To What Extent Did the Bolsheviks Succeed in the October Revolution and the Civil War Due to Weakness in Opposition? Essay Example
“To what extent did the Bolsheviks succeed in the October Revolution and the Civil War due to weakness in opposition?”
The Bolsheviks were not a majority party in Russia, and it is therefore quite an achievement that they not only managed to gain power, but that they held on to it. On paper, you would not have thought the Bolsheviks would have been able to seize power or maintain it if faced with any substantial opposition, so does this mean that their success was dependant on the weakness of their opponents?
The military support the Bolsheviks had in the October Revolution was not at all substantial. It took a mere 500 Bolshevik troops to storm the Winter Palace and overthrow the Provisional Government. It would seem that, despite the achievement the Bolsheviks has gained by creating any form of military help, the weakness of the Provisional governments own military protection was the reason why the Bolsheviks had such an easy time taking power. The Provisional Government's resistance was almost non-existent in terms of military, only a few Red Guard soldiers were wounded, most of which may have been from accidental friendly fire, and all of the Provisional Government's forces had completely deserted. In that sense, the success of their military assault on the Provisional Government was almost entirely dependant on that the Bolsheviks did not have to face any form of opposition with similar troops numbers. Even the famed ex-Menshevik turned Bolshevik Leon Trotsky admitted that 500 good men could have defeated the Bolshevik's force, but also asked the rhetorical question of where the Provisional Government was to get 500 good men. However, the Civil War was quite different in terms of military conflict. The Bolshevik's were not facing armies who put up virtually no resistance. The casualties for both the Red's and the White's were high, around 1.2 million for the Reds and 1.5 million for the Whites. The Bolshevik's also faced 2.4 million white troops in
The Bolsheviks were not a majority party in Russia, and it is therefore quite an achievement that they not only managed to gain power, but that they held on to it. On paper, you would not have thought the Bolsheviks would have been able to seize power or maintain it if faced with any substantial opposition, so does this mean that their success was dependant on the weakness of their opponents?
The military support the Bolsheviks had in the October Revolution was not at all substantial. It took a mere 500 Bolshevik troops to storm the Winter Palace and overthrow the Provisional Government. It would seem that, despite the achievement the Bolsheviks has gained by creating any form of military help, the weakness of the Provisional governments own military protection was the reason why the Bolsheviks had such an easy time taking power. The Provisional Government's resistance was almost non-existent in terms of military, only a few Red Guard soldiers were wounded, most of which may have been from accidental friendly fire, and all of the Provisional Government's forces had completely deserted. In that sense, the success of their military assault on the Provisional Government was almost entirely dependant on that the Bolsheviks did not have to face any form of opposition with similar troops numbers. Even the famed ex-Menshevik turned Bolshevik Leon Trotsky admitted that 500 good men could have defeated the Bolshevik's force, but also asked the rhetorical question of where the Provisional Government was to get 500 good men. However, the Civil War was quite different in terms of military conflict. The Bolshevik's were not facing armies who put up virtually no resistance. The casualties for both the Red's and the White's were high, around 1.2 million for the Reds and 1.5 million for the Whites. The Bolshevik's also faced 2.4 million white troops in