The “homogeneous socialist government” existed exclusively as an idea in Russia in 1917 and was opposed to the coalition Provisional Government of bourgeois and revolutionary democratic parties.
History
Representatives of the left socialist parties who back in March-April 1917 put forward the slogan “All power to the Soviets!” Can be considered as heralds of this idea: since only socialist parties were represented in the Soviets of workers and soldiers’s deputies (the “right-wing socialists” were the most right) The government formed by the Soviets could only be "homogeneous socialist."
Left socialists - Bolsheviks , inter-raions , Menshevik-internationalists led by Yu. O. Martov and the left wing of the Socialist Revolutionary Party , who at that time were a minority in all the Soviets, not counting on invitation to the government and not seeking it because of fundamental disagreements with right-wing socialists, however, believed that only such a government, not torn by internal contradictions, could be capable of and enjoy the support of the people. So, at the First All-Russian Congress of Soviets of Workers 'and Soldiers' Deputies, after the speech of the Minister of Socialism A. V. Peshekhonov , L. D. Trotsky said: “... If they told me that the ministry would be composed of 12 Peshekhonovs, I would say that it is a huge step forward ” [1] .
However, the idea of a socialist government did not find sympathy precisely with those parties that constituted the majority in the Soviets — right-wing Social Democrats ( Mensheviks ) and right-wing Social Revolutionaries .
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Project V. M. Chernova
After the Kornilov rebellion , many of those who had previously supported it were disappointed in the idea of a coalition government. Immediately after the coup attempt, the Bolsheviks once again offered the right-wing socialists to take power into their own hands: on September 1, the Petrograd Soviet, despite the fact that the Bolsheviks and the Left Socialist Revolutionaries had not yet won a majority, adopted the resolution proposed by the Bolsheviks on the transfer of power to the Soviets. V. I. Lenin in the article “Russian Revolution and Civil War” wrote [2] :
| The alliance of the Cadets with the Socialist-Revolutionaries and Mensheviks against the Bolsheviks, that is, against the revolutionary proletariat, has been tested in practice for several months, and this alliance of the temporarily lurking Kornilovites with "democracy" did not actually weaken, but strengthen the Bolsheviks, to collapse " coalition ”, to strengthen the“ left ”opposition and the Mensheviks. The alliance of the Bolsheviks with the Socialist-Revolutionaries and Mensheviks against the Cadets, against the bourgeoisie has not yet been tested. Or, to be more precise, such an alliance was tested only on one front, only for five days, on August 26–31, during the Kornilov revolution, and such an alliance gave during this time a complete victory over the unprecedented ease of any revolution counterrevolution ... If there is an absolutely indisputable, absolutely proved by the facts lesson of revolution, then only one that only an alliance of the Bolsheviks with the Socialist-Revolutionaries and Mensheviks, an exceptionally immediate transfer of all power to the Soviets would make a civil war in Russia impossible. For against such an alliance, against the Soviets of workers', soldiers' and peasants' deputies, no civil war launched by the bourgeoisie is unthinkable ... |
The leader of the Socialist Revolutionary Party (who actually headed its small “center”) V.M. Chernov in the Great Russian Revolution claims that he has repeatedly spoken in favor of a homogeneous government in the Central Committee of his party, which he himself preferred to call the “government of the workers” ; the proposal was either rejected or postponed [3] , but during the work of the Democratic Conference , in late September - early October 1917, his plan already had many supporters in the party’s leadership [4] :
| At one of the meetings, the Central Committee of the Socialist Revolutionary Party even handed over to its delegates who were negotiating with Kerensky an approximate list of candidates for ministerial posts. Tsereteli was to become Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, V. A. Rzhevsky (former progressive , chairman of the State Duma's financial commission, who joined the Socialist-Revolutionaries in 1917) - minister of finance, minister of trade and industry - right-wing Bolshevik Krasin , minister of labor - Social Democrat Kolokolnikov , Minister of agriculture - assistant Chernova, the famous agronomist PA Vihljaev , Minister of blanks - cooperator Berkenheim, Minister of internal Affairs - Social Revolutionary Timofeyev or SDs Bogdanov, the Minister of Justice - Ker sky, and in case of its failure - Gendelman, the Minister of Education - Timiriazev or Bekhterev, Minister of War - General Verkhovskii , Admiralty - Admiral Verderevsky . Chernov preferred to remain outside the government, but if necessary he could return to the Ministry of Agriculture or head the new Ministry of Nationalities. |
Chernov’s project did not take into account the balance of power that had developed by the beginning of October, when the influence of the right-wing socialists (especially the Mensheviks) had noticeably fallen, and the popularity of the left after the Kornilov rebellion, on the contrary, had been growing day by day [5] : not a single representative of the left wing was among the recommended Socialist Revolutionaries parties; there was no place in the government for the RSDLP (b) either, since the “right-wing Bolshevik Krasin” at that time (and for a long time) was neither a Bolshevik, nor even a Menshevik.
