Third Russian Revolution
Encyclopedia
The Left SR uprising or Left SR revolt was an uprising against the Bolshevik
s by the Left Socialist Revolutionary Party in July 1918. The uprising started on 6 July 1918 and was claimed to be intended to restart the war with Germany
. It was one of a number of left-wing uprisings against the Bolsheviks
that took place during the Russian Civil War
.
in Moscow
.
Previously, the Socialist Revolutionary Party had supported the continuation of the war by the Provisional Government after the February Revolution of 1917. The Bolshevik Party came to power in November 1917 through simultaneous election in the soviets and an organized uprising supported by military mutiny. Several of the main reasons the population supported the Bolsheviks were to end the war and have a social revolution, exemplified by the slogan "Peace, Land, Bread". The Bolsheviks invited left SRs and Martov's Menshevik Internationalists to join the government. Left SRs split from the main SR party and joined the Bolshevik coalition government, supporting the Bolsheviks immediate enactment of the Socialist Revolutionary Party's land redistribution program. The Left SRs were given four Commissar positions and held high posts within the Cheka
. The Left SRs still diverged with the Bolsheviks on the issue of the war, and were dismayed that the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
gave up large amounts of territory. They left the Council of the People's Commissars
in protest in March 1918.
The Left SRs agreed with extrajudicial execution of political opponents to stop the counterrevolution, but opposed having the government legally pronouncing death sentences, an unusual position that is best understood within the context of the group's terrorist past. The Left SRs strongly opposed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, and opposed Trotsky's insistence that nobody was allowed to attack German troops in the Ukraine.
On June 14, 1918 Bolsheviks excluded the Right SRs and Mensheviks from the All-Russian Central Executive Committee
and ordered all local Soviets to exclude Right SRs and Mensheviks.
At the 5th All-Russia Congress of Soviets of July 4, 1918 the Left Socialist-Revolutionaries
had 352 delegates compared to 745 Bolsheviks out of 1132 total. The Left SRs raised disagreements on the suppression of rival parties, the death penalty, and mainly, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
, who were also members of Left SR party, Yakov Blumkin
, and N.A. Andreev, arrived at the German legation in Moscow. They showed a letter of introduction, supposedly signed by the head of Cheka Felix Dzerzhinsky and asked to see German envoy. During the conversation - at about 2:50 PM, Blumkin drew up a revolver and shot at Count Mirbach, Dr. Riezler, and the interpreter, Lt. Mueller, but failed to injure any of them. Riezler and Mueller took shelter under a large table, whereas Mirbach, who tried to escape, was then shot by Andreev. The assassins fled and disappeared in a car that was waiting for them in front of the legation
Mirbach had been assassinated by order of the Left SR Central Committee. The Leadership of the Left SRs incorrectly believed this assassination would lead to a widespread popular uprising in support of their aims. They claimed to be leading a revolt against the peace with Germany and not necessarily against the Bolsheviks and soviet power.
A few weeks later, Hermann von Eichhorn
was assassinated in Kiev by Left SRs.
to put under guard the whole Left SR faction of the Fifth Congress of Soviets (approximately 450 people). Bolshoi Theatre
, where session of Congress took place, was surrounded by chekists and Latvian riflemen
. Bolshevik delegates of congress were allowed to leave the theater, while Left SRs were arrested inside the theater.
Blumkin and Andreev drove to the building of a Cheka detachment under the command of Left SR D. I. Popov, where at the time the Central Committee of the Left SR party was in session. At about 5:00 p.m., Dzerzhinsky, who had been given responsibility for investigating the assassination, followed a lead as to the murderers' likely whereabouts and went to the building in order to arrest Blumkin and those who concealed him. But instead of arresting Blumkin, Dzerzhinsky himself was arrested by Popov.
