by train, helped by the German Army who was hoping that Lenin could take out Russia from the war) and pronounced the "thesis of April": all the power to the soviets! So: the nationalization of the industry and collectivization of the land and distribution of it to peasants. So: end of the war.

But in the Duma the idea of the assembly was to not exit the war. Lvov assigned the government to Kerenskij who tried to transform the country into a liberal country but in order of this he had also to repress the revolution, but he failed.

4. October 1917

During the summer, Kerensky lost public support and the support of Bolsheviks increased.

On the night of the 24th of October, they occupied the Winter Palace, the residence of the tzar.

A new government was born:

• Lenin - president
• Trotsky - foreign minister

and for the first time All Russian Congress of Soviets was convened.

The first acts of Lenin were:

• Peace with Germany (3 of March: Brest Litovsk which imposes very hard conditions, losing Baltic states, Ukraine and Belarus).
• Suppression of larges estates
• Distribution of land to peasants
• Control of factories to Soviets

It was born a dictatorship of proletariats.

5. The civil war

During the summer of 1918 many fighters (called the White Army) wanted to restore the monarchy with the support of western countries.

In order to prevent the restoration, the royal family of Romanov was killed the 16th of July 1918 by the Bolsheviks starting the red terror against political competitors.

Trotsky formed the "red army" in order to stop the civil war and also to stop the armies of foreign countries that wanted to repress the communism and revolution in Russia and taking advantage of Russia's weakness.

6. Third international

During the civil war, Bolsheviks found the Communist Party and moved the capital to Moscow.

In order to defend the Revolution from internal and external enemies Lenin found the "Third international" (Comintern).

Inside this assembly, two men had these opposite positions:

in one hand, Trotsky, wanted this assembly to extend the revolution to other countries (helping local Communist parties, like in Germany); in the other hand, Stalin, who wanted to use the assembly to defend the revolution only in Russia (using other communist parties to make opposition in their countries).

This international split the socialism in three tendencies:

• communists, who wanted to follow the Russian example
• socialists, who wanted the defeat of the capitalism but without revolution
• social democrats, improving society with reforms

7. Economics

During the civil war, Lenin approved an economics way called "War Communism" which provoked a collapse of agricultural and industrial production.

In 1921 a military revolt in Kronstadt and a peasant insurrection were suppressed with incredible violence.

Lenin understood that it was necessary to improve the material conditions of the population and in March of 1921, he launched the New Economic Policy (NEP) - until 1928.

The most important industrial and agricultural production remained in the hands of the State but the NEP left the small businesses to privates. NeP legalized the free trade and bank credit (under the State control).

The NEP lifted the Russian economy.

In December 1922 USSR (Union of Soviets Socialists Republics) was born adopting federalism.

In 1924 the Constitution turned the soviets in basic institutions, from the local level up to the Congress of the Soviets.

At the death of Lenin, a big struggle start at the party between Trotsky and Stalin.