The unpopularity of the Communists in 1918 should have assured their defeat in the Civil war which followed
The unpopularity of the Communists in 1918 should have assured their defeat in the Civil war that followed. Why were the forces opposing communism unable to overthrow such an unpopular regime?
The Russian civil war began in 1918, in the former Russian empire; the war was between the new communist government, the Bolsheviks, and those who opposed it collectively known as The Whites. Surprisingly, The Whites were defeated by the Reds in late 1920, but the question is why were the communists operating such an unpopular regime able to be victorious and remain in control.
The civil war started due to many factors, but the key was the collapse of the former Russian empire in 1917/1918. This disintegration created several territories and after Lenin decreed that any such territories wanting self-determination were free to split from Russia, many independent territories were born. This caused a number of problems, Soviets took control of large areas to pursue their own policies, Volga Tatars and Bashkis set up republics. The Russian civil war was fought by many to gain self-government and by others who wanted to keep a unified Russian empire.
The Bolsheviks harsh control of Russia had made them many enemies, in the form of political opposition. Many of these opposing groups organised armed revolts against the communists; however, it was not just within Russia that the Bolsheviks had opposition. The allies strongly opposed Bolshevik control of Russia. In early November 1917 the London Morning Post called for military action to be taken against the communists, a few weeks later Trotsky published ‘Secret Treaties’ which was signed by the Tsar and the allies during the Great War. These revealed the allies plans to seize territory once Germany was defeated, in light of these revelations the Bolsheviks seized all foreign property and over ruled the allies, canceling the Tsar’s debts. The treaty of Brest-Litovsk in March 1918 ended Russian involvement in World War One. One of the clauses of the Brest-Litovsk Treaty meant Russia lost the Ukraine, which was often referred to as Russia’s ‘bread basket’ as it supplied the majority of bread to the people. Losing the Ukraine meant the vast populous of Russia was starving, which led to grain requisitioning, under war communism.