The main rebel force was a Cheka detachment, commanded by D. I. Popov. Popov's unit was manned by red Finns and sailors, and according to Leon Trotsky's estimate had between eight hundred men and two thousand men, several guns, machine-guns and armored cars. Trotsky, L. THE REVOLT: Report to the Fifth All-Russia Congress of Soviets of Workers’, Peasants’, Cossacks’ and Red Army Men’s Deputies, on July 9, 1918, the day following the suppression of the revolt by the Left SRs which took place on July 6–8, 1918 Popov ordered to undertake reconnaissance in the streets of Moscow. Group of soldiers from Popov's detachment arrived to Cheka headquarters, arrested Martin Latsis
, and brought him to the building where Popov's unit was located.
For a short time the Left SR's seized the telephone
exchange and telegraph
office. They sent out several manifesto
s, bulletin
s and telegrams in the name of the Left S.R. Central Committee declaring that the Left S.R.s had taken over power
and that their action had been welcomed by the whole people
.
At night, Lenin ordered Jukums Vācietis
to gather forces to launch an attack against the Left SRs. By the early morning of 7 July, the Bolsheviks had gathered enough forces, mainly Latvian riflemen
under the command of Vācietis, to start an attack. At about 10:00 a.m., they set up their artillery only two hundred yards in front of the building where Popov's unit was located. After an unsuccessful negotiation attempt, the Latvians opened fire. The very first salvos hit the Left SR headquarters, after which the Left SR Central Committee left the building at once. By about 2:00 p.m., the uprising was crushed and the Left SRs took flight.
A telegram from the Left SR Central Committee stating that the Left SRs had seized power in Moscow, was sent to M. A. Muravyov, a Left SR and Commander
of the Eastern Front. On the pretext of attacking the Germans, he seized Simbirsk and tried to march his forces on Moscow in support of the left socialist revolutionaries. However, Muravyov could not convince his troops to oppose the bolsheviks, and was killed when arrested.
" split from Left SRs and supported the Bolsheviks.
At the same time, the Bolsheviks began purging local Soviets and Soviet institutions of Left SRs. Many SRs who did not participate in the uprising were afterwards integrated into the Bolshevik Party. In 1921, there was another SR-led revolt called the Kronstadt Rebellion
. The Left SRs collapsed as a party by 1922 and only existed as small cells through 1925.
Mirbach assassins, Blumkin and Andreev, managed to evade capture. In early 1919, Blumkin was pardoned by Bolsheviks and rejoined Cheka.
During the Moscow Trials
in 1937, it was claimed that Trotsky, Kamenev, and Zinoviev were involved in this plot.
Yuri Felshtinsky claimed the revolt was staged by the Bolsheviks as a pretext to discredit the Left SRs. However, this was disputed by L. M. Ovrutskii and Anatolii Izrailevich Razgon.
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
s by the Left Socialist Revolutionary Party in July 1918. The uprising started on 6 July 1918 and was claimed to be intended to restart the war with Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It was one of a number of left-wing uprisings against the Bolsheviks
Left-wing uprisings against the Bolsheviks
Left-wing uprisings against the Bolsheviks were a series of rebellions and uprisings against the Bolsheviks led or supported by left wing groups including Socialist Revolutionaries, Left Socialist Revolutionaries, Mensheviks, and anarchists. Some were in support of the White Movement while some...
that took place during the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
.
Background
The revolt was led by the Left Socialist-RevolutionariesLeft Socialist-Revolutionaries
In 1917, Russia the Socialist-Revolutionary Party split between those who supported the Provisional Government, established after the February Revolution, and those who supported the Bolsheviks who favoured a communist insurrection....
in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
Previously, the Socialist Revolutionary Party had supported the continuation of the war by the Provisional Government after the February Revolution of 1917. The Bolshevik Party came to power in November 1917 through simultaneous election in the soviets and an organized uprising supported by military mutiny. Several of the main reasons the population supported the Bolsheviks were to end the war and have a social revolution, exemplified by the slogan "Peace, Land, Bread". The Bolsheviks invited left SRs and Martov's Menshevik Internationalists to join the government. Left SRs split from the main SR party and joined the Bolshevik coalition government, supporting the Bolsheviks immediate enactment of the Socialist Revolutionary Party's land redistribution program. The Left SRs were given four Commissar positions and held high posts within the Cheka
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
. The Left SRs still diverged with the Bolsheviks on the issue of the war, and were dismayed that the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed on March 3, 1918, mediated by South African Andrik Fuller, at Brest-Litovsk between Russia and the Central Powers, headed by Germany, marking Russia's exit from World War I.While the treaty was practically obsolete before the end of the year,...
