Industry and banks were nationalized in November 1917, which meant that the government took over ownership and management. Land was declared as social property, and peasants were allowed to seize the land of nobility. The Bolshevik Party was renamed the Russian Communist Party (Bolshevik). Elections were conducted in November 1917 to the Constituent Assembly, but they failed in majority. 

The Civil War (1918-20)

In January 1918, the Assembly rejected Bolshevik measures and Lenin dismissed the Assembly. Despite opposition, in March 1918, the Bolsheviks made peace with Germany at Brest Litovsk. The Bolsheviks participated in the elections to the All-Russian Congress of Soviets, which became the Parliament of the country. Russia became a one-party state.

• Reorganization of Russian Army: The Russian Army broke up and their leaders moved to south Russia and organized troops to fight the Bolsheviks (the ‘Reds’).
• Onset of Civil War: During 1918 and 1919, the Russian Empire was controlled by ‘Greens’ (Socialist Revolutionaries) and ‘Whites’ (pro-Tsarists), backed by French, American, British, and Japanese troops.
  • These troops and the Bolsheviks fought a civil war. 
  • By January 1920, the Bolsheviks controlled most of the former Russian empire. In the name of defending socialism, Bolshevik colonists brutally massacred local nationalists.
• Formation of Soviet Union: Most non-Russian nationalities were given political autonomy in the Soviet Union (USSR) – the state created from the Russian empire in December 1922.

Making of a Socialist Society

Nationalization and Agrarian Reforms: During the Civil War, industries and banks were nationalized. Peasants were permitted to cultivate the land.

• Centralized Planning Process: Officials worked on how the economy will work and set targets for five years. 
  • During the first two ‘Plans’, the government fixed all prices to promote industrial growth (1927-1932 and 1933-1938).
• Socio-Economic Development: Centralized planning led to economic growth. However, rapid construction led to poor working conditions. 
  • A schooling system was developed, and arrangements were made for factory workers and peasants to enter universities.
  • For women workers, crèches were established in factories for the children. Cheap public healthcare was provided. Model living quarters were set up for workers.

Stalinism and Collectivisation

Collectivization Consequences: The period of early Planned Economy led to the disaster of the collectivization of agriculture i.e. combining and bringing under state ownership.

• • By 1927- 1928, towns in Soviet Russia faced an acute problem of grain supplies. Stalin introduced firm emergency measures. 
• Tragedy of Soviet Agriculture: In 1928, party members toured grain-producing areas, supervising enforced grain collections and raiding ‘kulaks’ – a name for well-to-do peasants. 
  • After 1917, the land was given over to peasants. From 1929, the Party forced all peasants to cultivate in collective farms (kolkhoz).
  • Peasants worked on the land, and the kolkhoz profit was shared. Between 1929 and 1931, the number of cattle fell by one-third.
• Independent Cultivation:  The government of Stalin allowed some independent cultivation but treated such cultivators unsympathetically. Despite collectivization, production did not increase immediately and due to bad harvests of 1930-1933, over 4 million people died.
  • Throughout the country, accusations were made, and by 1939, over 2 million were in prisons or labor camps. 

The Global Influence of the Russian Revolution and the USSR

European Concerns: Existing socialist parties in Europe did not wholly approve of the way of taking over and keeping power by the Bolsheviks. 

• • In many countries, communist parties were formed, like the Communist Party of Great Britain. Non-Russians from outside the USSR participated in the Conference of the Peoples of East (1920).
• Emergence of Comintern: The Bolshevik-founded Comintern (an international union of pro-Bolshevik socialist parties). 
  • Before the outbreak of the Second World War, the USSR had given socialism a global face and world stature. 
• Socio-Economic Impact: The USSR became a great power, and its industries and agriculture developed, and the poor were being fed. 
  • By the end of the 20th century, the international reputation of the USSR as a socialist country had declined.

Writings about the Russian Revolution in India

Flame of Inspiration: Russian Revolution inspired many Indians. Many inspired Indians attended  Communist University. By the mid-1920s the Communist Party was formed in India.

• India Communist Experiment: Its members kept in touch with the Soviet Communist Party. Important Indian political and cultural figures took an interest in the Soviet experiment and visited Russia, among them were Jawaharlal Nehru and Rabindranath Tagore, who wrote about Soviet Socialism.
• Communist Writings: In India, writings gave impressions of Soviet Russia. In Hindi, R.S. Avasthi wrote about the 1920-21 Russian Revolution, Lenin, His Life and His Thoughts, and later The Red Revolution. 
  • S.D. Vidyalankar wrote The Rebirth of Russia and The Soviet State of Russia. There was much that was written in Bengali, Marathi, Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu.

Conclusion

Socialism, a political and economic ideology, played a pivotal role in the Russian Revolution of 1917. The revolution saw the overthrow of the autocratic Tsarist regime and the rise of the Bolshevik Party, led by Vladimir Lenin. The Bolsheviks implemented socialist policies, including land redistribution and the nationalization of industry, aiming to create a classless, state-controlled society. However,  the Russian Revolution’s aftermath resulted in the formation of the Soviet Union. While the revolution was a watershed moment in history, it also highlighted complex challenges of translating socialist ideals into practical governance.

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