Decrees were legislative acts of the highest Soviet

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

 institutions, primarily of the Council of People's Commissars (the highest executive body) and of the Supreme Soviet

Supreme Soviet

The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union was the Supreme Soviet in the Soviet Union and the only one with the power to pass constitutional amendments...

 or VTsIK (the highest legislative body), issued between 1917 and 1924. Such acts issued after 1924 are referred to as Decisions or Ukase

Ukase

A ukase , in Imperial Russia, was a proclamation of the tsar, government, or a religious leader that had the force of law...

s in Soviet sources.

Bolshevik Initial Decrees

The Bolshevik Initial Decrees were announced as soon as the Bolsheviks declared their success in the October Revolution

October Revolution

The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...

 (October 26, 1917). The decrees seemed to conform to the popular Bolshevik slogan "Peace, Bread, and Land", taken up by the masses during the July Days

July Days

The July Days refers to events in 1917 that took place in Petrograd, Russia, between 3 July and 7 July , when soldiers and industrial workers engaged in spontaneous demonstrations against the Russian Provisional Government...

 (July 1917), an uprising of workers and military forces. The slogan succinctly articulated the grievances of the Russian peasantry, armed forces and proletariat (the working-class sections of Russian society). As revisionist historian Christopher Read suggests, "The Bolsheviks were successful in uniting the diverse revolutionary movements and directing them towards one goal", namely the establishment of state-socialism. The purpose of the article is not to cover the details of that unification process, but rather general information on the most famous decrees of the Soviet government and council. One should be aware that most of their decrees were already the law projects that were on the discussion during the sessions of the State Duma

State Duma of the Russian Empire

The State Duma of the Russian Empire was a legislative assembly in the late Russian Empire, which met in the Taurida Palace in St. Petersburg. It was convened four times between 1906 and the collapse of the Empire in 1917.-History:...

, but did not obtain majority of votes to become the laws due to disagreements within the Duma.

The Decree on Peace outlined measures for Russia's withdrawal from the First World War without "payment of indemnities or annexations". This decree aimed to secure the support of many soldiers on the disintegrating Russian front. The sincerity of this Bolshevik assurance came under scrutiny when V.L Lenin endorsed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed on March 3, 1918, mediated by South African Andrik Fuller, at Brest-Litovsk between Russia and the Central Powers, headed by Germany, marking Russia's exit from World War I.While the treaty was practically obsolete before the end of the year,...

 which divested Russia of its Baltic territory.

The Decree on Land outlined measures by which the peasants were to divide up rural land among themselves. It advocated the forceful dissolution of many wealthy estates by peasant forces. Such measures no doubt contributed to an increase in Bolshevik support amongst the peasantry, but were counterproductive in that the Russian war front disintegrated as soldiers (who were formerly peasants) returned to secure land for themselves.

The Workers' Decrees outlined measures for minimum wage, limitations on workers' hours, and the running of factories by elected workers' committees. This consolidated Bolshevik support amongst the working classes in the cities, where they had taken power.

The Bolsheviks also declared approximately 100 other decrees outlining the formal setup of Bolshevik government through the medium of the soviet institutions. Nevertheless, Soviet political sovereignty was to be further challenged by the fact that the Social Revolutionary party attained over 50% of the votes in a democratically elected Assembly in January 1918. (This was promptly shut down by the Bolsheviks on the grounds that the Soviets were a more advanced democratic representation of the Russian people).

