Additionally there were developments that occurred without war, which illustrates that involvement in war was not the only cause for change. Therefore war was an important catalyst and factor to significant changes but was not the sole cause of change. The war that caused most change was Word War One due to its role in the February revolution in 1917 and the fall of the provisional government in the October revolution. The defeats of the war dwindled support from liberals and Octobrists for the Tsarist regime, which was further worsened by criticism from organisations including the Central War Industries committee and the union of Zemstva. This formed support and reason for the Progressive Bloc.
To what extent was Lenin’s victory in the Civil War due to the weakness of his opposition? Lenin and the Bolsheviks’ victory in the Civil War cannot be given one main reason. A combination of the weakness of the whites and the strengths of the reds eventually led to the victory of Lenin and the Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks were provided with strong leadership, ruthlessness, the Red Army fighting for them and most importantly: the geography of Russia. Whereas, the White army was faced with: a divided leadership, low moral, corruption and brutality within the army and the downside of the vast geography of Russia.
As well, the only way that the Wilson plan would have survived the political intrigue of the Europeans was either through a league that had real teeth, or a super power willing to intervene as a worldwide police officer. Neither of which existed in 1918. Clemenceau’s views represented the average sentiment of the European Allies after the war. In the closing days of the war, a war weary European population must have tried to make sense of the carnage, of the loss. Clemenceau casts a pale light on the German population, blaming the war on the aims of “the intolerable German Aristocracy.” (Clemenceau, p. 73) The entire argument for the French and nay, European view, was the perceived threat that Europeans felt of German arrogance.
The limited nature of the revolution was one of the main factors which weakened prospects for democracy, when Ebert was trying to form a government he still had a problem that the radical communists were still looking to turn Germany into a communist state similar to the Soviet Union and thus to put down this rebellion and get support of the army he made an agreement with Groener. The agreement was that the army would support the government if the army and civil service were left unchanged. This was the main reason that democracy was irreversibly weakened, because the civil service and army generals were all right-wing conservatives providing a powerbase for the radical right. This limited democracy because the radical right thought that democracy was weak and indecisive, the radical right though was weakened because the radical left was way more powerful initially in post war Germany, but the radical right would help democracy until the radical left was no longer a threat and would act as ticking time bomb of support. This could have acted as a powerbase for the Kapp Putsch and the eventual rise of the Nazis.
“Why did the Bolsheviks win the Civil War?” Bolsheviks were one of the oppositions of the Tsar who were led by Lenin. They were one of the minor groups who were against the Tsar but then their supporters and followers had increased making them stronger and invulnerable. They’ve fought for what they thought was right and this led them to the success they’ve always wanted – taking over Russia. But at the end of the year 1918, a civil war occurred between the Red Army who were mainly the Bolsheviks, and the White Army who were consisted of the Social Revolutionaries, Mensheviks, supporters of the Tsar, workers and capitalists, and the Americans, British and French. The White Armies had outnumbered the Red Armies but the Red Army still managed to win the Civil war.
The victory of the Bolsheviks in the civil war was surprising due to the diverse force massed against them. Trotsky’s contribution to the Bolshevik victory was substantial however there were also many other aspects such as Lenin’s contribution, the geographical and structural benefits of the communists and the failures of the anti-communists. Trotsky’s contribution to the Bolshevik victory in the civil war was down to his military leadership. His founding and introduction of the red army in 1918 supported the Communists and enabled them to fight their cause and reinforce their ideas into other Russian people. The use of the Red Army meant that the Communists were considered serious contenders in the Cold war as without it there would be no possibility of them standing their ground.
Finally the failures of the Provisional Government made them vulnerable which coincidentally worked to advantage the Bolsheviks. Personally, I believe that the vulnerable position of the Provisional Government, timing of the governments mistakes, discontent of the soldiers as well as the workers and the occasional guidance from other Bolshevik leaders, was exploited by Lenin, alongside his popular policies and leadership skills he catalyzed the revolution that was inevitable, planning it in such a way that it would benefit long term and not short-term as it had done in 1905 and February 1917. In disagreement, the failures of the provisional government to make the correct decisions led to the Bolsheviks’ success because the Bolsheviks were efficient in using this time to take control of the vulnerability of the Provisional Government which had caused this upon itself. The first mistake was allowing Lenin return from Germany in April as a part of democracy terms, since Lenin, despite being
The success of the Bolsheviks in the Russian Civil War was due to Lenin, Trotsky and their combined political, social and military capabilities as they were experts. They introduced various political and military policies that enabled them to raise support in Russia and create a dominant and successful military force. Both leaders showed immense dedication to the socialist cause and in doing so provided ruthless and brilliant leadership that ensured Bolshevik victory in the Russian Civil War. Peasant support for the Bolsheviks was a result of the Whites political and social faults. Firstly, the Whites treated the peasant class harshly, they did not see the advantage of gaining the support of the larger lower class as about 82% and they did not take full advantage of that.
To have power of the railway lines meant that they could send soldiers and artillery to any place in the battle area. Opponents of the Bolsheviks, known as the Whites, had some major disadvantages, although they had a large amount of supporters, they were scattered around the central area; they were often hundreds and hundreds of miles between each army. The geographical distance between the troops meant that communications between each other were extremely difficult and that is if they even wanted to communicate. Another reason why the Bolsheviks won the Civil War was because; they were united and had only one aim which was to stay in power so that they could build the new Socialist society. However many members on the side that was against the Bolsheviks had other ideas.
Lenin’s skilled use of propaganda and the importance of the cause of ‘mother Russia’ harnessed the support of the peasants and working class in the face of another revolution. Trotsky’s inspirational oratory skills and successful reorganisation of the Red army ensured an effective, unified fighting force that was kept loyal and strong by Trotsky’s firm and ruthless discipline. However another factor responsible for the success of the Bolshevik’s in the Civil War was the ineffective organisation and leadership of the White Army which was the result of various personal and political rivalries between the parties which made unity and coordination impossible to achieve and victory on the side of the Whites incredibly difficult. It is to a critical extent that the leadership of the Bolsheviks was the reason for their victory in the Civil War from 1918-1921 in Russia as Lenin’s introduction of the sever policies under war communism dealt with the disastrous economic and military situation that the Bolsheviks were facing. The onset of Civil War required new and firmer policies for efficient industrial production and