In any case, Chernov’s proposal was not implemented this time either, although the “delegates”, Gotz and Avksentiev , did not seem to reject it. “It is possible,” writes Chernov, “that Gotz and Avksentiev took this list with them only in order to bring arrogance from Kerensky by waving in front of his nose a project that would be implemented if Kerensky began to be stubborn. Even reluctant coalition supporters were mesmerized by the proximity of the Constituent Assembly elections . All new government combinations should be postponed. Nobody wanted to compromise themselves in the remaining short period of time, inevitably vague and difficult ” [6] .
Another version is offered by one of the leaders of the Mensheviks F. Dan ; talking about how and why at the Democratic Conference it was not possible to create a “homogeneous democratic government”, with the participation of non-Soviet democracy, Dan concludes [7] :
| Then he stayed - theoretically! - There is only one way for the coalition to break immediately: the formation of a government with the Bolsheviks, not only without "non-Soviet" democracy, but also against it. We considered this path unacceptable given the position that the Bolsheviks had already taken by this time. We clearly recognized that to embark on this path was to embark on the path of terror and civil war, to do everything that the Bolsheviks were really forced to do later. Responsibility for such a policy is not coalition power, none of us did not consider it possible. |
October Talks
The Mensheviks and right-wing Social Revolutionaries boycott the first Soviet government. The final split of the Social Revolutionaries
Immediately after the October Revolution, the Bolsheviks faced a boycott of all moderate socialists, in protest against the armed uprising that had left the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets of Workers 'and Soldiers' Deputies , and also boycotted the new government. Already at the Congress, the Bolsheviks, having begun the formation of a government , invited their allies to the Left Socialist Revolutionaries to enter it. The Social Revolutionaries evaded, according to Lenin [8] , "temporarily and conditionally." Their statement at the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets said that an immediate entry "into the Bolshevik ministry would create a gap between them and the troops of the revolutionary army that left the congress - a gap that would rule out the possibility of mediation between the Bolsheviks and these groups"; it was in such mediation at that moment that the Left Socialist Revolutionaries saw their main task [9] .
The mission of the Left Socialist-Revolutionaries was first appreciated by the party comrades: on October 27 (November 9), 1917, the AKP Central Committee, the majority of which belonged to the right and the center, adopted a decision to expel from the party "all who took part in the Bolshevik adventure and did not leave the Congress of Soviets" [ 10] (at the end of November this decision was confirmed by the Fourth Congress of the AKP). As a result, most of the Petrograd Socialist-Revolutionary organization was expelled from the party.
