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Russian Revolution

October Revolution[edit]

Main article: October Revolution

The October Revolution was led by Vladimir Lenin and was based upon Lenin's writing on the ideas of Karl Marx, a political ideology often known as Marxism–Leninism. It marked the beginning of the spread of communism in the 20th century. It was far less sporadic than the revolution of February and came about as the result of deliberate planning and coordinated activity to that end.

Though Lenin was the leader of the Bolshevik Party, it has been argued that since Lenin was not present during the actual takeover of the Winter Palace, it was really Trotsky's organization and direction that led the revolution, merely spurred by the motivation Lenin instigated within his party. Critics on the Right have long argued that the financial and logistical assistance of German intelligence via their key agent, Alexander Parvus, who was a key component. However, historians are divided, since there is little evidence supporting this claim. The dissolution of the Constituent Assembly took place on 6 January 1918. The Tauride Palace was locked and guarded by Trotsky, Sverdlov, Zinoviev and Lashevich.

On 7 November 1917, Bolshevik leader Vladimir Lenin led his leftist revolutionaries in a revolt against the ineffective Provisional Government (Russia was still using the Julian calendar at the time, so period references show a 25 October date). The October revolution ended the phase of the revolution instigated in February, replacing Russia's short-lived provisional parliamentary government with government by Soviets, local councils elected by bodies of workers and peasants. Liberal and monarchist forces, loosely organized into the White Army, immediately went to war against the Bolsheviks' Red Army, in a series of battles that would become known as the Russian Civil War.

Soviet membership was initially freely elected, but many members of the Socialist Revolutionary Party, anarchists, and other leftists created opposition to the Bolsheviks through the Soviets themselves. The elections to the Russian Constituent Assembly took place in November 1917, in which the Bolsheviks gained 24% of the vote. When it became clear that the Bolsheviks had little support outside of the industrialized areas of Saint Petersburg and Moscow, they simply barred non-Bolsheviks from membership in the Soviets.^{[citation needed]} The Bolsheviks dissolved the Constituent Assembly in January 1918. Not surprisingly, this caused mass domestic tension with many individuals who called for another series of political reform, revolting, and calling for "a third Russian revolution," a movement that received a significant amount of support. The most notable instances of this anti-Bolshevik mentality were expressed in the Tambov rebellion, 1919–1921, and the Kronstadt rebellion in March 1921. These movements, which made a wide range of demands and lacked effective coordination, were eventually defeated along with the White Army during the Civil War.

Revolutionary Tribunals

Revolutionary tribunals were present during both the Revolution and the Civil War, intended for the purpose of combatting forces of counter-revolution. At the Civil War's zenith, it is reported that upwards of 200,000 cases were investigated by approximately 200 tribunals. These tribunals established themselves more so from the Cheka as a more moderate force that acted under the banner of revolutionary justice, rather than a utilizer of strict brute force as the former did. However, these tribunals did come with their own set of inefficiencies, such as responding to cases in a matter of months and not having a concrete definition of "counter-revolution" that was determined on a case-by-case basis. This is demonstrated by the Decree on Revolutionary Tribunals used by the People's Commissar of Justice, which states in article 2 that "In fixing the penalty, the Revolutionary Tribunal shall be guided by the circumstances of the case and the dictates of the revolutionary conscience." Revolutionary tribunals ultimately demonstrated that a form of justice was still prevalent in Russian society where the Russian Provisional Government failed. This is part triggered the political transition of the October Revolution and the Civil War that followed in its aftermath.

The revolution and the world[edit]

Main article: Revolutions of 1917–1923

The revolution ultimately lead to the established the the future Soviet Union as an ideocracy; however, the establishment of such a state came as an ideological paradox, as Marx's ideals of how a socialist state ought to be created were based on the formation being natural and not artificially incited (i.e. by means of revolution). Leon Trotsky said that the goal of socialism in Russia would not be realized without the success of the world revolution. Indeed, a revolutionary wave caused by the Russian Revolution lasted until 1923. Despite initial hopes for success in the German Revolution of 1918–19, in the short-lived Hungarian Soviet Republic and others like it, no other Marxist movement at the time succeeded in keeping power in its hands.

This issue is subject to conflicting views on communist history by various Marxist groups and parties. Joseph Stalin later rejected this idea, stating that socialism was possible in one country.

The confusion regarding Stalin's position on the issue stems from the fact that, after Lenin's death in 1924, he successfully used Lenin's argument – the argument that socialism's success needs the support of workers of other countries in order to happen – to defeat his competitors within the party by accusing them of betraying Lenin and, therefore, the ideals of the October Revolution.

