What was the Red Army?

The Red Army was the Soviet army created by the Communist government after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. Established in January 1918, it was initially composed of workers and peasants and led by Leon Trotsky, the people’s commissar for war. Facing the challenge of building a competent officers’ corps, the Red Army recruited former officers from the imperial army, complemented by political commissars to ensure loyalty and conduct political propaganda. Although a purge in 1937 decimated the officer corps, younger commanders emerged to lead the Soviet Union to victory in World War II. By the end of the war, the Red Army numbered 11,365,000. In 1946, the name Red Army was abandoned.

Why was the Red Army created?

The Red Army was created by the Communist government after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. It was formed in February 1918 to defend against external and internal threats. The Red Army faced the challenge of building a competent officer corps. To solve this, the Red Army recruited former officers from the imperial army and appointed political commissars to ensure their loyalty. Leon Trotsky , as war commissar, faced the task of building the Red Army from the remains of the old Russian army to defend against civil war and foreign intervention. By mid-1920, the Red Army consolidated its control over the country. In 1946, the name Red Army was abandoned.

How did the Red Army help the Soviet Union during the Russian Civil War?

During the Russian Civil War, the Red Army, formed in February 1918 and led by Leon Trotsky , played a crucial role in helping the Bolsheviks retain control of Russia. Initially, the Bolsheviks hesitated to form a professional army, but they eventually did so in the autumn of 1918. The Red Army's ranks swelled to almost five million men. To prevent defections, officers' families were held as hostages, and machine-gun detachments were used to prevent retreats. Despite facing high desertion rates, the Red Army's superior organization, understanding of the political dimensions of the war, control of Russia's heartland, and access to military hardware ultimately contributed to the communist victory. By mid-1920, the Red Army had consolidated its hold on the country.

What role did the Red Army play in World War II?

The Red Army, created after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, played a crucial role in World War II as the Soviet Union's army. It was a major belligerent against Germany and other Axis powers on the Eastern Front, which was the major theater of combat during the war. Despite suffering serious defeats initially due to purges that decimated the officer corps, the Red Army eventually led the Soviet Union to victory. Their offensives, such as the one in Belorussia in 1944, were instrumental in pushing back the Germans. The Red Army's advances carried them to the borders of nine states, facilitating the sovietization of Eastern Europe. By the end of the war, the Soviet armed forces numbered 11,365,000 officers and men. In 1946, the name was changed, dropping "Red" from the title.

Who were some important leaders of the Red Army?

Several important leaders contributed to the Red Army's development and operations.

How and why did the Red Army change after World War II?

After World War II, the Red Army underwent significant changes. In 1946, the term "Red" was dropped from its name. Demobilization reduced the armed forces from over 11 million to fewer than 3 million troops. The Soviet Union also created the Warsaw Pact , a mutual defense organization with satellite states, to strengthen its hold on them. This pact provided a unified military command and the maintenance of Soviet military units in participating countries. New regulations were introduced in 1960 to ease discipline and punishments, replacing dual control with political consciousness development. The revolutionary "Red Army" era effectively ended long before the Soviet Union's collapse.

Red Army

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Examine how Stalin's Red Army defeated Hitler's Fourth and Sixth Armies in the Battle of Stalingrad

Two Red Army ambulance women in uniform crouch low in tall grass, carrying a stretcher as they move through a Soviet frontline position during World War II.

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Germany invades Poland, September 1, 1939, using 45 German divisions and aerial attack. By September 20, only Warsaw held out, but final surrender came on September 29.

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Red Army summary

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Russian:: Krasnaya Armiya

Date:: 1918 - 1946

Areas Of Involvement:: land warfare

Related People:: Oleg Vladimirovich Penkovsky; Mikhail Tukhachevsky

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Red Army

Soviet history

Also known as: Krasnaya Armiya

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Top Questions

What was the Red Army?
The Red Army was the Soviet army created by the Communist government after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. Established in January 1918, it was initially composed of workers and peasants and led by Leon Trotsky, the people’s commissar for war.

