The All-Russian Central Executive Committee ( rus, Всероссийский Центральный Исполнительный Комитет, Vserossiysky Centralny Ispolnitelny Komitet, VTsIK) was the highest legislative, administrative and revising body of the
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...
(Russian SFSR) from 1917 until 1937. Although the
All-Russian Congress of Soviets
The All-Russian Congress of Soviets evolved from 1917 to become the supreme governing body of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1918 until 1936, effectively. The 1918 Constitution of the Russian SFSR mandated that Congress sha ...
had supreme authority, in periods between its sessions its powers were passed to VTsIK.
Organization
The
1918 Russian Constitution required that the VTsIK convene the
All-Russian Congress of Soviets
The All-Russian Congress of Soviets evolved from 1917 to become the supreme governing body of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1918 until 1936, effectively. The 1918 Constitution of the Russian SFSR mandated that Congress sha ...
no fewer than two times a year (Statute 26 of Article III). Additional
Congresses could be called by the VTsIK or on the request of local Soviets. The VTsIK was elected by a full Congress, with no more than 200 individuals. It was completely subordinate to the
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
. The functions of the Collegiate or the
Presidium
A presidium or praesidium is a council of executive officers in some political assemblies that collectively administers its business, either alongside an individual president or in place of one.
Communist states
In Communist states the presidi ...
were not declared in the Constitution, but presumably they were supposed to be purely supervisory or revisionary bodies.
Provisions
VTsIK gave a general direction for the policies of the Worker-Peasant government and all bodies of the Soviet power in the country. It united and coordinated activities for legislation and administration as well as supervised the endorsement of the Soviet Constitution, declarations of the
All-Russian Congress of Soviets
The All-Russian Congress of Soviets evolved from 1917 to become the supreme governing body of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic from 1918 until 1936, effectively. The 1918 Constitution of the Russian SFSR mandated that Congress sha ...
and central bodies of the Soviet power. The All-Russian Central Executive Committee reviewed and adopted the projects of decrees and other propositions introduced by the
Council of People's Commissars
The Councils of People's Commissars (SNK; russian: Совет народных комиссаров (СНК), ''Sovet narodnykh kommissarov''), commonly known as the ''Sovnarkom'' (Совнарком), were the highest executive authorities of ...
and separate departments as well as issued its own decrees and instructions.
VTsIK summoned the All-Russian Congress of Soviets to which it presented the reports on its activity, general policy, and other inquiries. The All-Russian Central Executive Committee formed the Council of People's Commissars for general administrative affairs of the republic and departments (called People's Commissariats) for the management of separate branches of administration. Deputies of the VTsIK worked in the departments or executed special assignments of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee.
The state budget was defined by both VTsIK and All-Russian Congress of Soviets together, in addition to defining the budgets of different regions, districts, towns and cities.
History
The All-Russian Central Executive Committee was first elected at the
, held in
Petrograd
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, June 3–24, 1917. The first Central Executive Committee of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets was not a governing body and its chairman
Nikolai Chkheidze was not the head of Russian state. This changed at the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets during the
October Revolution
The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...
.
The
held in Petrograd in November 1917 elected the second Central Executive Committee. This then became the executive body of the RSFSR.
It was composed of
:62
Bolsheviks
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
:29
Left SRs
The Party of Left Socialist-Revolutionaries (russian: Партия левых социалистов-революционеров-интернационалистов) was a revolutionary socialist political party formed during the Russian Revol ...
:10
Mensheviks
The Mensheviks (russian: меньшевики́, from меньшинство 'minority') were one of the three dominant factions in the Russian socialist movement, the others being the Bolsheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries.
The factions eme ...
and
Right SRs
The first chairman of the VTsIK was
Lev Kamenev
Lev Borisovich Kamenev. (''né'' Rozenfeld; – 25 August 1936) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and a prominent Soviet politician.
Born in Moscow to parents who were both involved in revolutionary politics, Kamenev attended Imperial Moscow Uni ...
, who directed the day-to-day work of the committee. He only cast a vote if there was an even split in the committee.
Encyclopedia of Marxism: Glossary of Organisations
marxists.org, accessed 7 August 2017
The full name at one time was All-Russian Central Executive Committee of Workers', Peasants', Red Army, and Cossack Deputies (Всероссийский Центральный Исполнительный Комитет Советов рабочих, крестьянских, красноармейских и казачьих депутатов).
From the formation of the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
in 1922, it downgraded from the highest level (federal) to the second-highest level (federal-republic) of a governing body.
Following the adoption of the 1936 Soviet Constitution
Events
January–February
* January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King ...
, this organ was replaced with the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR
The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic was the collective head of state of the Russian SFSR and the permanent body of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR that was accountable to the Supreme Sovi ...
.
Chairmen of the Central Executive Committee of the RSFSR
* Lev Kamenev
Lev Borisovich Kamenev. (''né'' Rozenfeld; – 25 August 1936) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and a prominent Soviet politician.
Born in Moscow to parents who were both involved in revolutionary politics, Kamenev attended Imperial Moscow Uni ...
(November 9–21, 1917)
* Yakov Sverdlov
Yakov Mikhailovich Sverdlov (russian: Яков Михайлович Свердлов; 3 June Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O._S._22_May.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O. S ...
(November 21, 1917 – March 16, 1919; ''died in office'')
* Mikhail Vladimirsky
Mikhail Fyodorovich Vladimirsky (russian: Михаи́л Фёдорович Влади́мирский; – 2 April 1951) was a Soviet politician and Bolshevik revolutionary who was for a short period of time, the Chairman of the All-Russian C ...
(''acting''; March 16–30, 1919)
* Mikhail Kalinin
Mikhail Ivanovich Kalinin (russian: link=no, Михаи́л Ива́нович Кали́нин ; 3 June 1946), known familiarly by Soviet citizens as "Kalinych", was a Soviet politician and Old Bolshevik revolutionary. He served as head of s ...
(March 30, 1919 – July 15, 1938)
On December 30, 1922, the Soviet Union was formed. It comprised the Russian SFSR and other communist-controlled Soviet republics. Mikhail Kalinin retained his position as chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets and became chairman of the newly formed as well. Both positions were mostly ceremonial, increasingly so in later years.
See also
*
*
* Supreme Soviet
The Supreme Soviet (russian: Верховный Совет, Verkhovny Sovet, Supreme Council) was the common name for the legislative bodies (parliaments) of the Soviet socialist republics (SSR) in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) ...
References
{{Authority control
Government of the Soviet Union
Historical legislatures
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
1917 establishments in Russia
1938 disestablishments in the Soviet Union