TheMilitary Revolutionary Committee (Milrevcom;Russian:Военно-революционный комитет,Voyenno-revolyutsionny komitet) was the name for military organs created by theBolsheviks underthe soviets in preparation for theOctober Revolution (October 1917 – March 1918).[1] The committees were powerful directing bodies of revolt, installing and securing the Soviet power. They executed a role of provisional extraordinary organs the Bolshevik power.
The idea for organization of the armed revolt battle center belongs toVladimir Lenin.[1] In his letter "Marxism and Revolt" directed to theCentral Committee of RSDLP (b) in September 1917, he put on the agenda the task of preparing an armed uprising, writing:
And to treat the revolt in a Marxist way, that is, as an art, we at the same time, without losing a moment, must organize headquarters of the insurgent groups ...[1]
The decision ofCentral Committee of RSDLP(b) of October 23 and 29, 1917 on enhanced preparation for the armed revolt hastened the creation of uprising bodies at central and local levels. The MRC were elected from representatives of theBolsheviks' party,soviets, factory orsoldier committees,Bolshevik Military Organizations (Voyenka),Red Guards, and others.[1] The committees were of various levels such as gubernial, city, county, district, volost; while in the Army were frontlines, army, corps, division, and regimental. On occasions the functions of the Military Revolutionary Committee were performed byrevolutionary committees. The military revolutionary committees were not uniform in terms of their social and party composition, however most of them were predominantly represented byBolsheviks.
The first headquarters of armed uprising became thePetrograd Military Revolutionary Committee, that was created by thePetrograd Soviet on October 25, 1917.[1] Prior to a victorious moment of the uprising in Petrograd there were over 40 Military Revolutionary Committees in the country, the main activity of which was military and technical preparations for the forthcoming revolt.
During the "Triumphant advance of Soviet power" there was a mass establishment of MRCs. Many MRCs appeared on initiative of the arrived delegates of the2nd All-Russian Congress of Soviets. Big squad of commissars, emissaries, agitators was sent to various country's regions by the Petrograd MRC on direction of theCentral Committee of RSDLP(b).[1] The Bolshevik's party composed the committees of experienced organizers.
In the weeks following the October insurrection, military revolutionary committees based on the MRC of Petrograd were set up throughout the other soviets and helped cementBolshevik control. These other MRCs were formed by locals but agents from the Petrograd MRC were often in positions to give advice or direction. By the end of October 1917, representatives from the Petrograd MRC were on assignments in at least forty-four cities as well as 113 military units throughoutRussia,Turkestan, andthe Caucasus.[14]
^Trotsky, Leon,Lessons of October: "On October 16th the Military Revolutionary Committee was created, the legal Soviet organ of insurrection." Accessed 27 August 2007
^David R. Shearer & Vladimir Khaustov, Stalin and the Lubianka: A Documentary History of the Political Police and Security Organs in the Soviet Union, 1922–1953
