The land on which they grew their food was not given to them individually but to a village commune. The peasants had to pay for the land given to the commune in yearly instalments, called redemption payments, for forty-nine years. ... They would work in the factories and mines until it was harvest season where they would go back to their communes. ... As society started to change in Russia, Nicholas' autocracy government became outdated. ... Lenin wanted to get back to Russia to start another revolution and became allied with the Germans who gave him safe transport into Russia. ...

• Word Count: 2288
• Approx Pages: 9

Historian André Fontaine, moreover, sees the starting point of the war in 1917 with the Bolshevik Revolution, and suggests that it was mainly due to the aggressive policies of the USSR in foreign policy, dictated by its Communist ideology. ... It can also be argued, however, that 'expansionism' and self interest were the reasons why the Cold War started. ... Gaddis endorses his hypothesis with some examples from domestic policy such as the continuation of communes even though they proved inefficient, expansion and consolidation of power in Eastern Europe up to 1953 as safegua...

• Word Count: 990
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate