To What Extent was the NEP responsible for Bolshevik Consolidation of power Rahul Prabhu
Following the abdication of the Tsar in 1917, and the failure of the Provisional government to establish a liberal democracy, Lenin and the Bolshevik government came to power after the ensuing October revolution. The Bolshevik government aimed to consolidate power, and implement place a socialist society based on Marxist principles. It was a combination of factors which allowed the Bolsheviks to establish their government and consolidate their power throughout Russia. During the crucial first six months, the implementation of several social and political reforms allowed the government to establish the new government. The Russian Civil War placed enormous …show more content…
The civil war placed enormous burdens on the Russian population. The production had decreased, grain supply had become scare, and millions were threatened by starvation. The Bolsheviks reacted to the crisis of mid 1918 by laying the foundation of a new social order very different from the idealized socialist society they had envisaged. “War communism “was introduced in an effort to stabilise the disrupted Russian economy. The new theory controlled all aspects of life. Businesses and factories were taken over by the government. Goods could no longer be sold for profit, and food began to be rationed. Grain requisitioning was a key element of war Communism. The peasants were forced to give up their produce to the government. All surpluses from the peasant would be taken away, and at times the bare minimums that the peasant needed for food were taken away, in order to meet the requirements of the army and sustain the workers. Bolsheviks had also understood the importance of propaganda, and took immediate measures to seize control of the machinery of persuasion as to mobilise its support. The Bolsheviks created one of the most sophisticated propaganda machines of the early 20th century, establishing a wide range of government newspapers, while banning all counter revolutionary papers. They pioneered the use of posters and soon education became an instrument of persuasion. They
Following the abdication of the Tsar in 1917, and the failure of the Provisional government to establish a liberal democracy, Lenin and the Bolshevik government came to power after the ensuing October revolution. The Bolshevik government aimed to consolidate power, and implement place a socialist society based on Marxist principles. It was a combination of factors which allowed the Bolsheviks to establish their government and consolidate their power throughout Russia. During the crucial first six months, the implementation of several social and political reforms allowed the government to establish the new government. The Russian Civil War placed enormous …show more content…
The civil war placed enormous burdens on the Russian population. The production had decreased, grain supply had become scare, and millions were threatened by starvation. The Bolsheviks reacted to the crisis of mid 1918 by laying the foundation of a new social order very different from the idealized socialist society they had envisaged. “War communism “was introduced in an effort to stabilise the disrupted Russian economy. The new theory controlled all aspects of life. Businesses and factories were taken over by the government. Goods could no longer be sold for profit, and food began to be rationed. Grain requisitioning was a key element of war Communism. The peasants were forced to give up their produce to the government. All surpluses from the peasant would be taken away, and at times the bare minimums that the peasant needed for food were taken away, in order to meet the requirements of the army and sustain the workers. Bolsheviks had also understood the importance of propaganda, and took immediate measures to seize control of the machinery of persuasion as to mobilise its support. The Bolsheviks created one of the most sophisticated propaganda machines of the early 20th century, establishing a wide range of government newspapers, while banning all counter revolutionary papers. They pioneered the use of posters and soon education became an instrument of persuasion. They