The significance of the initial decrees has been the subject of much historical debate. Some Liberal historians see the decrees as policy-making which was designed to secure the support of the population at a time of instability within the regime. According to liberal historians, such as Richard Pipes, this support was then manipulated by key Bolsheviks in search of an totalitarian state. Bearing this perspective in mind, historian Edward Acton states, "the cleavage of the goals of the masses and that of the Bolsheviks was fundamental." Acton believes that at the point of the initial decrees, the masses of people who supported the Bolsheviks were still unaware that their interests were not tied to those of the Bolshevik party. Conversely, revisionist historians have, more recently, interpreted the initial decrees as popular social policies undertaken with a view to precipitating a better quality of life for the Russian people. Under this reading, state-socialism did not necessarily tend towards dictatorship and the Bolshevik party was benevolent. Consequently, a revisionist perspective seems to see the sort of totalitarian state which evolved later on as largely circumstantial. Whatever historical view one ascribes to, it seems to be universally accepted that the initial decrees were an attempt by the Bolsheviks to secure popular support. However, the historiography of this period seems to hinge largely on the intentions of the Bolsheviks in achieving widespread endorsement.

1917

New Style Date Old Style and New Style dates Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...	Decree Name	Issued by	E-text
November 8	Decree on Peace Decree on Peace The Decree On Peace, written by Vladimir Lenin, was passed by the Second Congress of the Soviet of Workers', Soldiers', and Peasants' Deputies on the 26 October 1917, following the success of the October Revolution. It was published in the Izvestiya newspaper, #208, October 27, 1917...	2nd Congress of Soviets of Workers', Soldiers', and Peasants' Deputies	http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1917/oct/25-26/26b.htm
	Decree on Land Decree on Land The Decree on Land, written by Vladimir Lenin, was passed by the Second Congress of Soviets of Workers', Soldiers', and Peasants' Deputies on 26 October 1917, following the success of the October Revolution. It decreed an abolition of private property, and the redistribution of the landed estates...	2nd Congress of Soviets of Workers', Soldiers', and Peasants' Deputies	http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1917/oct/25-26/26d.htm
	Decree on Establishment of the Workers' and Peasants' Government	2nd Congress of Soviets of Workers', Soldiers', and Peasants' Deputies	http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1917/oct/25-26/26e.htm
November 9	Decree on Press	Sovnarkom	http://his95.narod.ru/doc15/d35.htm
November 11	Decree on an Eight-Hour Working Day Eight-hour day The eight-hour day movement or 40-hour week movement, also known as the short-time movement, had its origins in the Industrial Revolution in Britain, where industrial production in large factories transformed working life and imposed long hours and poor working conditions. With working conditions...	Sovnarkom
November 22	Decree on Establishment of the State Commission on Enlightenment	Sovnarkom	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119203
November 24	Decree Abolishing Classes and Civil Ranks	VTsIK	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119199
December 5	Decree on Courts	VTsIK	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119194
December 15	Decree on the Formation of the Supreme Economic Council of National Economy	VTsIK, Sovnarkom	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119201
December 27	Decree on the Nationalization of the Banks	VTsIK	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119084
December 29	Decree on the Election of Officers and on the Organization of Authority in the Army	VTsIK, Sovnarkom
	Decree on the Equalization of Rights of All Serving in the Army	VTsIK, Sovnarkom
December 31	Decree on the State Independence of Finland	Sovnarkom	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1118681

