How successful were the Bolsheviks in consolidating their power between 1917 and 1924?
Scott Anderson
In the period 1917-24, the Bolsheviks successfully managed to remain in control of Russia. Consolidating their power meant that they were able to increase their influence within Russia. However, the process to becoming the absolute power was very gradual and involved some very key decisions. To determine how successful we must consider whether the Bolsheviks made any mistakes or could have done anything more effectively.
Firstly, we must look at the initial problems facing the Bolsheviks when they came to power in 1917. After completing the revolution many of the problems of Tsarist Russia still remained, leaving Lenin and the Bolsheviks to solve the problems swiftly in order to increase their claim to power. The problems of lawlessness, land redistribution, attitude of peasantry, the war, economic problems and issues to do with the Constituent Assembly all had to be resolved. The party also had created new problems when it came to power; these were mainly caused by groups and people not supporting the party. On top of all this, the Bolsheviks had no real plans for their Government, they had no experience of Government, they had expected a world revolution and they had expected the State to just wither away. The Bolsheviks also did not control the whole of Russia. Most of the country was oblivious to the fact that they were in power, the Revolution occurred in towns and cities, not in the countryside where 82% of the population lived. The Bolsheviks also had to contend with threats from other Socialist groups such as the Socialist Revolutionaries and the Mensheviks. Lenin quickly responded to these initial problems by compromising the Bolshevik principles in order to keep popular support. The land decree was the first act within Russia in its move towards