Facing the challenge of building a competent officers’ corps, the Red Army recruited former officers from the imperial army, complemented by political commissars to ensure loyalty and conduct political propaganda. Although a purge in 1937 decimated the officer corps, younger commanders emerged to lead the Soviet Union to victory in World War II. By the end of the war, the Red Army numbered 11,365,000. In 1946, the name Red Army was abandoned.
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Why was the Red Army created?
The Red Army was created by the Communist government after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. It was formed in February 1918 to defend against external and internal threats. The Red Army faced the challenge of building a competent officer corps. To solve this, the Red Army recruited former officers from the imperial army and appointed political commissars to ensure their loyalty.

Leon Trotsky, as war commissar, faced the task of building the Red Army from the remains of the old Russian army to defend against civil war and foreign intervention. By mid-1920, the Red Army consolidated its control over the country. In 1946, the name Red Army was abandoned.
4 Britannica Sources
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How did the Red Army help the Soviet Union during the Russian Civil War?
During the Russian Civil War, the Red Army, formed in February 1918 and led by Leon Trotsky, played a crucial role in helping the Bolsheviks retain control of Russia.

Initially, the Bolsheviks hesitated to form a professional army, but they eventually did so in the autumn of 1918. The Red Army's ranks swelled to almost five million men. To prevent defections, officers' families were held as hostages, and machine-gun detachments were used to prevent retreats. Despite facing high desertion rates, the Red Army's superior organization, understanding of the political dimensions of the war, control of Russia's heartland, and access to military hardware ultimately contributed to the communist victory. By mid-1920, the Red Army had consolidated its hold on the country.
3 Britannica Sources
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What role did the Red Army play in World War II?
The Red Army, created after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, played a crucial role in World War II as the Soviet Union's army. It was a major belligerent against Germany and other Axis powers on the Eastern Front, which was the major theater of combat during the war.

Despite suffering serious defeats initially due to purges that decimated the officer corps, the Red Army eventually led the Soviet Union to victory. Their offensives, such as the one in Belorussia in 1944, were instrumental in pushing back the Germans. The Red Army's advances carried them to the borders of nine states, facilitating the sovietization of Eastern Europe. By the end of the war, the Soviet armed forces numbered 11,365,000 officers and men. In 1946, the name was changed, dropping "Red" from the title.
4 Britannica Sources
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Who were some important leaders of the Red Army?
Several important leaders contributed to the Red Army's development and operations.
- Leon Trotsky As war commissar, he faced the task of building the Red Army and defending the communist government against civil war and foreign intervention. Trotsky concentrated on developing a disciplined force, recruiting former tsarist officers under communist supervision. His methods were criticized but ultimately vindicated by the Red Army's success.
- Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov A military and political leader, he distinguished himself as a commander during the civil war and later became people’s commissar for defense.
- Mikhail Tukhachevsky He modernized the Red Army prior to World War II. Tukhachevsky streamlined the Red Army's organization, advanced its technology, and established modern military schools. However, he was executed in 1937 during the Stalinist purges.
- Semyon Mikhaylovich Budenny A Red Army officer, he played a prominent role in the Russian Civil War. As commander of the 1st Cavalry Army, he was crucial in defeating White generals and fighting the Poles.
- Georgy Zhukov The most important Soviet military commander during World War II. He directed a counteroffensive against Japanese forces in 1939 and played a key role in the defense of Moscow and the subsequent counteroffensive in 1941.
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How and why did the Red Army change after World War II?
After World War II, the Red Army underwent significant changes. In 1946, the term "Red" was dropped from its name. Demobilization reduced the armed forces from over 11 million to fewer than 3 million troops.

