ebooks The Bolsheviks in Power: The First Year of Soviet Rule in Petrograd by Alexander Rabinowitch in History

Review

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. A very interesting bookBy F. P. da CostaWritten by a respected American historian of the Russian revolution and early soviet period; this book kind of completes a trilogy about the Bolshevik ascension to power that started with the author's study of the failed July 1917 coup (Prelude to Revolution) and continued with his study of the October revolution (The Bolsheviks Come To Power). This volume; the first to benefit from the opening of the soviet archives in the 1990s; is devoted to the study of the Petrograd (St. Petersburg) Bolsheviks in the first year after October 1917. This early period of soviet rule (1917-1918) saw truly revolutionary changes in Russia; and in Petrograd in particular; and in this very interesting study we can read about them in a masterful way: the dissent within the Bolsheviks; the election to; and the dismissal of; the Constituent Assembly; the separate peace with Germany and the Brest-Litovsk treaty that precipitated the end of the coalition government with the Left Socialist Revolutionaries and the inauguration of the Bolshevik one-party rule that would remain in force for more than seventy years; until the downfall of the soviet regime; and also the catastrophic domestic social; economic; political; and military situation; in Petrograd and in the country; in the Spring and Summer of 1918; that led to the proclamation of the Red Terror; the onset of the civil war; the formation and early development of the Cheka. All these momentous events are seen from the perspective of a city that lost its capital status to Moscow and whose dire economical and social conditions led to a growing disenchantment of the workers with the Bolsheviks; resulting in the formation of independent political bodies; and the increasing depopulation of the city. The attempts of the Bolsheviks to remain in power at the various levels of decision making (from factory committees and trade unions to city; local; and national government) in face of mounting difficulties and opposition lead very quickly to the dismissal of all democratic mechanisms and to the concomitant increase in the repression apparatus that would be one of the soviet regime staples. Rabinowitch's new book is an important contribution to our understanding of these turbulent times.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. a bit strange...By Customer240; 289; 315 same pictures under different names.15 of 18 people found the following review helpful. Professor Rabinowitch Has Done It AgainBy R. L. HuffThat is; write another engrossing history of the Bolshevik Party in revolution. This volume picks up seamlessly where his earlier "The Bolsheviks Come to Power" left off. For those of us who enjoyed his lucid and - at the time - groundbreaking reconstruction of 1917; this volume dealing with the revolutionary aftermath of October has been too long-awaited.Although the writing gets dense at times; those interested in the subject will find a fascinating wealth of information on just how confused; ad hoc and improvisational were these early days of "Communist conspiracy" and "scientific socialism." Rabinowitch begins with the early negotiations between the Bolsheviks and other parties on the limits of inclusion in the new Soviet government; and concludes with the first-year anniversary of the October Revolution. Throughout the narrative his focus is on the moderate Bolshevik faction and how it was marginalized by Lenin; as well as the pressures of civil war.Realistically; however; Rabinowitch does not idealize these moderates nor overindulge the what-ifs of historiography. In outlining the transformation of Bolsheviks "from rebels to rulers" he keeps us aware of the harsh realities of civil war that made compromise and negotiation seem suicidal. And it must be remembered that attempts by moderate anti-Bolsheviks; to promote democracy and counsel conciliation on the White side; were brushed off by rightwing army officers and Western advisors who were determined to crush Bolshevism at all costs. With the narcosis of civil war gripping all parties it's very hollow indeed to berate the Bolsheviks alone for being dictators and fanatics; or expect them to rise above these circumstances. This is Rabinowitch's conclusion and is a refreshing counterpoint to the ideologically-driven anti-Bolshevik school led by Richard Pipes and Robert Conquest.