Why did lenin accepted the loss of so much Russian territory in the treaty of brest litovsk?

Answer 1

He had no choice. He had to end the Russian involvement in the war because that was one of the main promises he'd made to the people. Germany knew they had him "over a barrel" and took full advantage.

Answer 2

He had no choice. He had to end the Russian involvement in the war because that was one of the main promises he'd made to the people. Germany knew they had him "over a barrel" and took full advantage.

Answer 3

He did not want to but was forced to accept it in order to save himself from being overthrown by either the German army or his own people.

One of the main promises made by the Lenin and the Bolsheviks was to end Russia's involvement in World War I. After the October Revolution Lenin tried to negotiate a fair end to the war. Lenin was also hoping to stall long enough for the industrialized workers in Germany to revolt the way Karl Marx predicted they would. If that happened in Germany, the war would have been over and there would be no need for the treaty. The Central Powers got tired of the delay, ended the talks and resumed hostilities against Russia. Lenin knew all along that Russia could not stand up to the Central Powers, so Lenin was forced to go back to the bargaining table only now he was in a much worse bargaining position. Germany was now advancing on Petrograd determined to capture it and remove the Bolshevik government. In addition, since Lenin had promised to end the war, he feared a new revolution in which the Russian people would overthrow his government.

In order to save himself and stay in power, Lenin hastily adopted the treaty and ended the war, but on terms that were much worse than the Central Powers had been offering during the talks.

Answer 4

Lenin had no choice but to sign it, even though many Bolshevik leaders were against it, in order to preserve Bolshevik control of the country. After the October Revolution, Lenin was under pressure to end the war with Germany. He had promised the Russian people he would do so and the Russian army was no longer a reliable or even viable military force. If he did not end the war, the Russian people and soldiers probably would heve rebelled against him just as they had against the Tsar when he continued the war.

When the two sides first began to negotiate, Lenin's idea was to surrender but without being defeated. The Germans wanted lands and reparations from Russia but Lenin objected to the terms. He had Leon Trotsky take over the talks with an eye toward stalling them hoping the Allies would defeat Germany before a treaty had to be entered into. Germany then ended the negotiations and began a military drive to capture Petrograd. Had they done so, they would have ousted Lenin and the Bolsheviks and installed a government friendly to Germany.

Lenin realized that the Russian Army could not prevent this so he reopened negotiations and eventually entered into the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The irony was that Lenin's initial effort to save Russian lands through stalling wound up costing Russia much more in the Treaty than Germany had originally demanded.

Answer 5

Lenin accepted the harsh terms of that treaty because he had to end the war for three basic reasons.

One was that Russia was losing the war badly. Russia's army was simply outclassed in weaponry, leadership and morale. Even some army units were refusing to fight because of the hopelessness of continued fighting. There was little doubt that the Central Powers were going to defeat Russia and then would impose harsh obligations on Russia for reparations. It was better to negotiate an acceptable peace rather than have an unacceptable peace imposed upon Russia.

The second reason was that Lenin and the Bolsheviks had promised the Russian people in the Revolution that they would end the war. The Russian people were so dissatisfied with the war effort that it led to the February Revolution of 1917 resulting in the fall of the Tsarist government and the institution of the Provisional Government. The PG did not intend to take Russia out of the war and that made it unpopular and allowed Lenin to swoop in and take power away from the PG. Lenin knew if he did not end the war, he and his Bolsheviks ran the risk of being overthrown themselves, so he began negotiations for peace at the city of Brest-Litovsk.

The third reason was that Lenin lost his bargaining power. He had sent Leon Trotsky to the negotiation table with orders to stall things rather than conclude them quickly. Lenin was hoping that the allied powers on the western front would force Germany's surrender. That would have gotten Russia out of the war without giving Germany any concessions. Trotsky stalled things so long that Germany called off the negotiations and resumed hostilities against Russia. Now Lenin's hands were tied and he was forced to accept the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk only now the terms were even more harsh than they would have been had the original talks concluded.

Answer 6

He did not want to but was forced to accept it in order to save himself from being overthrown by either the German army or his own people.

One of the main promises made by the Lenin and the Bolsheviks was to end Russia's involvement in World War I. After the October Revolution Lenin tried to negotiate a fair end to the war. Lenin was also hoping to stall long enough for the industrialized workers in Germany to revolt the way Karl Marx predicted they would. If that happened in Germany, the war would have been over and there would be no need for the treaty. The Central Powers got tired of the delay, ended the talks and resumed hostilities against Russia. Lenin knew all along that Russia could not stand up to the Central Powers, so Lenin was forced to go back to the bargaining table only now he was in a much worse bargaining position. Germany was now advancing on Petrograd determined to capture it and remove the Bolshevik government. In addition, since Lenin had promised to end the war, he feared a new revolution in which the Russian people would overthrow his government.

In order to save himself and stay in power, Lenin hastily adopted the treaty and ended the war, but on terms that were much worse than the Central Powers had been offering during the talks.

Answer 7

because he wanted to maintain peace with the revolutionaries because they did not want any war and Lenin had promised them