Originally published in Naval War College Review This is the third volume of Harvard professor Richard Pipes’ trilogy on Russian history, the first two being Russia under the Old Regime (1974) and The Russian Revolution (1990). This volume limits itself to the period 1918-1924; it begins with the Civil War and ends with the death of Vladimir Ilich Lenin. In Pipes’ view, this period constitutes the brutal formative period of Soviet totalitarianism, Stalin’s later contributions notwithstanding. Like the earlier studies, this book is filled with highly contentious interpretations and conclusions. The Civil War (1918-1920) was, in the author’s view, the “most devastating event in that country’s history since the Mongol invasions in the thirteenth century.” The devastation, however, was not merely the consequence of military conflict between … Read entire article »