The conditions where terrible it was cold, there was a lack of proper clothing, shortages of food and weapons. These terrible conditions in 1917 caused Russia to have to withdraw from World War one. They signed a treaty called the treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Meaning that Russia was losing about a quarter of its best farming land among other things. The loss of land was the most important, they lost a part of Russia which had some of the best for farming and coal in Russia. In February/ March in Russia there was a revolution it was spontaneous and a result of grievances of people over the events in the past ten years (autocracy, bloody Sunday, world war one and Rasputin) The Tsar lost control of his people then the soldiers then his Dumas. In March 1917 people from all over Russia and from all classes rioted the streets this caused the Tsar to abdicate. After the Tsar abdicated a Provisional Government took over. This was supposed to be a temporary Government led by Alexander Kerensky but they didn’t let Russia elect a new Government. There is then a second revolution in Russia in October/November the provisional Government was overthrown by the Bolsheviks led by Lenin. This was an organised revolution. Lenin set up a communist state before he died in 1924.
Lenin got communist control of Russia between 1918 and 1924. Communist revolutionaries killed the royal family in 1918, who had caused all the trouble in Russia. Communist control gave Lenin state control of key industries, state control of banks, state control of railways, removal of grain from peasants by seizure or taxation and a new constitution creating the USSR. The Bolsheviks had taken control of Petrograd in November 1917 and it took three years for them to control the rest of Russia and only after a civil war. In the civil war Lenin led the red army, he was fighting against the white army who where a collection of the Tsars supporters. Some countries like Japan, France, Britain, USA and Czechoslovakia supported the white army. To help the red army Lenin’s rule about all the peasants surplus grain being taken from them came into action. It feed the red army and made sure they did not go hungry Lenin cared more about his army than his people. This caused over four million people to died from starvation. The white army lost in the end mainly because there where many different leaders in the white army and they had lots of different ideas, they didn’t work together and they could never agree on anything. While Lenin’s red army all worked together as a team. About 800,000 soldiers were killed during the three year long Civil War. It has estimated that another 8 million died as from starvation and disease as result of the war. Lenin War communism made things worse. After the Kronstad Revolt in March when the navel base revolted, Lenin set up the new economic Policy (NEP) then after this some improvements came. Lenin set up a council making himself the chairman. A land decree was set up where everyone had the same amount of land. Lenin set up a Government, which could be elected, called the Constituent Assembly but when it did not win the vote. Lenin cancelled the whole Government thing and we start to see Lenin as a communist dictator. Lenin set up a secret police called the Cheka just like the old Tsar did but his was called the Okhrana. The Cheka arrested, tortured or shot any one who was suspected of being anti-communist
I think that Russia was not really better under the control with either the autocratic Tsar Nicholas or the Communist Dictator Lenin. Some good things about being under control of Tsar Nicholas was that the people of Russia owned the industries unlike when Lenin ruled and he took state control of all major industries and factories. The Peasants did not have to give all their extra grain to Lenin, they could sell it to make profit. The Cheka Lenin’s secret police where much worse than the Tsars Nicholas’, they shot arrested or tortured anyone with different ideas to about communism to Lenin’s. Tsar Nicholas introduced a Duma, which did no good because if they did not agree with the Tsar then the Tsar would simply get a new one. Rich land owner owned much more land than anybody else and also there was a large gap between rich and poor. Some of Lenin was that no one was better than anybody else. The peasants where aloud as much land as the nobles. No one had to do more work than anybody else. Lenin withdrew them from World War One but then started a civil War, which killed many people. Lenin set up a Government, which could be elected into power. They did not win the election so Lenin called the whole thing off. I think that Russia was better under the control of neither of these men but I think that they where slightly better off under the control of Lenin because after the Civil War everything was fine. The peasants got to keep their grain and when the New Economic Policy was introduced the factories and small industries where handed back to their owners. No one was better than anyone else and everyone was aloud the same amount of land with the new land decree.
