The Russian Revolution in International Context, Part III.

The Russian Revolution in International Context, Part III

How World War I changed the map of Europe

http://www.the-map-as-history.com/demos/tome03/

The Soviet-Polish war of 1919-1921: nationalism vs. export of revolution

Poland’s independence is recognized by the Soviet Government in 1918

At that time, Poland is occupied by German and Austro-Hungarian forces

After World War I, Poland becomes fully independent under a nationalist government

Western powers decide to use Poland as the key force against Russia

The issue: what lands should be included in the new Poland?

Western powers: territories inhabited by ethnic Poles Poland: restoration of the Polish borders of 1772

(incorporating Ukrainian, Belarusian and Lithuanian lands) Poland’s calculation: Russia is wracked by Civil War, the

West is on Poland’s side – a Greater Poland is possible!

Poland’s shifting borders, 1918-1922

Key battleground: disputed territories of Ukraine and Belarus

Ukraine is in a civil war, split between Ukrainian Soviets, Ukrainian nationalists and the Greens; actions of White forces a major factor

In 1919, Poland interferes in these struggles militarily against supporters of the Soviets

Summer 1920 – full-fledged war between the Red Army and the Polish Army

Polish cavalry attack

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Polish Government information document prepared for Polish Army officers, March 1920:

“The Head of State and the Government of Poland are seeking unconditional weakening of Russia… At the present time, the Polish Government intends to support the Ukrainian national movement in order to create an independent Ukrainian state and thereby substantially weaken Russia which would lose its richest territory in terms of grain and mineral resources. The key goal in creating an independent Ukraine is to build a barrier between Poland and Russia and to assure the transfer of Ukraine under Polish influence which would enable Poland’s economic and political expansion.”*

*Михутина И.В. Некоторые проблемы истории польско-советской войны 1919—1920 гг. // Версаль и новая Восточная Европа. M., 1996, С. 165

“Locked within its 16th century borders, cut off from the Black and Baltic Seas, deprived of its lands and mineral resources of the South and Southeast, Russia might well become a second-rate power incapable of presenting serious danger to Poland’s restored independence. Meanwhile, Poland as the biggest and strongest of the new states, might easily secure for itself a sphere of influence spreading from Finland to the Caucasus.”

Jozef Pilsudski, Provisional Commander of the Second Polish Republic

Pilsudski in Minsk, Belarus

Polish war propaganda poster: “Kill the Bolshevik!”

Soviet war propaganda poster: “A French-trained pig wants to restore the 1772 borders”

Soviet war propaganda poster: “How the Lords’ adventure will end”

To the West!

Soviet Communist Party daily Pravda, May 9, 1920

To the West, workers and peasants!Fight against the bourgeoisie and landowners,For the world revolution,For freedom of all peoples!Soldiers of workers’ revolution!Look westwards.It is in the West that the fate of the world revolution is decided.We will march over the corpse of White Poland to light the world fire.On our bayonets we will bring happiness and peaceTo the workers of the world.To the West!To decisive battles, to thunderous victories!

From statement of the 2nd Congress of the Comintern, summer 1920:

“Brothers in the Red Army, know: your war against Polish lords is the most just war history has ever known. You are fighting not only for the interests of Soviet Russia, but also for the interests of the entire working humanity, for the Communist International. The Red Army today is one of the main forces of world history. Time is coming when an International Red Army will be created.”

The idea is to establish a Soviet government in Poland and move on to Germany to help German Communists

Julian Marchlewski, Polish- Russian Communist, head of Provisional Revolutionary Committee, set up by the Soviets to replace the Pilsudski government in Poland

Mikhail Tukhachevsky, commander of Red Army forces in Poland in 1920, a Polish aristocrat by origin, advocate of spreading revolution by military force

Iosif Stalin as member of the Military Council of the Western Front, 1920: skeptical about export of revolution to Poland and Germany

“Hey, Poles, to bayonets!” Polish war propaganda poster

Poles defeating Soviet forces near Warsaw, a Polish painting

Polish cavalry attacks Red Army forces

80,000 Soviet soldiers were taken prisoner in the Soviet-Polish war; 16-20,000 of them died in captivity

