What Caused the Russian Civil War?
The Russian Civil War was a traumatic event. Occurring in the wake of World War One, the most devastating conflict in history up to that point, it was a complex affair that saw many different groups fight for Russia's future. However, it can generally be described as a conflict between the Bolsheviks (the Reds) and anti-Bolsheviks (the Whites). While the war ended in the early 1920s with a Bolshevik victory, its impact would be felt for decades.
The Bolsheviks (Temporarily) Secure Power
While the Bolsheviks took power in the October Revolution, they had not yet fully secured it. Elections for the Constituent Assembly were scheduled for November 1917. Despite never being particularly pro-democracy, the Bolsheviks allowed the elections to continue. While not a complete disaster, with the Bolsheviks performing strongly in major urban centers, they still received less than half the popular vote. Thus, the day after the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly, the non-Bolshevik members returned to find the gate locked. With this, the Bolsheviks secured power, bypassing the Constituent Assembly and ruling Russia themselves, with Vladimir Lenin as their leader. They received little pushback; ignoring the results of elections was common in Russia, and the urban majority already wanted the Bolsheviks to rule. Furthermore, the peasants in the countryside lacked the means to mobilize a revolt.
Rising Tensions
Now that the Bolsheviks had secured power, their first order of business was getting Russia out of World War One. This led to the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in March 1918. The treaty was incredibly harsh, with the Germans occupying Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Finland, Belarus, and Ukraine, approximately half of Russia's European territory. About a third of Russia's population was also lost, as well as half of Russia's factories and 89 percent of its coal mines. Lenin thought this price was worth it; peace was what most Russians wanted and, per Marxist ideology, Lenin believed that Russia would soon regain the territory when the "inevitable" worldwide communist revolution occurred. Regardless, this treaty made many people angry with Lenin. This anger soon culminated in an assassination attempt on August 30th, 1918, by a disgruntled Socialist Revolutionary (SR) named Fanya Kaplan. Lenin was badly wounded but managed to survive. Nonetheless, this event was the precursor to the first Red Terror, in which the Bolsheviks arrested and executed thousands of their political opponents. However, this only made people dislike Lenin and the Bolsheviks even more, further increasing tensions.
The Civil War
Much of the opposition towards the Bolsheviks emerged in Southern Russia and Siberia. The event that began the large-scale fighting was a revolt by the Czechoslovak Legion (prisoners of war from Austria-Hungary of Czech background recruited to fight with Russia in World War I) against the local Bolsheviks in Siberia. The anti-Bolshevik forces (named the Whites) saw this as an opportunity to fight the Bolsheviks and joined with the Czech Legion. With this, the civil war had fully begun, with the Whites fighting against the Bolsheviks (the Reds).
Despite numerous advantages, including more military experience and international support, the Whites lost the civil war. This occurred for two reasons. First, the Reds had better strategic positioning. Being located in the strategic center of Russia, including Moscow and Petrograd, meant that they could better coordinate their attacks due to having access to the main transportation hubs. Soon into the war, the Reds also dropped any preconceptions of being democratic, thereby enforcing strong military discipline amongst their troops. Finally, they promised the peasants that they would be allowed to keep their land after the war, whereas the Whites did not. Thus, fewer peasants deserted the Reds than the Whites, giving them a stronger fighting force.
The End of the Romanovs
After his deposition, the former Czar, Nicholas II, and his family ended up in Yekaterinburg. Living under very loose house arrest, Nicholas was reportedly happy since he was free from the responsibilities of ruling the country and spending all the time he wanted with his family. Nonetheless, the civil war soon destroyed this happiness. When the Czech League attacked Yekaterinburg in July 1918, the Bolsheviks quickly executed Nicholas II and his family. This was done to avoid them becoming a rallying cry for the Whites. While the Romanov dynasty ended with the February Revolution, the Russian Civil War saw the execution of the immediate royal family
Bolshevik Challenges and the End of the War
While the Bolsheviks ultimately won the war, they still faced major challenges. Most notably, War Communism (a collection of policies implemented to give the state control over all aspects of the economy) resulted in a massive decline in economic and agricultural production, significantly contributing to a famine of 1921 and 1922. This necessitated the adoption of the New Economic Policy--essentially a return to capitalism that lasted until 1928. A war with Poland from 1919 to 1921 also provided some challenges to the Reds. However, this was accompanied by a surge of Russian nationalist support to the Bolsheviks, who were fighting the historic "Polish enemy".
Despite these challenges, the Reds gradually beat back the Whites to the Far East. The war ended with the capture of Vladivostok on October 25, 1922, though minor resistance continued in the east for over a decade. Nonetheless, the damage was done, with the war resulting in between 7 to 12 million casualties. Furthermore, with Vladimir Lenin's health worsening, the stage was set for even more turbulence in the soon-to-be Soviet Union.
The impact of the Russian Civil War is difficult to overstate. Emerging out of the chaos of World War I, it further traumatized an already devastated population. Regardless, the Bolsheviks emerged as the undisputed victors. However, the nature of their governance would soon be uncertain; as Lenin's health rapidly declined, discussions about who would succeed him became increasingly common.
