Russian Civil War

The Russian Civil War was a big fight in the former Russian Empire that lasted from 1917 to 1922. It started after the October Revolution, when the Bolsheviks took power from the Russian Provisional Government. Many groups wanted to decide what Russia's future would look like, which led to a lot of fighting.

There were two main sides in the war. The Red Army fought for a socialist state led by Vladimir Lenin. The White Army was made up of former Russian Empire officers and others who wanted a different kind of government. There were also other groups, like the Ukrainian anarchists, and even some foreign countries got involved to try to influence the outcome.

The war was very hard on everyone. Many people suffered, and by the time it ended in 1922, millions of people had died, mostly regular citizens caught in the fighting. The Bolsheviks won, and their victory led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The civil war changed Russia forever and had big effects on the rest of the world.

Background

From World War I to the Russian Revolution

The Russian Empire joined World War I in 1914, fighting alongside France and the United Kingdom against Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire. In 1917, a series of events changed the country's leadership. The February Revolution led to the abdication of Emperor Nicholas II, and a new government, called the Russian Provisional Government, was formed. At the same time, elected councils of workers, soldiers, and peasants, known as soviets, began to organize throughout the country.

October Revolution

Later in 1917, the Provisional Government faced many challenges, especially in ending the war. A failed military attempt in September 1917 increased support for the Bolsheviks, a group led by Lenin. Promising to end the war and give power to the soviets, the Bolsheviks overthrew the Provisional Government in late October. This event, known as the October Revolution, marked the beginning of a struggle for power that would lead to a civil war.

Formation of the Red Army

As the old Russian Army began to break apart, the Bolsheviks formed a new military force called the Red Guards. In January 1918, Leon Trotsky helped organize these forces into the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army. To build a stronger army, the Bolsheviks introduced mandatory military service for rural peasants in June 1918. They also used former officers from the old Russian Army to help lead the Red Army.

White movement and foreign interventions

Opposing the Bolsheviks was the White movement, a group that included many different political views but generally wanted to restore order and often supported the old Russian Empire's ways. The Western Allies, worried about the spread of communist ideas and the safety of Russia's debts, provided support to the White forces. Some Central Powers also supported anti-Bolshevik groups during the early stages of the conflict.

Opposition and repression in Soviet Russia

As the Bolsheviks consolidated power, they faced opposition from various groups, including the Mensheviks and the Socialist Revolutionaries. The Bolsheviks took strong measures to suppress these groups, seeing them as threats to their rule. This period saw the beginning of harsh measures against political opponents, including the establishment of the Cheka, the secret police.

Revolts against grain requisitioning by the Bolsheviks led to significant uprisings, such as the Tambov Rebellion, which were met with violent suppression by the Red Army.

Geography and chronology

Main articles: Southern Front of the Russian Civil War, North Russia Campaign, Eastern Front of the Russian Civil War, Yakut Revolt, and Finnish Civil War

The Russian Civil War took place in different parts of Russia and can be divided into three main time periods.

In the first period, from March 1917 to November 1918, fighting happened in many places. Some groups, like the Cossacks in the Don region, did not support the new government. Other countries also got involved, supporting groups that opposed the new leaders.

In the second period, from January to November 1919, armies led by different leaders tried to take control from the Red Army. The Red Army had to fight back on many fronts but managed to stop these advances.

The third period in 1920 involved a long siege in the Crimea. The last groups trying to take control were trapped there but were eventually forced to leave.

Warfare

October Revolution

The Bolshevik Party led armed groups to take over cities and villages across Russia after seizing control of Petrograd. In January 1918, they dissolved the Russian government and set up new councils of workers as the new leadership.

Initial anti-Bolshevik uprisings

Groups tried to take power from the Bolsheviks soon after they took control. Local Cossack armies and some Russian officers opposed the Bolsheviks. Leaders like General Mikhail Alekseev started organizing resistance forces. These groups fought against the Bolsheviks in various battles.

Peace with the Central Powers

The Bolsheviks sought peace with Germany and its allies to end the war. They signed a treaty in March 1918, giving up parts of Russia to Germany and the Ottoman Empire. This decision was controversial but necessary to stop the fighting.

Ukraine, South Russia, and Caucasus (1918)

In Ukraine, German and Austro-Hungarian forces pushed out the Bolsheviks. In South Russia, the Volunteer Army fought against Soviet forces. Battles took place in cities like Rostov and Yekaterinodar. In the Caucasus, German and Ottoman forces also clashed with Soviet troops.

Eastern Russia, Siberia and the Far East (1918)

In Siberia, the Czechoslovak Legion took control of parts of the railway. This led to uprisings against the Bolsheviks in cities like Samara. The Bolsheviks responded with harsh measures to maintain control.

Central Asia (1918)

The Red Army took control of areas in Central Asia, but faced challenges from local groups and foreign interventions. British forces supported some opposition groups, but the Bolsheviks continued to build support in the region.

Left SR Uprising

In July 1918, members of a different political group attacked and killed a German ambassador in Moscow. The Bolsheviks responded by arresting and executing many of their opponents, tightening their control over the government.

Estonia, Latvia and Petrograd

Estonia and Latvia fought to keep their independence from Soviet control. In October 1919, a force tried to capture Petrograd but was stopped by the Red Army, which grew in size and strength to defend the city.

Northern Russia (1919)

British and American forces occupied cities like Murmansk and Arkhangelsk but later withdrew. The remaining opposition forces left the region in early 1920.

Siberia (1919)

In Siberia, White forces initially advanced but were eventually pushed back by the Red Army. The Red Army captured key cities and forced the White forces to retreat eastward.

