PRESCRIPTION.
It is prescribed to comrades soldiers and sailors, performing guard duty within the walls of the Tauride Palace, not to allow
any violence towards the counter-revolutionary part
of the Constituent Assembly and, freely releasing everyone from the Tauride
Palace, not to let anyone into it without special orders.
Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars
V. Ulyanov (Lenin).
Petrograd 5/6* — I. 1918/*
Below we print three documents, representing successive stages of Lenin's development of the decree on the dissolution
of the Constituent Assembly.
The main content of the decree is outlined already in the first draft of the theses, made, apparently, on the night of 48 to 49 (from 5 to
6) January 4948, before the meeting of the CPC 49 (6) January 4948 on the issue
of the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly.
The initially outlined points were then developed into theses, giving a principled justification for the necessity of the dissolution
of the Constituent Assembly and already representing
a summary of the decree.
These theses were read out and adopted point by point at the
* — 18/19 according to the new style. Ed.
** In the manuscript, the following is appended by M. S. Uritsky: "Commissar over
the All-Russian Commission on Elections to the Constituent Assembly
and member of the Extraordinary Commission for the Protection of Petrograd. M. Uritsky." Ed.

DRAFT THESES OF THE DECREE. ON THE DISSOLUTION OF THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY 47
meeting of the CPC 49 (6) January, where each point was briefly formulated
for the minutes.
In the appendix, we provide the text of the theses, in the form in which they are formulated in the minutes of the CPC of 49 (6) January 4948.
All points were essentially adopted without changes, to point
two was added "to accept, with indication of the departure of part
of the Muslim faction."
Hence, both in Lenin's first draft and in the theses, there is an addendum to the second point "departure of Muslims." This note
was not used in the text of the decree.
The decree was written, probably, after the meeting of the CPC, which ended at 6 p.m. on 49 (6) January, and before 44 p.m.
of the same day, when the meeting of the All-Russian Central
Executive Committee began, where the decree was adopted at 4 hours
50 minutes on the night of 20 (7) January 4948; consequently, the decree was
written on 49 (6) January 4948 between 6 — 44 p.m.
The decree on the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly was originally
published in "Izvestia" "/¥ 3 (269), 20 (7) January 4948.
Printed in Works, vol. XXII, pp. 488—490.
The printed text is essentially a draft of Lenin's decree.
The decree is printed from the manuscript, in Lenin's first edition#
with minor corrections, apparently made in the process
of review; following this, we give the concluding part
of the decree in the edition of the commission.
In the footnotes, discrepancies with the printed text of "Izvestia" No. 5 (269), 20 (7) January 4948, are noted.
The initial draft of the theses of the decree on the dissolution of the Constituent
Assembly was made on a sheet of paper where a record was kept
of the speakers who spoke, apparently, at the meeting of the Council of People's
Commissars.
It must be assumed that this draft was made at some
preliminary meeting.
According to the personal recollections of I. P. Gorbunov, who was then the secretary of the CPC, on 48 (5) January 4948, during the session
of the Constituent Assembly, in one of the remote rooms of the
Tauride Palace, the CPC was in session, the composition was incomplete, the minutes
of the meeting were not kept. There is an assumption that this draft
was made precisely at this meeting.

2G48
INITIAL DRAFT OF THE THESES OF THE DECREE
ON THE DISSOLUTION OF THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY.
[18 (5) January 1918]
Departure of Muslims]
+  *•
5.
6.
7.
with reference to the Kazan schism?
1) Departure of both part[ies] of the maj[ority] of the Sov[ie-
t]s and in the people...
2) Form[al] side... (before X* elect[ed])
3) Material] side (the essence of the matter) organization
of the work[ing] people...
Principle] sign[ificance] from the point of view of class] st[ruggle].
4) No answer to the direct] stat[ement] of the C.E.C. about
power
5) E 2 = cover for c[ounter]-r[evolutionary]
st[ruggle] for the ov[erthrow] of Sov[iet] pow[er].
6) Dissolution...
7) Submit to the C.E.C. [to the 3rd Congress of Sov[iets]].
—[— ad /:
-]-right S.R.s passed through the Soviet c[ongresse]s (gub[ernia] sp[i]s[t])
+  4 bis: the same political] curr[ent] (S.R.s and Men[shevi]ks)
is waging the most furious st[ruggle] against Soviet] power
1 See Lenin's article: "People from the Other World" Works, vol. XXII, p. 182.
315S
*  THESES OF THE DECREE ON THE DISSOLUTION OF THE CONSTITUENT
ASSEMBLY.
[19 (6) January 1918]
1.
Historical approach of the developing Russian revolution to the conflict between
the Constituent] Ass[embly] and Soviet] power:
For brevity, Lenin often writes "X" instead of "October"; in this
case, Lenin means the elections before the October Revolution. Ed.

