How Did Lenin Contribute To The Russian Revolution

In terms of politics, Lenin brought about several reforms as well as involved the people more in the government affairs, while the Tsar stubbornly persisted on making poor decisions for his country, ignoring his people’s pleas on wanting change. Lenin set up a Communist state which fulfilled his promises of ‘Land, Peace, Bread!’ and added in more developments overall. For instance, he made the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in 1918 to ensure peace with the Germans, which was necessary in order to get out of the hopeless Great War, and provided the peasants with land to farm. This led to peasants returning from war to replenish food and end the famines which were caused as an aftermath of WW1. Not only that, but he improved the people’s lives by encouraging

Lenin abolished all titles, which meant individuals were free and equal in rights under society. Additionally, unions were created for the proletariat to have their views heard, and women were involved more in politics such as the Zhenotdel, a woman’s department in the Sovnarkom. A woman named Ella Shister had said that “the revolution gave [her] the right to feel equal to any man, the right to study what [she] wanted to study.” Through all this, it is evident that the people felt easier to express their views and to feel equal to one another, which hadn’t happened for centuries under the Tsarist regime. Where Lenin brought in good changes to strengthen the government, the Tsar ignored the severe reforms needed and his people. Nicholas was so defiant to listen to his people’s requests that he enforced the secret police upon innocent liberals and dissidents were jailed or exiled, ignorant to any of the people’s problems. During the 1905 Revolution, the people rebelled so immensely that Nicholas was forced to create a parliament called the Duma for the citizens to have some say in the

Tsar only drowned his country in debt such as seen in WW1. After the Bolsheviks’ sudden rise to power, the Civil War struck. Nevertheless, Lenin plotted everything wisely to ensure his victory. Along with his organised military and the secure strategies made by his partner Leon Trotsky, Lenin issued the strict War Communism to keep his army well fed and armed. It was an economic system issued in 1918, a combination of emergency measures and socialist dogma. It managed to help the Bolsheviks win against the White Army in the Civil War, and also gave way to stability and success that was the New Economic Policy shortly after. Lenin understood that in order to maintain his government and defeat his enemies, he had to be ruthless and strict. Unfortunately, War Communism backfired on the citizens, but Lenin still managed to revive them. Farmers failed to cooperate and it led to starvation in the country. Nevertheless, Lenin promised that good days would come. Subsequently, the New Economic Policy was introduced in 1921 to improve the catastrophic economic consequences of War Communism, and was indeed a success. It proclaimed that peasants who increased their production in food would pay less taxes, which consequently increased cereal production by 23%. Nepmen private traders bought produce and sold in markets, the famine ended and trade