Wickel Railway Executive Committee threatens blockade
If the Mensheviks and Right Socialist-Revolutionaries (with the support of the left) put forward the proposal to form a homogeneous socialist government in October 1917, then the initiative, in any case, did not belong to their central institutions: neither the Central Committee of the PSR, nor the Central Committee of the RSDLP (m) at the end of October of such decisions they didn’t accept [11] , - the initiative was made by the executive committee of the railway trade union Wikzhel , in which the Socialist-Revolutionaries and Mensheviks prevailed at that time: the executive committee consisted of 40 people, who were mainly from the Socialist-Revolutionaries and Mensheviks, this composition also included two Bolsheviks and two Mezhrayonts, one sympathizing with the Bolsheviks [12] . Representatives of Wikzhel declared the Second Congress of Soviets illegal, because, in their opinion, after the departure of the Menshevik and Socialist-Revolutionary factions, he lost the quorum. Accordingly, Vikzhel refused to recognize the legality of those elected by the Congress of the Council of People's Commissars and the new composition of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. For their part, the Bolsheviks rejected the allegations of a lack of quorum. In addition, under the pressure of Vikzhel, the post of People’s Commissar for Rail Affairs in the first, 100% Bolshevik, composition of the Council of People's Commissars remained temporarily unsubstituted.
On October 27 ( November 9 ) Vikzhel declared his neutrality, refused to transport troops to Moscow , where there were bloody battles, and, threatening a general strike by the railway workers, demanded "an end to the civil war and the creation of a homogeneous socialist government from the Bolsheviks to the people's socialists, inclusive" [13] , having appointed for this purpose on October 29 a meeting of the socialist parties.
Start of negotiations. The Mensheviks and Right Socialist-Revolutionaries Demand the Resignation of Lenin and Trotsky
On the same day, the Central Committee of the RSDLP (b) in its decision recognized the inclusion of representatives of other socialist parties in the government (Lenin later expressed his readiness to offer V. Chernov a portfolio of the People’s Commissar of Agriculture) and seconded the talks of the Chairman of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee L. B. Kamenev and a member of the Central Committee I. Sokolnikov , also on behalf of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee, the Bolsheviks D. B. Ryazanov and Y. M. Sverdlov arrive. At the meeting, which, according to some sources, took place on October 29 ( November 12 ), and according to others only on the 30th, because the central institutions of the Menshevik and Socialist-Revolutionary parties initially refused negotiations with the Bolsheviks (at that time the Red Guard on the outskirts of Petrograd fought with the detachments of Kerensky and Krasnov and the outcome of the battles for both sides was not obvious - see Kerensky-Krasnov’s campaign in Petrograd ), a total of 26 representatives of socialist parties were present, including national ones.
The Bolsheviks, as a platform for the agreement, proposed “recognition of the Soviet government’s program, as expressed in decrees on land, peace and both projects on labor control”, “recognition of the Second All-Russian Congress as the only source of power” (while the Bolsheviks did not refuse to attach to the existing “source authorities ” Congress of Soviets of Peasant Deputies , which was to be held in November) and the responsibility of the government to the All-Russian Central Executive Committee [14] .
On October 28, the Central Committee of the RSDLP (m) adopted a resolution prohibiting negotiations with the Bolsheviks until the complete elimination of their "adventure"; The Committee for the Salvation of the Homeland and the Revolution was proposed to create negotiations with the Provisional Government , the Pre-Parliament and workers' organizations [15] to create a new government.
The meeting of the Central Committee of the RSDLP (b), at which these requirements were discussed, took place in the absence of Lenin and Trotsky themselves, due to the fact that at that time they were busy fighting the Kerensky-Krasnov speech that was taking place then. On October 29, in the absence of Lenin and Trotsky, the Central Committee of the RSDLP (b), under the influence of Zinoviev, Kamenev, Nogin, and Rykov, passed a majority vote to satisfy Vikzhel’s demands. According to the statement of the Chairman of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee, Kamenev L. B., “the government’s program and its responsibility, and not its personnel at all,” come first, and Kamenev agreed with the nomination of the right-wing Social Revolutionary V. Chernov for the post of chairman of the government. Thus, in the RSDLP (b), the “right” wing stands out, which insisted on the cooperation of the Bolsheviks with other socialist parties.