Symbolism

Soviet painting Vladimir Lenin by Isaac Brodsky.

The Russian Revolution became the site for many instances of symbolism, both physical and non-physical. Communist symbolism is perhaps the most notable of this time period, such as the debut of the iconic hammer and sickle as a representation of the October Revolution in 1917, eventually becoming the official symbol of the USSR in 1924. Although the Bolsheviks did not have extensive political experience, their portrayal of the revolution itself as both a political and symbolic order resulted in Communism's portrayal as a messianic faith, formerly known as communist messianism. Portrayals of notable revolutionary figures such as Lenin were done in iconographic methods, equating them similarly to religious figures, though religion itself was banned in the USSR and groups such as the Russian Orthodox Church were persecuted.

Cultural portrayal[edit]

George Orwell's classic novella Animal Farm is an allegory of the Russian Revolution and its aftermath. It describes the dictator Stalin as a big Berkshire boar named, "Napoleon." Trotsky is represented by a pig called Snowball who is a brilliant talker and makes magnificent speeches. However, Napoleon overthrows Snowball as Stalin overthrew Trotsky and Napoleon takes over the farm the animals live on. Napoleon becomes a tyrant and uses force and propaganda to oppress the animals.

Other Communist Revolutions

The Russian Revolution inspired other communist movements around the world in regions such as South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.

China

The Chinese Communist Revolution began in 1946 and was part of the ongoing Chinese Civil War. Marx had envisioned European revolutions to be intertwined with Asian revolutions in the mid-nineteenth-century with his 1853 New York Tribune article, "Revolution in China and Europe," in which he references the Chinese as people in "revolutionary convulsion," brought about by British economic control. The May Fourth Movement is considered a turning point where Communism took root in Chinese society, especially among intellectuals. China was officially made a communist country on October 1, 1949, resulting in the establishment of the People's Republic of China (which still remains to this day) with Chairman Mao Zedong at its head. China's current leaders retain that Mao "developed the theory of revolutionary socialism" whilst reformer Deng Xiopeng "developed the theory of building socialism with Chinese characteristics."

Cuba

Cuba experienced its own communist revolution as well, known as the Cuban Revolution, which began in July of 1953 under the leadership of revolutionary Fidel Castro. Castro's 26th of July Movement and Cuban Revolution followed in the footsteps of the Sergeant's Revolt in Cuba in 1933, similarly to how the 1905 Revolution in Russia preceded the October Revolution. Castro's movement sought "political democracy, political and economic nationalism, agrarian reform, industrialization, social security, and education." Similarly to the October Revolution, the Cuban Revolution removed a more traditional, hierarchical regime with the aim of establishing greater overall equality, specifically in the removal of former authoritarian president Fulgencio Batista. Cuba's revolution contributed to escalating tensions between the United States and USSR during Cold War, such as the CIA's failed Bay of Pigs Invasion by Cuban exiles in April of 1961, and the Cuban Missile Crisis in October of 1962. Today, Cuba is moving more towards Capitalism and a free-market economy, as the Center for Democracy in the Americas (CDA) believes Castro's policies during his rule fostered "an acceptance that market forces can play a role in economic policy and that economic growth must be the central criterion to judge economic success."

Vietnam

The August Revolution took place on August 14, 1945, lead by revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh with the aid of his Viet Minh. During the Second World War, the French and Japanese fascists in Indochina (now known as Southeast Asia) began to experience significant resistance to their colonial rule. Due to the fact that both France and Japan were engaged in World War II, the Vietnamese people realized an opportunity to engage an uprising, resulting in the bloody August Insurrection, ending colonial rule in Vietnam. Marxism was manifested in Vietnam as early as the Spring of 1925 when the Vietnamese Revolutionary Youth League was established, with the league being described as "first truly Marxist organization in Indochina" The domino effect caused more concern among Western countries in regards to Communism in Southeast Asia. One interpretation of the United State's involvement in the Vietnam War is "America had lost a guerrilla war in Asia, a loss of caused by failure to appreciate the nuances of counterinsurgency war." Since the Fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, Vietnam has remained a communist country.

Video Games

The Russian Revolution has been used as a direct backdrop for select video games. Among them, in order of release date:

• Assassin's Creed Chronicles, 2016. Of the several historical backdrops, players can take up the role of fictional assassin, Nikolai Orelov. His mission is to procure an artifact from the Tsar's house during the October Revolution's aftermath in 1918.

• Battlefield 1's In the Name of the Tsar Downloadable Content Pack (DLC), 2017. Players can choose to battle for objectives as either the Bolshevik Red Army or the Imperial White Army on two different locations: the Volga River and Tsaritsyn (now Volgograd).