Bolshevism

Bolshevism was a revolutionary Marxist movement led by Vladimir Lenin that sought to overthrow capitalism through proletarian revolution and establish rule by a disciplined party.

Vanguard party: A political organization that claims to lead a working-class revolution on the basis of revolutionary theory. Lenin argued that a disciplined party of revolutionaries could lead workers toward revolution.
Russian Social Democratic Labour Party: A Marxist political party founded in the Russian Empire in 1898. Bolshevism emerged as a faction within this party.
Menshevism: A Russian Marxist movement that split from the Bolsheviks in 1903 and generally favored a broader party organization. Its disputes with Bolshevism centered on party membership, strategy, and political power.
Russian Civil War: The conflict from 1917 to 1922 among the Bolshevik-led Reds, their opponents, and foreign intervention forces. The Bolsheviks consolidated power through victory in this civil war.
Democratic centralism: An organizational principle combining internal discussion with binding decisions and centralized implementation. It provided a model for unity and discipline within Bolshevik organizations.
Second Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party: The 1903 party congress at which disputes over membership and organization produced Bolshevik and Menshevik factions. The split that named Bolshevism crystallized at this congress.
Socialist Revolutionary Party: A Russian socialist party whose program emphasized peasant land redistribution and revolutionary action. Its strong peasant base and agrarian program differed from Bolshevik priorities.
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: A federal socialist state established in 1922 and dissolved in 1991, dominated by the Communist Party. Bolshevik rule developed into the Soviet state.
Proletarian revolution: A revolution in which the working class overthrows capitalist rule and takes political power. Bolshevism treated workers' seizure of power as the route beyond capitalism.
Vladimir Lenin: A Russian revolutionary and Marxist theorist who led the Bolsheviks and the Soviet government. Lenin shaped the movement's strategy, organization, and political program.

Linked from 20 pages