On October 29, the Mensheviks did not yet doubt the success of the Kerensky-Krasnov campaign; They promised to make the necessary efforts to deter the Cossacks Krasnov from retaliation against the Bolsheviks, but their presence in the new government was considered unnecessary [16] . After the suppression of the Junker uprising, the position of the Mensheviks softened and the participation of the Bolsheviks in the government was no longer excluded; Now it was a question of proportion and personal composition.
The right-wing socialists proposed creating from the representatives of the executive committees of the Soviets, city councils, army committees and other organizations the so-called “People’s Council”, to which the government would be responsible; F. I. Dan even proposed to declare the Second Congress of Soviets invalid. In addition, the right-wing socialists insisted on the non-participation in the government of the “personal perpetrators of the October Revolution of Lenin and Trotsky” [17] , Chernov or Avksentiev were offered as head of the government, the notorious minority was assigned to the Bolsheviks in the government: in the best case, 40 percent, in the worst, 5 portfolios of 18 [18]
Negotiation
The Bolsheviks in such proposals did not see the readiness of the right-wing socialists for a compromise and at the meeting of the Central Committee on November 1 (14) they were already arguing about whether to continue negotiations in order to achieve more acceptable conditions, or whether it was time to stop all negotiations. By a majority of votes, it was decided to make a final attempt to reach an agreement on the evening of the same day, proposing the previous conditions in an ultimatum form [19] : the Bolshevik faction of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee accepted Trotsky’s proposal to continue negotiations, rejecting Lenin’s proposal to immediately terminate the negotiations. At the same time, Lenin and Trotsky rejected the course towards "compromise," and Krupskaya N. K. called the "homogeneous socialist government" - "an attempt to harness swans, crayfish and pike into the Soviet cart" [20] . However, the last attempt to agree ended in nothing.
V. Chernov, having left Petrograd a few days before the October Revolution, returned to the capital only in the second half of November [21] and did not participate in the negotiations. In his "Great Russian Revolution," the AKP leader writes:
| The Chernov plan for creating a “workers' government,” so often rejected or put on the shelf, was finally adopted. The Central Committee of the Socialist Revolutionary Party unanimously voted for this resolution in the absence of Chernov and without pressure from him. «Признано необходимым немедленно сформировать однородное социалистическое правительство с представителями всех социалистических партий». Так гласила резолюция, принятая 14 ноября 1917 г. Но слово «немедленно» возникло слишком поздно. Оно появилось через три недели после свержения Временного правительства и прихода к власти большевиков [11] [22] |
По-видимому, эсеры вступили в переговоры с большевиками (29 или 30 октября), не имея на этот счет никакого решения: то ли большинство ЦК было против переговоров, то ли ЦК ПСР вообще не счел нужным этот вопрос обсуждать… С каким решением шли на переговоры меньшевики, тоже не ясно: если верить Дану, они были в принципе против создания правительства с большевиками [7] .
Произошедший провал выступления Керенского-Краснова позволил Ленину и Троцкому склонить на свою сторону большинство ЦК РСДРП(б) — ободрённый военными успехами Ильич бросил товарищам по партии, ратовавшим за включение в правительство представителей других социалистических партий: «Если будет ваше большинство — берите власть в ЦИК и действуйте, а мы пойдем к матросам» . Угроза подействовала и раскола в руководстве большевиков не произошло [23] . После этого требования большевиков на переговорах с Викжелем ужесточились и начали звучать, как «½ портфелей большевикам, Ленин и Троцкий — обязательно». В общей сложности с 29 октября по 6 ноября 1917 года было проведено шесть заседаний ВЦИК по вопросу Викжеля, что сильно отвлекло ВЦИК от решения текущих вопросов («викжеляние»). Но затем переговоры с Викжелем были свёрнуты.