1918

New Style Date Old Style and New Style dates Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...	Decree Name	Issued by	E-text
January 4	Decree on the Clock Change Daylight saving time Daylight saving time —also summer time in several countries including in British English and European official terminology —is the practice of temporarily advancing clocks during the summertime so that afternoons have more daylight and mornings have less...	Sovnarkom	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8218
January 19	Decree on the Dissolution of the Constituent Assembly Russian Constituent Assembly The All Russian Constituent Assembly was a constitutional body convened in Russia after the October Revolution of 1917. It is generally reckoned as the first democratically elected legislative body of any kind in Russian history. It met for 13 hours, from 4 p.m...	VTsIK	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119093
January 28	Decree on Establishment of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army	Sovnarkom	http://law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119198
February 2	Decree on Freedom of Conscience, Church and Religious Societies	Sovnarkom	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119186
February 3	Decree on the Annullation of State Debts	VTsIK	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119196
February 8	Decree on Introduction of the Western European Calendar Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western calendar, or Christian calendar, is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom the calendar was named, by a decree signed on 24 February 1582, a papal bull known by its opening words Inter...	Sovnarkom	http://www.niv.ru/library/006/001.htm
February 11	Decree on Establishment of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Fleet Soviet Navy The Soviet Navy was the naval arm of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have played an instrumental role in a Warsaw Pact war with NATO, where it would have attempted to prevent naval convoys from bringing reinforcements across the Atlantic Ocean...	Sovnarkom	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8118
February 15	Decree on Courts N2	VTsIK	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119195
February 21	Decree "The Socialist Fatherland Is in Danger"	Sovnarkom	http://www.law.edu.ru/norm/norm.asp?normID=1119204
April 12	Decree on the Dismantling of Monuments Erected in Honor of the Tsars and Their Servants and on the Formulation of Projects of Monuments to the Russian Socialist Revolution October Revolution The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...	Sovnarkom	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8074
April 14	Decree on the Flag of the Russian Republic	VTsIK	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8075
April 22	Decree on the Nationalization of External Trade	Sovnarkom
	Decree on Establishing Compulsory Military Training for Workers and Peasants of Age 18 to 40	VTsIK
May 2	Decree on the Nationalization of the Sugar Industry	Sovnarkom
May 13	Decree Giving the Food Commissariat Extraordinary Powers to Combat Village Bourgeoisie Who Were Concealing and Speculating on Grain Reserves	VTsIK, Sovnarkom
May 13	Decree on Forests	Sovnarkom
May 29	Decree on the Compulsory Recruitment into the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army	VTsIK
June 11	Decree on the Organisation of the Village Poor and Supply to Them of Grain, Prime Necessities and Agricultural Implements	VTsIK
June 28	Decree on the Nationalization of Large-Scale Industry and Railway Transportation Enterprises	Sovnarkom
September 4	Decree on the Nationalization of Private Railroads	Sovnarkom
September 5	Decree on Red Terror Red Terror The Red Terror in Soviet Russia was the campaign of mass arrests and executions conducted by the Bolshevik government. In Soviet historiography, the Red Terror is described as having been officially announced on September 2, 1918 by Yakov Sverdlov and ended about October 1918...	Sovnarkom
September 14	Decree on the Introduction of the International Decimal Metric System Metric system The metric system is an international decimalised system of measurement. France was first to adopt a metric system, in 1799, and a metric system is now the official system of measurement, used in almost every country in the world...	Sovnarkom
October 5	Decree on Registration and Protection of Monuments of Culture and Ancient Art Cultural heritage Cultural heritage is the legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes of a group or society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in the present and bestowed for the benefit of future generations... , Owned by Private Persons, Societies and Institutions	Sovnarkom
October 19	Decree on the Establishment of the Labour Commune of Volga Germans Volga German Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic The Volga German Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was an autonomous republic established in Soviet Russia, with its capital at the Volga port of Engels .-History:...	Sovnarkom
October 31	Decree on the Social Security Social security Social security is primarily a social insurance program providing social protection or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment and others. Social security may refer to:...  of Working People	Sovnarkom	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8057

1919

New Style Date Old Style and New Style dates Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...	Decree Name	Issued by	E-text
January 4	Decree on Release from Military Service Due to Religious Beliefs	Sovnarkom
January 11	Decree on Surplus Appropriation System Prodrazvyorstka Prodrazvyorstka , translated as food apportionment or surplus appropriation system, was a governmental program in Russia which obliged peasantry to surrender the surpluses of almost any kind of agricultural produce for a fixed price...	Sovnarkom
February 8	Decree on the Introduction of Time Measurement According to International Time Zone Time zone A time zone is a region on Earth that has a uniform standard time for legal, commercial, and social purposes. In order for the same clock time to always correspond to the same portion of the day as the Earth rotates , different places on the Earth need to have different clock times...  System	Sovnarkom
April 22	Decree on the Order of Preservation and Annihilation of Archive Acts	Sovnarkom	http://opentextnn.ru/censorship/russia/sov/law/snk/1917/?id=565
July 29	Decree on Abolishing Private Property Private property Private property is the right of persons and firms to obtain, own, control, employ, dispose of, and bequeath land, capital, and other forms of property. Private property is distinguishable from public property, which refers to assets owned by a state, community or government rather than by...  Rights on Archives of Russian Writers, Composers, Painters and Scientists, Preserved in Libraries and Museums	Sovnarkom	http://opentextnn.ru/censorship/russia/sov/law/snk/1917/?id=566
December 26	Decree on Eradication of Illiteracy Likbez Likbez was a campaign of eradication of illiteracy in Soviet Russia and Soviet Union in the 1920s and 1930s. The term was also used for various schools and courses established during the campaign...  among the Population of the Russian SFSR	Sovnarkom

1920

New Style Date Old Style and New Style dates Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...	Decree Name	Issued by	E-text
January 29	Decree on the Universal Labour Conscription	Sovnarkom
June 8	Decree on Labour Rewarding with Premiums	Sovnarkom	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8042
June 17	Decree on General Wage Wage A wage is a compensation, usually financial, received by workers in exchange for their labor.Compensation in terms of wages is given to workers and compensation in terms of salary is given to employees...  Regulations	Sovnarkom	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8040

1921

New Style Date Old Style and New Style dates Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...	Decree Name	Issued by	E-text
March 21	Decree on the Replacement of Surplus Appropriation System Prodrazvyorstka Prodrazvyorstka , translated as food apportionment or surplus appropriation system, was a governmental program in Russia which obliged peasantry to surrender the surpluses of almost any kind of agricultural produce for a fixed price...  by the Food Tax Prodnalog Prodnalog or Продналог is the Russian word for a tax on food production, paid in kind in Soviet Russia, and sometimes known as "the Tax in Kind"...	VTsIK	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8035
March 28	Decree on the Free Exchange, Purchase and Selling of Agricultural Goods in Guberniya Guberniya A guberniya was a major administrative subdivision of the Russian Empire usually translated as government, governorate, or province. Such administrative division was preserved for sometime upon the collapse of the empire in 1917. A guberniya was ruled by a governor , a word borrowed from Latin ,... s that Ended Surplus Appropriation System Prodrazvyorstka Prodrazvyorstka , translated as food apportionment or surplus appropriation system, was a governmental program in Russia which obliged peasantry to surrender the surpluses of almost any kind of agricultural produce for a fixed price...	Sovnarkom
April 7	Decree on Consumers' Cooperation Consumers' cooperative Consumer cooperatives are enterprises owned by consumers and managed democratically which aim at fulfilling the needs and aspirations of their members. They operate within the market system, independently of the state, as a form of mutual aid, oriented toward service rather than pecuniary profit...	Sovnarkom
July 7	Decree on Producers' Cooperation	VTsIK, Sovnarkom

1922

New Style Date Old Style and New Style dates Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...	Decree Name	Issued by	E-text
March 17	Decree on the Universal Food Tax Prodnalog Prodnalog or Продналог is the Russian word for a tax on food production, paid in kind in Soviet Russia, and sometimes known as "the Tax in Kind"...  for Agricultural Goods	VTsIK, Sovnarkom
November 15	Decree on the Unification of the Russian SFSR with the Far Eastern Republic Far Eastern Republic The Far Eastern Republic , sometimes called the Chita Republic, was a nominally independent state that existed from April 1920 to November 1922 in the easternmost part of the Russian Far East...	VTsIK	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8012
December 19	Decree on Giving Exit Visas Visa (document) A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...  and Passport Passport A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth.... s for Going Abroad	Sovnarkom	http://www.spbpravo.ru/docs_cccp.php?id=8006

1924

New Style Date Old Style and New Style dates Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...	Decree Name	Issued by	E-text
December 19	Decree on Transforming Labour Commune of Volga Germans into ASSR Volga German Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic The Volga German Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was an autonomous republic established in Soviet Russia, with its capital at the Volga port of Engels .-History:...	VTsIK