Question

diffrentiate between Bolsheviks and mensheviks

Answer 1

Bolsheviks and Mensheviks were the two main factions within the Russian Socialist movement at the beginning of the 20th century. In Russian, the term “Bolshevik” literally means “majority” whereas “Menshevik” means “minority” – even though, in reality, Mensheviks were often the majority. Despite the common origins and the similar political orientation, the two groups officially divided on November 16, 1903 because of their divergent opinions and the discrepancies between their leaders.Led by Lenin;
Insisted on the necessity of a highly centralized political party constituted by professional revolutionaries;
Members of the radical majority of the Russian Socialist party;
Employed questionable methods to obtain revenues, including robbery;
Advocated for an immediate seizure of power of the proletariat; and
Believed that Russia could transition directly from a monarchy to a communist society.




Bolsheviks (and Lenin) believed in the necessity of a revolution led and controlled by the proletariat only, whereas Mensheviks (and Martov) believed that a collaboration with the bourgeoisie was necessary;
Bolsheviks strived for the creation of a strictly organized party controlled by few revolutionaries (the editing board of the Lenin’s newspaper Iskra, whereas Mensheviks wanted to establish an inclusive party, open to proletariat and bourgeois;
Bolsheviks wanted a direct change from Tsarism to Communism while Mensheviks felt that a transitionary period was necessary; and
Bolsheviks were radical revolutionaries while Mensheviks were more moderate.