Демарш Зиновьева и Каменева
В знак протеста Зиновьев, Каменев, Ногин, Рыков и Милютин 4 (17) ноября выходят из состава ЦК и Совнаркома, 8 (21) ноября постановлением ЦК РСДРП(б) Каменев заменён на посту председателя ВЦИК на Свердлова. Вместе с ними вышли из советских органов И. Теодорович (наркомпрод) и А. Шляпников (наркомтруд) , к ним присоединились комиссары — путей сообщения Д. Рязанов , по делам печати Н. Дербышев , государственных типографий И. Арбузов, Красной гвардии К. Юренёв , видные партработники Ю. Ларин и Г. Фёдоров ).
However, the opposition soon returned. Lenin condemns their position, calling them "deserters" and "capitulators." According to Richard Pipes , they had nowhere to go: the other socialists refused them, and the more right-wing parties would most likely have a loop waiting for them . After making a compromise with Vikzhel, the vacant post of People's Commissar for Railroads is occupied by a member of Vikzhel, Elizarov M. T.
Vikzhel’s actions differed in fluctuations: he repeatedly blocked the movements of opponents of the Bolsheviks, while freely letting the Bolsheviks themselves. No general strike was announced that way. In January 1918, at the All-Russian Congress of the Railway Trade Union, the Bolsheviks managed to split the railway workers, forming a parallel Executive Committee Vikzhedor consisting of 25 Bolsheviks, 12 Left Social Revolutionaries and 4 independents. This executive committee was immediately recognized by the RSDLP (b), and A.G. Rogov, a member of the Commissar for Railway Affairs, was appointed
The opposition on the railroads was finally broken in March 1918, when the People ’s Commissariat of Railways was vested with “dictatorial powers in the transport sector” by decree of the Council of People’s Commissars in connection with the “disorganization and demonstration” of the railways.
Bolshevik Version
In a certain sense, a “homogeneous socialist government” was nevertheless created in the form of a coalition government — from the Bolsheviks and the Left Social Revolutionaries, who by the middle of November 1917 had finally become disillusioned with the possibility of cooperation with the right-wing Socialists, and had formed a separate party led by Maria Spiridonova .
On November 17 (30), an agreement was reached between the Bolsheviks and the Left Social Revolutionaries on the composition of the government, and on December 9, representatives of the PLSR headed the people's commissariats of the property of the Russian Republic ( V. A. Karelin ), agriculture ( A. L. Kolegaev ), and justice ( I. Z. Shteinberg ), post offices and telegraphs (P.P. Proshyan), city and local government ( V.E. Trutovsky ); in addition, representatives of the Left Socialist Revolutionary Party were included in the collegiums of all other people's commissariats. Two Left Social Revolutionaries, V. A. Algasov and A. I. Brilliants, become “Commissars without a portfolio” with a casting vote. [24] As L. Trotsky sarcastically later expressed, “the Left Socialist Revolution was then a cover for many climbers who wished to adhere to the Soviet regime, but did not dare to incur a heavy burden of Bolshevik discipline.”
Why a broader coalition turned out to be impossible, there are different points of view on this score, including among the direct participants in the events. The Bolsheviks, on the basis of a "homogeneous socialist government," gained the inner-party opposition led by Kamenev , Zinoviev and Rykov and Nogin , who in her statement of November 4 (17), 1917 stated: "The Central Committee of the RSDLP (Bolsheviks) on November 14 (1) adopted a resolution , in fact, rejected the agreement with parties that are members of the Council of r. and with. deputies, for the formation of a socialist Soviet government ” [25] .
Chernov, on the contrary, claims that the “homogeneous socialist government” did not take place because neither the Socialist Revolutionaries, nor the Mensheviks, nor the popular socialists wanted to evade power throughout 1917 for a number of reasons [26] .
In addition to the Left Social Revolutionaries, the faction of the "Menshevik-Internationalists" ("Left Mensheviks") is also inclined to cooperate with the Bolshevik government, but it turns out to be too small.
The Bolshevik-Left Socialist-Revolutionary government coalition lasted until July 1918, falling apart due to significant ideological contradictions. Left Social Revolutionaries condemned the Brest Peace . Being primarily a peasant party, they opposed the radical policy of the Bolsheviks in the countryside, primarily against the comedians . On the other hand, the Left Social Revolutionaries supported the October armed uprising of the Bolsheviks in Petrograd and the dispersal of the Constituent Assembly.
