2. Opinions on the Russian Revolution Historiography

3. What you need to know You must be aware and fully understand key historical approaches to the revolution This is crucial for good historical writing AND for the exam (particularly section B – part 2) You must write analytically about the revolution – not retell Need to go beyond the narrative of what happened and when

4. So who knows? You must be clear about the fact that historians disagree about the revolution Interpretations differ Different schools of thought You must be able to demonstrate your understanding of the main historical interpretations of the revolution

5. So, what are these schools of thought? Traditional Soviet view Traditional western ‘liberal’ orthodoxy Revisionist group of historians Recent developments in historical thinking

6. Traditional Soviet View Official ‘History of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union’ 1939-59 Lenin the infallible leader created Marxist-Leninism Revolution inevitable Historical development of human society towards Communism

7. Traditional Soviet View cont…… Socio-economic reasons behind revolution Class conflict between capitalists and proletarian leads to overthrow of capitalism Bolsheviks represent working classes Mensheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries condemned as ‘bourgeois’ Stalin emphasised as leader while Trotsky and some others ignored Revolution was seizure of power by the masses directed by Bolsheviks

8. Western ‘liberal’ orthodoxy Schapiro’s The Origins of the Communist Autocracy (1977) Argue that revolution not inevitable Not part of great historical pattern Specific events coincide to create revolution – war, economic crisis, bad leadership, corrupt politicians.

9. ‘liberals’ cont. Revolution can’t be explained just by social and economic forces Class war not solely to blame Acknowledge conflict but claim class struggle along not a reason for revolution Culture, ideas, religion, nationalism contributors Revolution as process begun and guided by individuals

10. ‘liberals’ cont. Emphasise leaders but downplay popular movements Revolution propelled by leaders who manipulate masses October revolution explained as Bolsheviks a small ruthless group who exploited weaknesses in prov. Govt. to seize power Oct. 1917 not victory for masses but a betrayal This seen as direct precedent for cruelty and repression of Civil war and later Stalin’s Russia

11. Revise the Revisionists Liberal view challenged by revisionists More open minded approach than liberals Could criticise liberal view without being accused of having Communist sympathies New left wing thinking from 1960s onwards allowed this approach Use Russian source material which had been available since 1920s and use Russian historians

12. Revise the Revisionists Sheila Fitzpatrick – necessary to re-examine both Soviet and liberal views Used statistical analysis to look at ordinary working people Social history – ‘history from below’

13. Looked at contemporary sources Peasants, factory workers and soldiers represented Impact on events on ordinary people Bolsheviks did have some claim to popular support However recognised complexity of public feeling about Revolution- some workers and peasants wanted coalition of socialist parties

14. Fitzpatrick, S 1982 The Russian Revolution Oxford University Press ‘The revolution has achievements to its credit as well as failures. But the cost of the achievements was very high. With revolutions, as with all reckless undertakings, there is always the question of whether, had the revolutionaries been able to forsee the future, they would ever have gone out to fight, and the allied question of whether in some cosmic sense it was all worth while.’ p.9

15. Recent Developments Since 1991 Soviet Central Party Archives opened Documents never seen before Richard Pipes thought he’d find incriminating evidence about Lenin ‘The Unknown Lenin’ (1998) Says that we can’t argue that the Bolshevik project as imagined by the ‘infallible’ Lenin was perverted by ‘evil’ Stalin- says Stalin’s excesses had roots in Lenin’s initiatives

16. Richard Pipes Lenin was a paid German agent in 1917-8 Initiated red terror, advocated censorship, called for hanging of Kulaks and priests who resisted war communism Attacks against Orthodox church and Jews Lenin had problematic relationship with Trotsky By 1922 relied on Stalin He concludes that Bolshevism was ruthless, brutal and authoritarian not just Stalin’s character Stalin’s regime continuity from Bolshevism to later Soviet repression and history

17. Robert Service More balanced view Lenin: A Political Life 1985, Lenin: A Biography 2000 States that Lenin was a great leader Made bold decisions- seized power in Oct. & withdrew Russia from WW1 However, Lenin’s influence on events overstated Barely known until 1917 And even later still not well known Trotsky more popular Lenin great ideological leader and disciple of Marx

18. Service cont. Lenin’s ideas came not from German Marxism, but from Russian Populism Successful because he knew when to give in to practical necessities and when to ideology Lenin agreed with Trotsky that Red Army could only work with aristocratic officers and discipline Not infallible leader- created totalitarian state because of the situation – not because he was a megalomaniac “in particular he had little foresight about what he was doing when he set up the centralised one-party state. One of the great malignancies of the twentieth century was created more by off the cuff measures than by grandiose planning.” Service, p. 10

19. Service, R 2000 Lenin: A Biography London: Macmillan “in particular he had little foresight about what he was doing when he set up the centralised one-party state. One of the great malignancies of the twentieth century was created more by off the cuff measures than by grandiose planning.” Service, p. 10