"Poland’s one third of population consisted of non-Poles, many of whom felt bitterly alienated from a state that had forcibly incorporated them into itself…The Polish government felt it had little reason to negotiate terms of autonomy with minorities upon which it had already imposed its rule.“

Roshwald, Aviel (2001). Ethnic Nationalism and the Fall of Empires. Central Europe, the Middle East and Russia. 1914-1923. Routledge (UK)

The Civil War’s final stage (1920-22): The Far Eastern Republic

The costs of the Russian Civil War Population losses – 13-16 mln. people (about 10% of the

population), including: 2 mln. killed in battles At least 1.3 mln. victims of Red and White Terror 2 mln. who emigrated from Russia the rest – victims of hunger and disease

Industrial output fell by 7-fold compared with 1913 Agricultural output fell by 40% National income fell by almost 3-fold

State Emblem of the Russian Empire, 1890s

The first state emblem of Soviet Russia: “Workers of all lands, unite!”

What about “world revolution”? Other attempted socialist revolutions in Europe in the wake

of World War I: Germany Hungary Estonia Bulgaria Finland Italy

All failed

Meanwhile, in Asia The Russian revolution is viewed by Asian nationalists as a

welcome rebellion against Western colonialism and imperialism

Soviet Russia proclaims its support of their struggles Russian Communism becomes a natural ally of national

liberation movements in the Global South

Afghanistan, 1919

February 1919: Amanullah Khan becomes King (Amir) of Afghanistan

He declares Afghanistan’s full independence Britain ignores it March 1919: The Soviet Government grants Afghanistan

recognition as a fully independent state (the first foreign government to do so), offers military aid

Britain invades Afghanistan Soviet Russia and Afghanistan help each other repel British

interventions Results: Pro-Soviet forces win in Central Asia Britain withdraws from Afghanistan, recognizes its

independence (1921)

April 1919: At an assembly of all AfKing Amanullah proclaims Afghanistan’s full independence

Afghan tribal militia in the War of Independence

British Handley Page bombers were deployed to attack Afghanistan

Mongolian Communist leader Sukhe-Bator

Lenin advising Sukhe-Bator (a Soviet painting)

Sun Yatsen, first President of the Republic of China

Mao Zedong, founder of the Chinese Communist Party

Mahatma Gandhi

Eric Hobsbawm, The Age of Extremes, A History of the World, 1914-1991, Ch.2: The Russian Revolution was perceived by the world as the

start of global revolution to create an alternative to capitalism A socialist alternative was expected - and hoped for - by

large numbers of people For the 20th century, the Russian Revolution was therefore an

event of major global importance, like the French Revolution of 1789 was for the 19th century

Thus, global politics of the period between 1917 and 1991 can be viewed as struggle of forces of the old order against social revolution – a struggle in which the Soviet Union was seen as the revolution’s main base.

Dialectics of war and revolution World War I and the Russian Revolution triggered off a

Global Civil War At issue: crisis and transformation of the global system A long series of intense political struggles within states and

between states. Main groups of actors: political forces seeking revolutionary changes, oriented

towards socialism (the Global Left), forces aiming to destroy the Global Left and save

capitalism through abolishing liberal democracy (the Global Right), and

forces seeking to save capitalism through social and political reforms which would undercut the Global Left (the Global Centre)

The Global Left: The Soviet Union, regarded as the base of “world

revolution” A network of communist parties organized as the

Comintern National liberation movements in the Global South,

seeking the overthrow of Western empires – and regarding the USSR as a key ally

Death to World Imperialism poster, by D. Moor, 1920

Internationalism vs. nationalism Internationalism arises from globalization Development of class ties across state borders International capital International working class The rise of global society Liberal internationalism Revolutionary internationalism

Nationalism Another product of globalization

Opposition to foreign domination and control Creation of nation-states

Exists in various forms – from left to right Becomes a major element in the ideology of various

political movements and forces Can be defensive - or offensive Can liberate – or enslave A major revolutionary force in world politics

