How Far Did The Bolsheviks Improve The Lives Of The Russian People

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The Russian Revolution (1917-1924), despite the ambitious aims of the Lenin and the Bolshevik party, failed to completely improve the lives of the Russian people, nor liberate them from the oppression they faced in the old regime, following the Bolshevik takeover after the October Revolution (24 October 1917). Despite this, however, certain policies (such as the initial reforms in 1917) did help improve the lives of the people somewhat. The Bolsheviks were not very successful in liberating the Russian people throughout their time in power. A prominent example of their failure to do so was their closing of the Constituent Assembly. The elections for the Constituent Assembly resulted in the majority of votes going to the Socialist Revolutionaries (42%), …show more content…

Peter Oxley has estimated that of the 10 million deaths during the Civil War, 9,500,000 were due to famine and disease. Volkogonov has acknowledged the damaging effects of War Communism, stating that, “the Bolsheviks were incapable of giving the people anything but…hunger and terror”.Furthermore, in the Cheka (formed in December 1917) spread terror throughout Russia, which was particular poignant following Lenin’s order in February 1918, that all counter revolutionaries and individuals assisting counterrevolutionaries be arrested immediately. Thus, the Russian Revolution forced numerous individuals to live in impoverished conditions, and subjected them to terror in the form of the Cheka (who were given power of trial and execution in February 1918). Despite this, certain aspects of life in the new regime were positive following the Bolshevik takeover, and an examples of this are Lenin’s initial reforms. His Decree on Land (November 1917) abolished private ownership of land, and legalised the seizing of land by those who cultivate

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