The Bolsheviks did have the support of the Petrograd soldiers and workers, which enabled them to survive, although the workers were only a small percentage of the people. They also organised the Red Guards, a group of revolutionaries who were well-trained and ruthless. This enabled them to take over the government, without creating a riot and without using violence, thus preventing the support and popularity of the Bolsheviks from decreasing. People did not want any more riots, as the war was still continuing. The party seemed organised and decisive when compared to the Provisional Government and the Socialist Revolutionaries.
However, the Bolsheviks did not have the support of the people as a whole. The peasants were supporting the Social Revolutionaries, as they seemed to be dealing with their critical problems such as food shortages and the lack of jobs.
Furthermore, the Bolsheviks’ appeal was that they would provide ‘peace, bread, and land,’ which was welcomed and supported by many people who were sick of hardship and war. This added to their popularity, and support consisted mainly of workers and peasants.
The Civil War was also a major influence in their survival, although it was designed to overthrow them. The Bolsheviks came to be seen as the only alternative to restore society. Russia suffered an economic collapse, leading to the breakdown of the alliance between workers, soldiers and peasants. The army disintegrated and hostility developed between city and countryside as workers supported the forcible request of peasant gain because of their hunger. Meanwhile, economic collapse caused problems also between the city and the countryside. This ‘collapse’ of Russia’s society meant that people became desperate for change. The Provisional Government was not offering this; their stance was the decision to continue with the war, which was very unpopular amongst the majority of the people. The Provisional Government did nothing to stop the war. On the contrary, the government introduced death squads to hunt down and execute deserters of the war. This made the soldiers start to hate the government. The workers also came to hate the government because the food shortages were a result of the war. Furthermore, the peasants too bitterly resented the Provisional Government for deciding to send soldiers to take back the land which the peasants had taken from the nobles, many of whom had run away.
The Provisional Government was making many enemies. Its failure to please any of the groups of people, meant that the only alternative government was the Bolsheviks.
The Bolsheviks however, introduced Capitalism, promising land would be given to the peasants. This succeeded in ceasing peasant uprisings. The Bolsheviks were successful in controlling each and every group of people, introducing popular concessions to end revolt.
The Bolsheviks took power with a great deal of support from the people, although this was possibly only because there was no alternative. They managed this by getting rid of their opponents through strategic planning and by taking power at the right moment- when their opponents lacked any support or power. With regard to the Provisional Government, if the government had offered solutions to unrest and the existing problems, there would have been more competition and possibly many people would have supported them, instead of the Bolsheviks.
However, the Bolsheviks promised to provide the basic needs of the people, which would benefit nearly every social group.
The Bolsheviks were organised in times of uprising and war, and were a good solution for many soldiers, workers and peasants. Therefore while it is clear that different factors enabled the Bolsheviks to take power, their determined attitude and important and strategic planning relating to the events at that time, meant that they could in the end, take control in a calm, organised manner.