gave up large amounts of territory. They left the Council of the People's Commissars
Council of the People's Commissars
The Council of People's Commissars , was a government institution formed shortly after the October Revolution in 1917. Created in the Russian Republic the council laid foundations in restructuring the country to form the Soviet Union...
in protest in March 1918.
The Left SRs agreed with extrajudicial execution of political opponents to stop the counterrevolution, but opposed having the government legally pronouncing death sentences, an unusual position that is best understood within the context of the group's terrorist past. The Left SRs strongly opposed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, and opposed Trotsky's insistence that nobody was allowed to attack German troops in the Ukraine.
On June 14, 1918 Bolsheviks excluded the Right SRs and Mensheviks from the All-Russian Central Executive Committee
All-Russian Central Executive Committee
All-Russian Central Executive Committee , was the highest legislative, administrative, and revising body of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. Although the All-Russian Congress of Soviets had supreme authority, in periods between its sessions its powers were passed to VTsIK...
and ordered all local Soviets to exclude Right SRs and Mensheviks.
At the 5th All-Russia Congress of Soviets of July 4, 1918 the Left Socialist-Revolutionaries
Left Socialist-Revolutionaries
In 1917, Russia the Socialist-Revolutionary Party split between those who supported the Provisional Government, established after the February Revolution, and those who supported the Bolsheviks who favoured a communist insurrection....
had 352 delegates compared to 745 Bolsheviks out of 1132 total. The Left SRs raised disagreements on the suppression of rival parties, the death penalty, and mainly, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.
Assassination of Mirbach
On July 6, 1918, at about 2:15 PM two chekistsCheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
, who were also members of Left SR party, Yakov Blumkin
Yakov Blumkin
Yakov Grigoryevich Blumkin was a Left Socialist-Revolutionary, assassin, Bolshevik, Cheka agent, State Political Directorate spy, and adventurer, executed as Trotskyist.-Early life :...
, and N.A. Andreev, arrived at the German legation in Moscow. They showed a letter of introduction, supposedly signed by the head of Cheka Felix Dzerzhinsky and asked to see German envoy. During the conversation - at about 2:50 PM, Blumkin drew up a revolver and shot at Count Mirbach, Dr. Riezler, and the interpreter, Lt. Mueller, but failed to injure any of them. Riezler and Mueller took shelter under a large table, whereas Mirbach, who tried to escape, was then shot by Andreev. The assassins fled and disappeared in a car that was waiting for them in front of the legation
Mirbach had been assassinated by order of the Left SR Central Committee. The Leadership of the Left SRs incorrectly believed this assassination would lead to a widespread popular uprising in support of their aims. They claimed to be leading a revolt against the peace with Germany and not necessarily against the Bolsheviks and soviet power.
A few weeks later, Hermann von Eichhorn
Hermann von Eichhorn
Hermann von Eichhorn was a Prussian general.-Biography:Eichhorn was born in Breslau in the Province of Silesia...
was assassinated in Kiev by Left SRs.
Uprising
Shortly after assassination, Lenin ordered Yakov PetersYakov Peters
Jēkabs Peterss or Yakov Khristoforovich Peters was a Latvian Communist revolutionary, Soviet politician, chekist, and terrorist. Together with Feliks Dzerzhinsky, he was one of the founders and chiefs of the VChK...
to put under guard the whole Left SR faction of the Fifth Congress of Soviets (approximately 450 people). Bolshoi Theatre
Bolshoi Theatre
The Bolshoi Theatre is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds performances of ballet and opera. The Bolshoi Ballet and Bolshoi Opera are amongst the oldest and most renowned ballet and opera companies in the world...
