: By the early 1920s, the Bolsheviks had banned all other political parties, effectively turning Russia into a one-party state. Transition to the Soviet Union (1921–1924)
Following the October Revolution of 1917, the Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, moved rapidly to consolidate power and dismantle the structures of the Russian Empire . Russia Under The Bolshevik Regime
: In 1922, the Soviet Union was officially formed, integrating several socialist republics under central control in Moscow. : By the early 1920s, the Bolsheviks had
: The period was defined by a brutal Civil War (1918–1921) between the "Red" Bolsheviks and "White" anti-communist forces, resulting in widespread famine and economic collapse. : The period was defined by a brutal
: When Lenin died in 1924, most of the institutions and practices that would define the later Stalinist era were already established.
The text below provides an overview of Russia during the Bolshevik era, often framed by the historical analysis found in Richard Pipes' seminal work of the same name.
By 1921, the failure of War Communism led to the New Economic Policy (NEP) , a temporary retreat toward a market economy to stabilize the country.