Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution
Russia entered World War I under the leadership of Czar Nicholas II. However, the country lagged behind much of the rest of Europe. Its technology was not as advanced, and it lacked modern industrialization. Despite Nicholas’ willingness to fight, Russia was not prepared for war. The nation was poor. Many peasants were starving. The fighting only sapped more money and food away from Russia’s citizens to support the war effort. Millions of Russians, both soldiers and civilians, suffered and died. As the war and misery dragged on, the czar became more unpopular. People of all classes began calling for change in the Russian government. The Russian Revolution finally erupted in 1917. Among the lower working classes, strikes broke out. When Czar Nicholas II ordered troops to put down the uprisings, many of his soldiers switched sides and joined the rebellious crowds. On March 12, Czar Nicholas II surrendered power to a new government.
Meanwhile, a Russian revolutionary named Lenin watched from exile. Lenin had long opposed the czarist regime and fled to Switzerland after being arrested for his revolutionary views and imprisoned in Siberia. He was a Marxist and became the leader of a socialist party known as the Bolsheviks. With the support of Germany, Lenin returned to Russia and led the Bolsheviks in their quest for power. Promising to redistribute land and food to the poor, put power in the hands of the people, and pull Russia out of World War I, Lenin’s party soon seized control of the Russian Government. A three-year civil war then followed between the Bolsheviks and other Russian factions that opposed their communist ideas. A number of allied countries (Great Britain, France, Japan, and the United States) also sent troops to Russia to support the anti-Communist forces and to encourage Russia to re-enter the war. However, because of a well-trained military force and a ruthless secret police force that arrested and killed citizens opposed to their regime, the Bolsheviks eventually won the civil war. By 1921, Russia was firmly in Communist hands. Its new leaders never forgot, however, the way Western nations sided with the anti-Communists, and a wall of mistrust between the West and Communist East remained firmly in place for decades to come.
Effects of the Revolution
The Russian Revolution marked one of the most influential turning points in world history. It affected social structure, economics, international relations, culture, and Russia’s development as a nation. The czar’s fall marked both the end of the Romanov Dynasty and the transfer of power in Russia from aristocrats to leaders from the lower classes. The revolution also ushered Russia into the industrial age. Many people moved out of the country and into the cities, transforming Russia from an agricultural society dominated by rural peasants, to an urban society dependent on industrial workers. The importance of education also reached new heights as the Communist Soviet Union (USSR) sought to catch up to the West.
The Bolsheviks did not forget how Western nations sided with their enemies, and they were determined to become as self-sufficient as possible. Although the Soviet Union would side with a number of these nations during World War II, its different beliefs about government and economics ultimately laid the groundwork for a new kind of war that would last for decades and spread across the entire globe.
Soviet Union
Following a famine that killed millions in Russia and the collapse of the nation’s industry, Lenin had no choice but to modify some of his communist views. He allowed a limited amount of private ownership, while still maintaining state control over large industries and banks. In 1922, he and his Communist Party established a new state: The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) or Soviet Union. Thanks to improved agricultural conditions and new policies that revived the economy, Lenin successfully saw the USSR through its first year. However, in 1924 Lenin died.
Russia entered World War I under the leadership of Czar Nicholas II. However, the country lagged behind much of the rest of Europe. Its technology was not as advanced, and it lacked modern industrialization. Despite Nicholas’ willingness to fight, Russia was not prepared for war. The nation was poor. Many peasants were starving. The fighting only sapped more money and food away from Russia’s citizens to support the war effort. Millions of Russians, both soldiers and civilians, suffered and died. As the war and misery dragged on, the czar became more unpopular. People of all classes began calling for change in the Russian government. The Russian Revolution finally erupted in 1917. Among the lower working classes, strikes broke out. When Czar Nicholas II ordered troops to put down the uprisings, many of his soldiers switched sides and joined the rebellious crowds. On March 12, Czar Nicholas II surrendered power to a new government.
Meanwhile, a Russian revolutionary named Lenin watched from exile. Lenin had long opposed the czarist regime and fled to Switzerland after being arrested for his revolutionary views and imprisoned in Siberia. He was a Marxist and became the leader of a socialist party known as the Bolsheviks. With the support of Germany, Lenin returned to Russia and led the Bolsheviks in their quest for power. Promising to redistribute land and food to the poor, put power in the hands of the people, and pull Russia out of World War I, Lenin’s party soon seized control of the Russian Government. A three-year civil war then followed between the Bolsheviks and other Russian factions that opposed their communist ideas. A number of allied countries (Great Britain, France, Japan, and the United States) also sent troops to Russia to support the anti-Communist forces and to encourage Russia to re-enter the war. However, because of a well-trained military force and a ruthless secret police force that arrested and killed citizens opposed to their regime, the Bolsheviks eventually won the civil war. By 1921, Russia was firmly in Communist hands. Its new leaders never forgot, however, the way Western nations sided with the anti-Communists, and a wall of mistrust between the West and Communist East remained firmly in place for decades to come.
Effects of the Revolution
The Russian Revolution marked one of the most influential turning points in world history. It affected social structure, economics, international relations, culture, and Russia’s development as a nation. The czar’s fall marked both the end of the Romanov Dynasty and the transfer of power in Russia from aristocrats to leaders from the lower classes. The revolution also ushered Russia into the industrial age. Many people moved out of the country and into the cities, transforming Russia from an agricultural society dominated by rural peasants, to an urban society dependent on industrial workers. The importance of education also reached new heights as the Communist Soviet Union (USSR) sought to catch up to the West.
The Bolsheviks did not forget how Western nations sided with their enemies, and they were determined to become as self-sufficient as possible. Although the Soviet Union would side with a number of these nations during World War II, its different beliefs about government and economics ultimately laid the groundwork for a new kind of war that would last for decades and spread across the entire globe.
Soviet Union
Following a famine that killed millions in Russia and the collapse of the nation’s industry, Lenin had no choice but to modify some of his communist views. He allowed a limited amount of private ownership, while still maintaining state control over large industries and banks. In 1922, he and his Communist Party established a new state: The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) or Soviet Union. Thanks to improved agricultural conditions and new policies that revived the economy, Lenin successfully saw the USSR through its first year. However, in 1924 Lenin died.