, where session of Congress took place, was surrounded by chekists and Latvian riflemen
Latvian Riflemen
This article is about Latvian military formations in World War I and Russian Civil War. For Red Army military formations in World War II see Latvian Riflemen Soviet Divisions....
. Bolshevik delegates of congress were allowed to leave the theater, while Left SRs were arrested inside the theater.
Blumkin and Andreev drove to the building of a Cheka detachment under the command of Left SR D. I. Popov, where at the time the Central Committee of the Left SR party was in session. At about 5:00 p.m., Dzerzhinsky, who had been given responsibility for investigating the assassination, followed a lead as to the murderers' likely whereabouts and went to the building in order to arrest Blumkin and those who concealed him. But instead of arresting Blumkin, Dzerzhinsky himself was arrested by Popov.
The main rebel force was a Cheka detachment, commanded by D. I. Popov. Popov's unit was manned by red Finns and sailors, and according to Leon Trotsky's estimate had between eight hundred men and two thousand men, several guns, machine-guns and armored cars. Trotsky, L. THE REVOLT: Report to the Fifth All-Russia Congress of Soviets of Workers’, Peasants’, Cossacks’ and Red Army Men’s Deputies, on July 9, 1918, the day following the suppression of the revolt by the Left SRs which took place on July 6–8, 1918 Popov ordered to undertake reconnaissance in the streets of Moscow. Group of soldiers from Popov's detachment arrived to Cheka headquarters, arrested Martin Latsis
Martin Latsis
Martin Ivanovich Latsis was a Latvian-born Soviet politician, revolutionary and state security high officer...
, and brought him to the building where Popov's unit was located.
For a short time the Left SR's seized the telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
exchange and telegraph
Telegraphy
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages via some form of signalling technology. Telegraphy requires messages to be converted to a code which is known to both sender and receiver...
office. They sent out several manifesto
Manifesto
A manifesto is a public declaration of principles and intentions, often political in nature. Manifestos relating to religious belief are generally referred to as creeds. Manifestos may also be life stance-related.-Etymology:...
s, bulletin
Bulletin
Bulletin can refer to:Periodicals * The Bulletin, a now defunct Australian magazine* The Bulletin , an alternative weekly published in Montgomery County, Texas, United States...
s and telegrams in the name of the Left S.R. Central Committee declaring that the Left S.R.s had taken over power
Power (sociology)
Power is a measurement of an entity's ability to control its environment, including the behavior of other entities. The term authority is often used for power perceived as legitimate by the social structure. Power can be seen as evil or unjust, but the exercise of power is accepted as endemic to...
and that their action had been welcomed by the whole people
Nation
A nation may refer to a community of people who share a common language, culture, ethnicity, descent, and/or history. In this definition, a nation has no physical borders. However, it can also refer to people who share a common territory and government irrespective of their ethnic make-up...
.
At night, Lenin ordered Jukums Vācietis
Jukums Vacietis
Jukums Vācietis was a Latvian Soviet military commander. He was a rare example of notable Soviet leaders who were not members of the Communist Party ....
to gather forces to launch an attack against the Left SRs. By the early morning of 7 July, the Bolsheviks had gathered enough forces, mainly Latvian riflemen
Latvian Riflemen
This article is about Latvian military formations in World War I and Russian Civil War. For Red Army military formations in World War II see Latvian Riflemen Soviet Divisions....
under the command of Vācietis, to start an attack. At about 10:00 a.m., they set up their artillery only two hundred yards in front of the building where Popov's unit was located. After an unsuccessful negotiation attempt, the Latvians opened fire. The very first salvos hit the Left SR headquarters, after which the Left SR Central Committee left the building at once. By about 2:00 p.m., the uprising was crushed and the Left SRs took flight.
A telegram from the Left SR Central Committee stating that the Left SRs had seized power in Moscow, was sent to M. A. Muravyov, a Left SR and Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
of the Eastern Front. On the pretext of attacking the Germans, he seized Simbirsk and tried to march his forces on Moscow in support of the left socialist revolutionaries. However, Muravyov could not convince his troops to oppose the bolsheviks, and was killed when arrested.
