The Russian Revolution

by Sheila Fitzpatrick

Release Date: December, 2001

Edition: Paperback

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The Russian Revolution did not end in 1920.

Fitzpatrick's short book about the Russian Revolution is so concise one has to wonder if she skimped on the facts. This is not the case. Anybody reading the book can only remark that thickness is not indicative of weight. All one needs to know about the Russian Revolution is in this slim volume.
Fitzpatrick's main contention is that the Russian Revolution did not end in 1920, but rather in the 1930s when Stalin consolidated his power and put in place a new system which suceeded the Tsarist regime. Stalin did this by educating a new elite from the working class and placing them in the Party and Government. Future leaders came from this group. The two five year plans stabilized the revolution and placed a new order on the country.
I also found the characterization of Lenin good. Lenin put in place a situation which led to the rise of the dictatorship of Joseph Stalin. Lenin is seen as both good and bad.
There are more meaty books about the Russian Revolution. There is not one which is more concise and explains all the facts.

A Look at a 15-Year Long Revolution

As the title indicates, the gist of Fitzpatrick's argument is that the Russian Revolution was not completed until 1932. Only at this time did the contours of Russian society become stable. Massive numbers of proletariats were educated and became bureaucrats who helped achieve Russian industrialization.

Other points in this book are that: (1) The Bolshevik party was a mass party in 1917. Lenin was no murdering dictator but was a persuasive leader. His threat to resign from the party pushed the decision to sign the Brest-Litovsk treaty. (2) The peasants were suspicious of the Bolshevik aims to ignite class hatred in the countryside. The Bolsheviks needed to send thugs into the countryside to wage war on a reluctant peasantry in order to force industrialization on the nation.

Although this book is relatively short, especially considering the time period covered, it is very meaty and requires careful reading to understand the main concepts.