The October Revolution: The Bolsheviks Seize Power

Core Concepts

Details the Bolshevik coup d'état in October 1917 (November in the Gregorian calendar), including the key figures, the storming of the Winter Palace, and the immediate decrees issued to consolidate power.

The October Revolution: The Bolsheviks Seize Power

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Why did Lenin, in hiding, urge the Bolshevik Central Committee to seize power in October \(1917\)?

Lenin believed the time was perfect. The Provisional Government was helpless, the Bolsheviks controlled the key Soviets, and he feared waiting for the Constituent Assembly elections, which the Bolsheviks might lose.

What key role did Leon Trotsky play in organizing the October coup?

As chairman of the Petrograd Soviet, Trotsky created the Military-Revolutionary Committee. He used this body to methodically take control of the city's military garrisons, telegraph offices, railway stations, and bridges, ensuring a swift and relatively bloodless takeover.

What was the symbolic climax of the Bolshevik seizure of power on the night of October \(25\), \(1917\)?

The storming of the Winter Palace, the seat of the Provisional Government. Bolshevik-led soldiers and sailors arrested the ministers of the government, which had little military support left to defend it.

What new government did the Bolsheviks announce at the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets?

They announced that power had been transferred to the Soviets and established a new government called the Council of People's Commissars, with Lenin as its head.

What was the 'Decree on Land'?

An immediate decree passed by Lenin's government that abolished private property and redistributed all land to peasant committees. This move ratified the seizures already happening in the countryside and won the Bolsheviks crucial peasant support.

What was the 'Decree on Peace'?

A decree that called for an immediate end to World War I and proposed a peace settlement without territorial annexations or financial indemnities. This fulfilled a key promise to the war-weary soldiers and public.

What was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, signed in March \(1918\)?

A peace treaty between Soviet Russia and the Central Powers (Germany, Austria-Hungary) that ended Russia's participation in WWI. Lenin accepted humiliating terms, surrendering a third of Russia's population and vast territories to Germany to secure peace.

Why did Lenin argue for accepting the harsh terms of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?

He believed that preserving the Bolshevik revolution at home was more important than continuing the imperialist war. He also gambled that a socialist revolution would soon break out in Germany and other European countries, making the treaty irrelevant.

What happened in the elections for the Constituent Assembly in November \(1917\)?

The Bolsheviks won only \(23\%\) of the vote, while the peasant-focused Socialist Revolutionary Party won a clear majority. This was a major political setback for Lenin.

How did Lenin respond to the unfavorable results of the Constituent Assembly election?

After allowing the Assembly to meet for only one day in January \(1918\), Lenin's government disbanded it by force. He declared that the 'higher principle' of the Soviets' socialist power superseded the 'formal democracy' of the elected assembly.

What was the Cheka?

The All-Russian Extraordinary Commission to Combat Counter-Revolution and Sabotage, or Cheka, was the first Soviet secret police force. Established in December \(1917\), it became a tool of terror, executing thousands of 'class enemies'.

What was the initial reaction of other socialist parties (Mensheviks, Socialist Revolutionaries) to the Bolshevik coup?

They were outraged. They denounced the seizure of power as an illegal act and walked out of the Congress of Soviets, effectively handing complete control to the Bolsheviks and their allies.

How did the Bolsheviks consolidate their one-party state after the October Revolution?

They outlawed opposing political parties, censored the press, disbanded the Constituent Assembly, and used the Cheka to eliminate political opponents, moving rapidly from a seizure of power to establishing a dictatorship.

The October Revolution: The Bolsheviks Seize Power

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