The Global Right Various right-wing forces, shattered by World War I and the

Russian Revolution After 1917 - on the defensive, trying to adapt to the new

situation Conservatives adrift

The rise of Radical Right – fascism Combining nationalist, militarist, socialist and antidemocratic

ideas The new word: “totalitarianism” (Mussolini) Fascism gives the Right the energy to go on the offensive But until the 1930s, the offensives are of regional, not

global, significance

Mussolini addresses a Fascist Party crowd, 1934:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOv-Ncs7vQk

The Global Center Liberals, social democrats, labour and other social

movements struggling for democratization and social reforms - The Center-Left, a bridge between the Global Left and the

Global Center Reform-minded factions of Western ruling classes seeking

to stabilize and consolidate the global capitalist system within the framework of liberal democracy

The main project: Reforming capitalism to save it

Main international force – the United States, especially since the Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt

The Soviet Union (Russia-5) was a product of the Global Civil War

Russia’s own fate as a state, success or failure of its socialist experiment depended critically on the course of the Global Civil War

Thus, it was committed to “world revolution” And it tried to control the various revolutionary processes

To help revolutionaries succeed To make sure they helped - or at least did not hurt - the Soviet

state But it was never able to control world revolutionary forces to

any major degree – the scale and energy of the Global Civil War was way beyond the capacity of any state

Soviet foreign policy was always a complex balancing act guided by combinations of 3 main priorities

New, arising from the Global Civil War Participation in the struggles of the Global Left Peaceful coexistence with capitalist countries

Traditional, continuing the practices of historical Russia Classical geopolitics - pursuit of security and influence via the

agency of a strong state engaging in various relationships with other states, seeking balances of power

The 1920s Relative stabilization of capitalism worldwide NEP means a shift from revolution to reform, a revival of

capitalism in Russia, a compromise between communism and capitalism, a relaxation of dictatorial rule

“Socialism in one country” becomes the goal; success of the Soviet model would be the best help to the world revolution

Primacy of internal tasks over foreign policy Primacy of Soviet state interests over plans of foreign

revolutionaries Deep splits within the leadership and in the ranks of the

Communist Party: has the revolution been betrayed?

The rise of Stalin

Stalin during the Civil War, 1919

Stalin visiting ailing Lenin (1922)

Stalin in his early years as Communist Party General Secretary

Views of revolution, state-building and governance Stalin as Lenin’s disciple Stalin as anti-Lenin

The empire restored: the rise of the Soviet Union

Formation of the Soviet Union – 1922 Most territories of Russian Empire are reintegrated - on a

different base Revolutionary annexation of non-Russian lands: Ukraine,

Belarus, the Caucasus, Central Asia Suppression of nationalists; use of the Red Army; actions of

pro-Soviet groups The ambivalence of Soviet federalism: was it a mere façade

for a unitary state?

The Soviet economic miracle

1921-26:

Industrial output grew by 3 times

Agricultural output doubled

1921-28:

Average annual growth of national income -18%

The economy was restored to its pre-World War I level – on a different basis

The Communist International (Comintern): 1919-1943 The international association of left-wing parties built on the

Soviet Bolshevik model Moscow as the Comintern’s control centre Fundamental problem: how to reconcile activities of foreign

revolutionaries with the interests of the Soviet state

Moscow’s use of the Comintern as a tool of Soviet foreign policy The Soviet state fostered subversive forces in other

states The key role of the Soviet security and intelligence

services in the activities of the Comintern Created tensions in relations between the Soviet Union

and other states

The Comintern as a tool of “world revolution” Inevitable differences and splits in the ranks Ideological and organizational confusion Pluralism of views or enforced orthodoxy? Not a single successful revolution Partial responsibility, due to policy blunders, for the rise of

Nazism in Germany Impact on Soviet domestic politics

The tragedy of true believers

Soviet Machiavellianism Using conflicts between potential adversaries; building

balances of power; pragmatic maneuvering in world affairs, readiness to use any means available to achieve foreign policy goals

Rapallo (1922) and the Soviet-German axis A separate deal between 2 “rogue states” Mutual interests Mutual rearmament What about German Communists?

The China policy Support of Chinese nationalism against Japan and the

West Support of Chinese Communists, trying to influence their

activities