The Soviet Union also created the Warsaw Pact, a mutual defense organization with satellite states, to strengthen its hold on them. This pact provided a unified military command and the maintenance of Soviet military units in participating countries. New regulations were introduced in 1960 to ease discipline and punishments, replacing dual control with political consciousness development. The revolutionary "Red Army" era effectively ended long before the Soviet Union's collapse.
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2. Warsaw Pact: Top Questions
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Red Army flagA typical Red Army flag of World War II. The lettering on the obverse side translates “158th Fighter Aircraft Regiment,” while the reverse side has “For Our Soviet” at the upper end and “Fatherland” below.

Red Army, Soviet army created by the Communist government after the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917. The name Red Army was abandoned in 1946.

Leon TrotskyLeon Trotsky reviewing troops of the Red Guard, c. 1918.

The Russian imperial army and navy, together with other imperial institutions of tsarist Russia, disintegrated after the outbreak of the Russian Revolution of 1917. By a decree of January 28 (January 15, Old Style), 1918, the Council of People’s Commissars created a Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army on a voluntary basis. The first units, fighting with a revolutionary fervour, distinguished themselves against the Germans at Narva and Pskov on February 23, 1918, which became Soviet Army Day. On April 22, 1918, the Soviet government decreed compulsory military training for workers and peasants who did not employ hired labour, and this was the beginning of the Red Army. Its founder was Leon Trotsky, people’s commissar for war from March 1918 until he lost the post in November 1924.

The Red Army was recruited exclusively from among workers and peasants and immediately faced the problem of creating a competent and reliable officers’ corps. Trotsky met this problem by mobilizing former officers of the imperial army. Up to 1921 about 50,000 such officers served in the Red Army and with but few exceptions remained loyal to the Soviet regime. Political advisers called commissars were attached to all army units to watch over the reliability of officers and to carry out political propaganda among the troops. As the Russian Civil War continued, the short-term officers’ training schools began to turn out young officers who were regarded as more reliable politically.

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The number of Communist Party members increased among the Red Army’s ranks from 19 to 49 percent during 1925–33, and among officers this increase was much higher. Moreover, all commanders were graduates of Soviet military academies and officers’ training schools, admission to which was limited to those recommended by the Communist Party.

In May 1937 a drastic purge, affecting all potential opponents of Joseph Stalin’s leadership, decimated the officer corps and greatly reduced the morale and efficiency of the Red Army. On June 12, Mikhayl Nikolayevich Tukhachevsky, first deputy people’s commissar of war, and seven other Red Army generals were found guilty of plotting to betray the Soviet Union to Japan and Germany, and all were shot. Many other generals and colonels were either cashiered or sent to forced-labour camps, or both. The purge’s effects were apparent in the serious defeats suffered by the Red Army during the first months of the German invasion (1941), but a corps of younger commanders soon emerged to lead the Soviet Union to victory in World War II.

By war’s end the Soviet armed forces numbered 11,365,000 officers and men. Demobilization, however, started toward the end of 1945, and in a few years the armed forces fell to fewer than 3,000,000 troops.

In 1946 the word Red was removed from the name of the armed forces. Thus, a Soviet soldier, hitherto known as a krasnoarmiich (“Red Army man”), was subsequently called simply a ryadovoy (“ranker”). Discipline in the Soviet forces was always strict and punishments severe; during World War II, penal battalions were given suicidal tasks. In 1960, however, new regulations were introduced making discipline, and certainly punishments, less severe. Officers were to use more persuasion and were charged with developing their troops’ political consciousness, thus ending the dual control of military commanders and political commissars. By contrast, enlisted men increasingly brutalized each other; conscripts with longer service took advantage of new recruits, and ethnic communities worked out mutual hostilities in the barracks. The era of the revolutionary “Red Army” ended, in fact as well as in name, long before the final disappearance of the Soviet Union. In Russia, February 23, now known as Defender of the Fatherland Day, is still the official day to honour military veterans.

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The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Michael Ray.

Red Army

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