South Russia (1919)

In South Russia, White forces under Denikin made advances toward Moscow but were stopped by the Red Army. Battles took place in cities like Kiev and Kursk. The Red Army eventually pushed the White forces back.

Central Asia (1919)

After British forces left Central Asia, the Red Army continued to build support among local populations. Communication difficulties with other Red Army forces were resolved by late 1919, allowing the Bolsheviks to claim victory over opposition groups in the region.

South Russia, Ukraine and Kronstadt (1920–1921)

By early 1920, Denikin's forces were limited to areas in the Crimea and Southern Russia. After a series of retreats, the White forces were evacuated from Novorossiysk. The Red Army then turned on anarchist groups, leading to conflicts. In 1921, protests and a mutiny by sailors at Kronstadt were suppressed by the Red Army.

Siberia and the Far East (1920–1923)

In Siberia, the remaining White forces under Admiral Kolchak were defeated. Kolchak was captured and executed. Other White forces retreated to areas near China but were eventually pushed out by the Red Army. By October 1922, the Red Army took control of Vladivostok, marking the end of major fighting in the Russian Civil War.

Aftermath

After the war ended, the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) felt safer because there was no big military danger anymore. But they were still worried about people being unhappy. They also noticed that revolutions they hoped would happen in other countries, like in Germany, did not succeed. Because of this, they kept a strong army ready.

The Bolsheviks took control of most of Russia, but not all of it. They signed a treaty in 1921 with Poland, called the treaty of Riga, which decided the borders between Poland and Soviet Russia in places like Belarus and Ukraine. Countries like Estonia, Finland, Latvia, and Lithuania successfully stopped Soviet forces from taking over. However, places like Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia were taken by the Red Army. By 1925, the Bolsheviks changed their name to the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks).

Evacuations

Main article: White émigré

See also: Evacuation of Novorossiysk (1920) and Evacuation of the Crimea

About one to two million people, known as the White émigrés, left Russia after the war. Many of them left with a general named Wrangel. Some went through far eastern areas, and others traveled west to new independent countries like the Baltic states.

Ensuing rebellion

In parts of Central Asia, soldiers called the Red Army kept facing fights until 1923. Groups of fighters called the basmachi tried to stop the Bolsheviks from taking control. The Soviets used help from local leaders, like Magaza Masanchi, to fight against these groups. It wasn’t until 1934 that the Communist Party finally stopped them.

A general named Anatoly Pepelyayev kept fighting in a place called the Ayano-Maysky District until June 1923. Areas like Kamchatka and Northern Sakhalin were controlled by Japan until 1925, when Japan made a treaty with the Soviet Union and left.

Casualties

See also: Red Terror (Russia) and White Terror (Russia)

The war caused many losses. The Red Army lost around 940,000 soldiers, and the White Army lost about 650,000. Many people also died from diseases and hunger. In regions like Tambov region, the war, punishments, and being kept in camps caused around 240,000 deaths between 1920 and 1922.

By 1922, there were about seven million children without parents in Russia because of the damage from World War I and the civil war.

Droughts in 1920 and 1921, along with a big hunger time called the Russian famine of 1921, made things even worse, causing about five million deaths. Diseases like typhus also spread a lot, killing three million people during the war. Many more died because there wasn’t enough food, and both sides of the war did harsh things to each other.

Civilian casualties

Many regular people died in the war. Most of the ten million deaths were civilians. Different writers have different ideas about how many people were hurt or killed during a tough time called the Red Terror, but numbers range from 50,000 to more than 200,000.

Ethnic violence

See also: Pogroms during the Russian Civil War

During the war, many people from a group called the Cossacks were hurt or forced to leave their homes. About 100,000 Jewish people were killed in places like Ukraine. Punishments by leaders like Kolchak caused many deaths, and the fighting on both sides led to many people being killed.

Economic impact

The war hurt Russia’s economy a lot. People started trading things instead of using money because the ruble lost its value. Factories made much less, and farms produced less food. Coal mining dropped from 27.5 million tons in 1913 to just 7 million tons in 1920. Factories made goods worth 1,000 million roubles instead of 10,000 million roubles.

A system called War communism helped the new government survive during the war, but the economy was very weak. Some farmers stopped farming because soldiers took their food. By 1921, only 62% of farmland was being used, and harvests were only 37% of what they used to be. There were fewer horses and cows than before. Even though Russia grew quickly later, the war left big problems that lasted for a long time.

Political impact

See also: Treaty of Rapallo (1922)

Because revolutions they hoped for in other countries did not happen, the Bolsheviks changed their plans from trying to change the whole world to focusing on just Russia, called socialism in one country.

The Treaty of Rapallo (1922) was signed on April 16, 1922, between the Soviet Union and Germany. Both countries agreed to forget any claims on each other and to be friendly.

In fiction

Literature

The Russian Civil War has been a popular topic for writers. Many famous books were inspired by this time in history. Some well-known examples include How the Steel Was Tempered by Nikolai Ostrovsky and The Road to Calvary by Aleksey Nikolayevich Tolstoy.

Other important books include works by writers like Mikhail Bulgakov, Isaac Babel, and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. These stories explore different sides and experiences of the war through literature.

Film

The Civil War has also inspired many films. Some famous movies include Arsenal, Chapaev, and Doctor Zhivago. Directors like David Lean and Warren Beatty have brought these stories to life on screen.

Video games

A few video games have also used the Civil War as a setting. Titles like Assassin's Creed Chronicles and Battlefield 1 In the Name of the Tsar let players experience this historical period through gaming.