Results
The end result of the revolt was the suppression of the Left SRs, the last major independent party other than the Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks differentiated between the Left SR leadership and the remainder of the party and soon proclaimed the innocence of the latter. The "Party of the Populists-Communists" and "Party of Revolutionary CommunismParty of Revolutionary Communism
Party of Revolutionary Communism was a political party in Russia. It was formed by a Narodnik group which broke away from the Left Socialist-Revolutionaries after the latter's mutiny in July 1918. In September 1918, they constituted themselves as a party at a congress in Moscow...
" split from Left SRs and supported the Bolsheviks.
At the same time, the Bolsheviks began purging local Soviets and Soviet institutions of Left SRs. Many SRs who did not participate in the uprising were afterwards integrated into the Bolshevik Party. In 1921, there was another SR-led revolt called the Kronstadt Rebellion
Kronstadt rebellion
The Kronstadt rebellion was one of many major unsuccessful left-wing uprisings against the Bolsheviks in the aftermath of the Russian Civil War...
. The Left SRs collapsed as a party by 1922 and only existed as small cells through 1925.
Mirbach assassins, Blumkin and Andreev, managed to evade capture. In early 1919, Blumkin was pardoned by Bolsheviks and rejoined Cheka.
During the Moscow Trials
Moscow Trials
The Moscow Trials were a series of show trials conducted in the Soviet Union and orchestrated by Joseph Stalin during the Great Purge of the 1930s. The victims included most of the surviving Old Bolsheviks, as well as the leadership of the Soviet secret police...
in 1937, it was claimed that Trotsky, Kamenev, and Zinoviev were involved in this plot.
Yuri Felshtinsky claimed the revolt was staged by the Bolsheviks as a pretext to discredit the Left SRs. However, this was disputed by L. M. Ovrutskii and Anatolii Izrailevich Razgon.
See also
- Left-wing uprisings against the BolsheviksLeft-wing uprisings against the BolsheviksLeft-wing uprisings against the Bolsheviks were a series of rebellions and uprisings against the Bolsheviks led or supported by left wing groups including Socialist Revolutionaries, Left Socialist Revolutionaries, Mensheviks, and anarchists. Some were in support of the White Movement while some...
- Black GuardsBlack GuardsBlack Guards were armed groups of workers formed after the Russian Revolution and before the Third Russian Revolution. They were the main strike force of the anarchists...
- Green Armies
- Left communismLeft communismLeft communism is the range of communist viewpoints held by the communist left, which criticizes the political ideas of the Bolsheviks at certain periods, from a position that is asserted to be more authentically Marxist and proletarian than the views of Leninism held by the Communist International...
- Left OppositionLeft OppositionThe Left Opposition was a faction within the Bolshevik Party from 1923 to 1927, headed de facto by Leon Trotsky. The Left Opposition formed as part of the power struggle within the party leadership that began with the Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin's illness and intensified with his death in January...
- Permanent RevolutionPermanent RevolutionPermanent revolution is a term within Marxist theory, established in usage by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels by at least 1850 but which has since become most closely associated with Leon Trotsky. The use of the term by different theorists is not identical...
- World revolutionWorld revolutionWorld revolution is the Marxist concept of overthrowing capitalism in all countries through the conscious revolutionary action of the organized working class...
- War communismWar communismWar communism or military communism was the economic and political system that existed in Soviet Russia during the Russian Civil War, from 1918 to 1921...
External links
- Lutz Hafner. The Assassination of Count Mirbach and the "July Uprising" of the Left Socialist Revolutionaries in Moscow, 1918. Russian Review, Vol. 50, No. 3 (Jul., 1991), pp. 324–344
- Nadezhda Krupskaya, "Ilyich Moves to Moscow, His First Months of Work in Moscow"
- V. I. Lenin, "Interview Granted To An Izvestia Correspondent In Connection With The Left Socialist-Revolutionary Revolt"
- "Poole to Lansing on assassination of Count Mirbach"
- Leon Trotsky, "Revolt of the Left SRs"