The Bolsheviks in Power, livre ebook

The dramatic story of the Bolsheviks' struggle for political survival during the first year of Soviet powerListen to an interview with the authorA major contribution to the historiography of the world in the 20th century, The Bolsheviks in Power focuses on the fateful first year of Soviet rule in Petrograd. It examines events that profoundly shaped the Soviet political system that endured through most of the 20th century. Drawing largely from previously inaccessible Soviet archives, it demolishes standard interpretations of the origins of Soviet authoritarianism by demonstrating that the Soviet system evolved ad hoc as the Bolsheviks struggled to retain political power amid spiraling political, social, economic, and military crises. The book covers issues such as the rapid fall of influential moderate Bolsheviks, the formation of the dreaded Cheka, the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly, the Red Terror, the national government's flight to Moscow, and the subsequent rivalry between Russia's new and old capitals.AbbreviationsPreface Prologue: The Bolsheviks and the October Revolution in Petrograd Part I: The Defeat of the ModeratesChapter 1 Forming a Government Chapter 2 Rebels into Rulers Chapter 3 Gathering Forces Chapter 4 The Fate of the Constituent Assembly Part II: War or Peace Chapter 5 Fighting Lenin Chapter 6 "The Socialist Fatherland Is in Danger" Chapter 7 An Obscene PeacePart III: Soviet Power on the BrinkChapter 8 A Turbulent SpringChapter 9 Continuing CrisesChapter 10 The Northern Commune and the Bolshevik-Left SR Alliance Chapter 11 The Suicide of the Left SRsPart IV: Celebration amid TerrorChapter 12 The Road to "Red Terror"Chapter 13 The Red Terror in Petrograd Chapter 14 Celebrating "the Greatest Event in the History of the World"Chapter 15 Price of Survival Chronology of Key Events NotesBibliography Index