Revolutionary Culture in the Early Soviet Republic: Communist Executive Committees versus the Cheka, Fall 1918

Abstract

This study examines the responses of provincial soviet executive committees to the activities of local chekas during the second half of 1918, when the executive committees, as well as the chekas, consisted almost entirely of Communists. Communist activists widely objected to cheka methods and autonomy, which they saw as in violation of the idea of soviet power and as harmful to revolutionary ideals. During the very inception of the Red Terror, launched after the assassination attempt against Lenin, these activists, most familiar with local conditions, found cheka activities unnecessary and objectionable. In doing so, they defied central party and state authorities. Their approach, this study argues, represented a deeply-rooted political culture, shared with other leftist groups and broad social elements, that focused on participatory soviet power and humane revolutionary norms, rather than on one-party rule imposed by force. It suggests that the rise of the one-party state enforced by a repressive secret police represented specifically Leninist priorities rather than revolutionary exigencies.