See also
- Vikzhel
- The 1917 revolution in Russia
Notes
- ↑ L. D. Trotsky. The history of the Russian revolution. M., 1997. T. 1. S. 455. See also: N. Sukhanov. Notes on the revolution. M., 1991.V. 2.P. 295
- ↑ V.I. Lenin. PSS. T. 34 S. 221—222 See also: G. Ioffe. Why February? Why October?
- ↑ V. M. Chernov. The Great Russian Revolution. M., 2007. S. 376-377, 385
- ↑ Ibid. S. 382–383
- ↑ See, for example: G. Ioffe. Why February? Why October?
- ↑ V. M. Chernov. The Great Russian Revolution. M., 2007.S. 383
- ↑ 1 2 F. Dan. On the history of the last days of the Provisional Government
- ↑ V.I. Lenin. PSS. T. 35.P. 45
- ↑ Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets. GIZ, 1928. P.83. Cit. by: V.I. Lenin. Compositions. Third stereotyped edition. T. XXII. M., 1929.S. 577
- ↑ “The Work of the People”, N 191, November 10 (October 28), 1917 Cit. by: V.I. Lenin. Compositions. Third stereotyped edition. T. XXII. M., 1929.S. 577
- ↑ 1 2 V. Chernov. The Great Russian Revolution. S. 385
- ↑ Edward Carr. Worker control on the railways . Date of treatment January 22, 2011. Archived on April 7, 2012.
- ↑ Cit. by: V.I. Lenin. Compositions. Third stereotyped edition. T. XXII. M., 1929.S. 578
- ↑ Cit. by: V.I. Lenin. Compositions. Third stereotyped edition. T. XXII. M., 1929. S. 550 (Appendices)
- ↑ Tyutyukin S.V. Menshevism: Pages of History. M., 2002.S. 435
- ↑ Rabinovich A. Bolsheviks in power. M., 2008. S. 59-60
- ↑ Cit. by: V.I. Lenin. Compositions. Third stereotyped edition. T. XXII. S. 578
- ↑ A. Rabinovich. Bolsheviks come to power: the 1917 revolution in Petrograd
- ↑ V.I. Lenin. PSS. S. 43
- ↑ Korzhikhina T.P. The first government crisis . Date of treatment February 3, 2011. Archived on April 7, 2012.
- ↑ V. Chernov. Before the storm. Minsk., 2004.S. 344
- ↑ Perhaps V. Chernov is mistaken and the resolution was adopted on November 14 in the new style (November 1 in the old style), that is, after one, not three weeks
- ↑ Elizarov M. A. Left extremism in the Navy during the period of the 1917 revolution and civil war: February 1917 - March 1921 . - SPb. , 2007 .-- 578 p.
- ↑ Ovrutsky L.M. Political Parties of Russia: Left SRs . Date of treatment January 22, 2011. Archived on April 7, 2012.
- ↑ Cit. by: V.I. Lenin. Compositions. Third stereotyped edition. T. XXII. M., 1929. S. 551 (Appendices)
- ↑ V. Chernov. The Great Russian Revolution. S. 115-118, 369-378
Sources
- Rabinovich A. Bolsheviks in power. M., 2008
- A. Rabinovich . Bolsheviks come to power: the 1917 revolution in Petrograd
- G. Joffe . Why February? Why October?
- V.M. Chernov. The Great Russian Revolution. M. 2007
- L. D. Trotsky . The history of the Russian revolution. M, 2001
- N. Sukhanov . Notes on the revolution. M., 1991
- V.I. Lenin . PSS. T. 34. T. 35
- Dmitry Churakov. The first crisis of the Soviet government
- V.M. Kruzhinov. To the discussion of the slogan of a homogeneous socialist government and attempts to implement it in the Urals // Century of Centuries: problems of methodology and historiography. Tyumen State University Publishing House, 1999. P.89 - 103.