We explain what war communism was, what the objectives of this system were and the consequences it produced.
What was war communism?
War communism was economic system with which Bolshevik Russia was administered (prior to the existence of the USSR) between June 1918 and March 1921, within the framework of the Russian civil war. It consisted of the state management of the economy, aimed entirely at maintaining the cities and the Red Army through the supply of weapons and food, in the face of the exceptional conditions imposed by the war.
It was decreed by the Supreme Council of Economics, known as VSNJ, and culminated with the announcement of the New Economic Policy (NEP) proposed by Vladimir Lenin and which lasted until 1928.
The implementation of war communism It consisted of a series of economic and political measures which can be summarized as follows:
- The government nationalized the industry and began to control all the large factories in Russia.
- The railways passed under military control.
- The government planned and controlled production according to its needs.
- Maximum discipline and obedience were demanded from the workers and strikes were prohibited.
- The “non-working” classes had to perform compulsory labor.
- Forced requisitions of agricultural surpluses were imposed on peasants.
- The government implemented rationing and controlled distribution of food and other goods.
- All forms of private enterprise were declared illegal.
- The government controlled foreign trade.
These measures were taken in a context of civil war against the counterrevolutionary sectors, so they were less orderly in practice than the government expected. Many territories were cut off and acted without instructions from the central government, which is why it is sometimes understood war communism as a desperate set of measures to win the armed conflict.
Key points
- War communism was an economic policy implemented by the Bolshevik government of Russia between 1918 and 1921.
- It consisted of the nationalization of industry, the application of forced requisitions of agricultural surpluses and the state administration of the economy.
- Its objective was to confront the economic efforts imposed by the Russian civil war and advance measures aimed at consolidating a communist economy.
- Its consequences were a fall in industrial production, famines in the countryside and rebellions that led the government to replace this model with the New Economic Policy (NEP).
See also: Russian Revolution
Goals of war communism
There is a debate about the real purpose of war communism. For many, including the Bolsheviks after the economic failure of the model, it was an attempt to survive the civil war and win at any cost. From this point of view, the Bolshevik government had applied this model due to the pressure of socioeconomic contingencies in the context of war.
However, some researchers maintain that war communism was a strategy to advance economic and social measures related to Marxist doctrine but unpopular among some social sectors, such as the extermination of private property and the market economy. The war situation then served to justify these measures, which were based on the Marxist ideology itself that aspired to control all areas of the economy by the State.
Consequences of war communism
war communism further complicated the situation caused by the civil war. The refusal of the peasantry to surrender their surplus production and continue producing surpluses (given the prospect that they would be confiscated) created food shortages in urban areas and caused a mass exodus from the cities to the countryside, where it was easier to feed. This caused large cities such as Moscow and Petrograd to lose around 50 and 75% of their population, respectively, between 1918 and 1920.
The shortage led to a black market in goods, despite a martial law in force against speculation, and the collapse of the ruble. led to a system of bartering for goods and food. 90% of salaries were paid with goods instead of money. In 1921 produced a massive famine that caused around five million deaths mainly among peasants. Furthermore, industrial production fell markedly as an undertrained bureaucracy attempted to control the economy.
This catastrophic series of events came to an end after the outbreak of strikes and peasant rebellions (such as the Tambov rebellion or Nestor Makhno's revolutionary movement) and workers' revolts (such as the Kronstadt rebellion). Given this situation, The Bolshevik government decided in 1921 to implement a model of capitalism of State called New Economic Policy (NEP) in which the establishment of small private companies was allowed and a mixed state-private system was formed. The NEP model existed until 1928, when it was replaced by Joseph Stalin's First Five-Year Plan.
See also:
References
- Britannica, Encyclopaedia (sf). War Communism. Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/
- Fitzpatrick, S. (2005). The Russian Revolution. 21st century.
- Saborido, J. (2009). History of the Soviet Union. I emecé.
