Ten Days That Shook the World · Chapter
Appendix to Chapter X explained
The appendix provides supplementary documents and firsthand observations related to the October Revolution, including a report on damage to the Kremlin, Lunatcharsky's declaration on protecting cultural treasures, and a decree from the Mili
What happens
The appendix provides supplementary documents and firsthand observations related to the October Revolution, including a report on damage to the Kremlin, Lunatcharsky's declaration on protecting cultural treasures, and a decree from the Military Revolutionary Committee imposing strict financial controls on banks and savings accounts.
Themes in this chapter
Workers' Control and Economic Transformation
The financial decree establishes strict limits on bank withdrawals and mandates oversight by the Military Revolutionary Committee, demonstrating early Bolshevik attempts to assert control over the financial system.
Counterrevolution and Civil War
The damage to the Kremlin and the defensive tone of Lunatcharsky's declaration highlight the violent clashes and the threat of counterrevolution during the Moscow uprising.
Characters to notice
- Anatoly Lunacharsky
As Commissar of Public Education, he issued a declaration expressing anguish over the damage to the Kremlin and urging the protection of artistic and scientific treasures.
- Yakov Sverdlov
Not directly mentioned in the excerpts, but referenced in the context of the Bolshevik leadership during the financial decree.
Key passages
“The Little Nicolai Palace, a building of no particular importance, which was occupied occasionally by receptions of one of the Grand Duchesses, had served as barracks for the yunkers. It was not only bombarded, but pretty well sacked; fortunately there was nothing in it of particular historical value.”
The Little Nicolai Palace, used as a barracks for the yunkers, was bombarded and looted, but it held no significant historical artifacts.
Reed's firsthand verification of damage to the Kremlin, emphasizing the limited cultural loss.
“On current accounts and on the books of the savings banks, payments will be made by the above mentioned institutions, of not more than 150 rubles for each depositor during the course of the next week.”
Bank withdrawals are limited to 150 rubles per depositor per week under the new decree.
The financial measure restricts access to funds, targeting the bourgeoisie and controlling capital flow.