The Bolshevik Revolution: Causes And Effects Of The Russian Revolution

Behind every event are causes and effects. Causes, as in not mono-causation, and effects, as in more than one. This endless chain shapes history. The Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 is no different. The Russian Revolution of 1917 allowed for the transformation of the Russian government, bringing about a radical political group called the Soviet Union, which spread the political ideal of communism worldwide, changed country boundaries and generated new ways of thinking. The Russian coup d'état of 1917 was caused by various circumstances, with the event in itself labeled as a “major political upheaval” (). The people of Russia were unsatisfied with the oppressive autocratic rule of Nicholas II and the loss of a vast amount of men and resources

Under the rule of the Soviet Union, Stalin succeeded in creating a society where those within the government such as himself were held above everyone else. He developed a plan anchored around controlling the economy and the forced collection of Soviet agriculture. Stalin incited the Great Purge, in which a series of campaigns were designed to rid Russia of the Communist party and other parts of society he deemed a threat. The totalitarian society under Stalin created led to many casualties in World War II. By the end of his dictatorship, Stalin is estimated to have killed an estimated 20 million, all while expanding Soviet Russia’s sphere of influence. Later on, the expanding power of Communist Russia would agitate foreign powers, leading to the Civil

In 1919 the Bolsheviks were able to put their unity, cohesion, and efficiency to the test with attacks by Denikin in March and Yudenich in the latter end of the year, the civil war was bloody with thousands of White Soldiers dying. Furthermore, the Civil War had the consequence of bringing in support from Western global powers. This would later impact Potsdam 1945 and the outbreak of the Cold War. It also had an immediate impact on foreign relations, with the Los Angeles Times in July of 1920 publishing a poster of an evil-looking man labeled as ‘Bolshevism’ breaking the door labeled as ‘civilization’ signaling the beginning of the East-West Rivalry. To win the Civil War, Lenin had to use “the crushing power of socialist revolution so destroy the bourgeois capitalist dogs” (). This necessitated War Communism, which saw the Red Army take 70% off shoes and 60% of food from the peasantry and urban workers and the complete nationalization of industry to win. The impact was severe, with 7.5 million people dying as a result of the harsh policy and led to a 33% decline in urban population. Finally, the consequence of this would, therefore, be the revolt by the Kronstadt sailors in March which required 20,000 Red Guards to put down and forced Lenin into the realization that “the elixir of socialist medicine was perhaps too hastily applied” (). Overall, the immediate consequences of the Russian