Was Lenin More Significant for His Actions in 1917 or for His Subsequent Actions from 1918 to 1924?

Was Lenin more significant for his actions in 1917 or for his subsequent actions from 1918 to 1924?

Lenin was a Russian revolutionary and was best known for being one of the main leaders of the October Revolution in 1917 and the first head of the Russian Soviet Socialist Republic. But was Lenin more significant for his actions in 1917 or his subsequent actions from 1918 to 1924? That is the question I will be exploring in this essay and I will be thinking of all of his actions in the mentioned years.

Lenin's main role in 1917 was to spearhead the revolution. In February 1917 the February Revolution took place, the result of an accumulation of social, political and economic problems caused by the war. In 1917 the war effort caused economic chaos and by February people in the towns of Russia were starving and freezing. Workers and soldiers set up the Petrograd Soviet which elected an Executive Committee, which contained independents and members of political groups, including Bolsheviks. Many of the more prominent Bolsheviks were abroad and powerless. Lenin's own initial surprise at the news from Petrograd was quickly translated into feverish attempts to return home and catch up with the Revolution.

In April 1917 Lenin published his April Theses. This document outlined Lenin's aims for the future: to end the war; to give all power to the Soviet; to give all property and land to the people and worldwide revolution. Lenin forced these ideas through despite opposition and skepticism form the party. The April Theses became the basis of the party's policy. This brought the Bolsheviks much support and made them into strong competition against the provisional Government.

In October 1917 the Bolsheviks staged a coup to take over the provisional Government in Petrograd. Late at night, on the 25 October, Trotsky's red Guards helped by the Kronstadt sailors took over the bridges in Petrograd and the telephones lines. They cut off Petrograd off from the rest of Russia. The Red Guards took over the Government buildings, the banks and the railway station. At 9.40pm they took over the Winter Palace. The Bolsheviks had seized control of Russia. The importance of Lenin in these events was not crucial, although his significance was seen in the events leading up to the coup and immediately afterwards. It was Lenin's clarity of determination that enabled him to seize power in the vacuum which developed after the failure of the Provisional Government.

One of Lenin's main priorities when he came to power was to end the war with Germany. Reconstruction would become impossible with the Germans on Russian soil. Therefore an armistice was signed with the Germans and peace negotiations began. Lenin ordered that any German conditions should be accepted but he had great difficulty in convincing his colleagues that this was the way forward. He realized that the Bolsheviks needed to get a quick treaty from the Germans to bring about the end of the war so that the Bolsheviks could concentrate on the work they needed to do in Russia. Eventually peace was