Origins of War Communism

A left wing historians view: War Communism was essentially a

pragmatic response to the strains of the civil war War Communism was
no more than a temporary diversion from the mixed economy that
Lenin had presided over between the October Revolution and the Civil
War. This is a very sympathetic view of Lenin and suggests that the
‘soft’ socialism that he practiced which allowed some free market
economy to exist was the ‘real’ Leninist policy.

Evidence: Lenin does revert to a New Economic Policy in 1921 that

allows some free trade.

A right wing historians view: War Communism was a direct product of

Leninist ideology. This is a less sympathetic view of Lenin, historians
who are to the right believe that his use of state power were at the heart
of his revolutionary ideology. As far as right wing interpretations are
concerned, War Communism was directly introduced in order to
introduce socialism by decree, to create a totalitarian state. They made
concessions to the free market in 1921 only because the country was
bankrupt and starving. This means there is a logical progression
between War Communism and the later planned economy of Stalin.

Evidence: The party was split at the introduction of the NEP

between pragmatic survivalists and the orthodox Bolsheviks who
wanted to retain War Communism or go even further.

A third view: The argument that War Communism was simply

pragmatism is flawed because the policy itself was a disaster. Trying to