THESES OF THE DECREE ON THE DISSOLUTION OF THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY

—  [Growth and streng[then]ing] Soviets, as the only] people's force that achieved
the monarchy; —  growth and strengthening of the Soviets from 28. II up to 25. X;
—  elections to the Constituent] Ass[embly] before the split of the Socialist] Rev[olutionaries]
and before the great X rev[o- lution].
—  elections of S[ocialist] Rev[olutionaries] according to Soviet lists.
Departure from the Constituent] Ass[embly] of both parties of the known majority
both in the Soviets and in the working masses, the Right and Left S[ocialist] R[evolutionaries], [proved] showed clearly the break with the Soviets, created an impossible
situation.
3.
For the socialist revolution, not the so-called "all-people's" institutions of b[ourgeois] p[arliament]arism are necessary,
but
class institutions of the work[ing] and expl[oited] masses.
The development of the Russian] R[evolution] has outlived b[ourgeois] p[arliament]arism in the course of the st[ruggle] and conc[iliation], creating a Sov[iet] Rep[ublic], as a form of the dict[atorship] of the pro[letari]at and the poorest p[easan]try.
Not a step back.
■ i.
To the direct and open request of the C.E.C.
The Constituent] Ass[embly] did not answer ....
5.
The party of the right S[ocialist] Rev[olutionaries] and Men[shevi]ks outside the Constituent] Ass[embly] is waging a furious c[ounter]-r[evolutionary] st[ruggle] against
the X rev[olution].
Lenin Collection XVIII

Departure of Muslims

6.
Result: The Constituent] Ass[embly], in its remaining] part, is a cover for
the st[ruggle] of c[ounter]-r[evolutionaries] for the overthrow of Soviet power...
7.
The Constituent]
Ass[embly] is dissolved.
8.
This draft decree is submitted today to the C.E.C.
1Ю9а
Appendix.
THESES ON THE DISSOLUTION OF THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY.
January 19 (6), 1918
H E A R D :
D E C I D E D :
Theses of Vl. Ilyich Ulyanov.
1) Elections according to lists compiled
before the October Revolution.
2) Departure from the Constituent Assembly
of the Bolshevik and Left S.R.
Fractions.
3) Principled formulation of the
question of the Constituent Assembly.
4) Refusal of the Constituent Assembly
to discuss the proposal
of the C.E.C. to recognize the "declaration of the rights of the working and exploited people."
5) Covering by the Constituent Assembly
of the counter-revolutionary policy of the right S.R.s.
6) The Constituent Assembly is
dissolved.
7) Submission of the decree to the C.E.C.
1) Accept.
2) Accept with indication of the departure
of part of the Muslim Fraction.
3) Accept.
4) Accept.
5) Accept.
6) Accept.
7) Accept.

RECORD OF SPEAKERS AT THE MEETING OF THE COUNCIL OF PEOPLE'S COMMISSARS

RECORD OF SPEAKERS AT THE MEETING OF THE COUNCIL
OF PEOPLE'S COMMISSARS.1
[18 — 19 (5 and 6) January 1918.|
Sve[rdlov]
Rask[olnikov]
Dybenko]
Koll[ontai]
Ladis
Eliz[arov]
Trut[ovsky]
M[e]lizh[insky]
Len[in]
Sht[ein]b[erg]
Zaks
Obol[ensky]
Karelin
Lenin
Eliz[arov]-Sve[rdlov (
Koleg[aev]
Shl[i]kht[er]
Koll[ontai]
Sve[rdlov]
Obol[ensky]
Rask[olnikov]
Len[in]
Alg[asov]
1 This record was kept by Lenin, apparently, during two meetings
of the CPC on the night of January 18 to 19 (from 5 to 6) 1918 when considering
the theses of the decree on the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly.
The names in the first column are recorded, probably, at the first meeting,
of which only a part, must have, before "Elizarov-Sverdlov" managed
to speak, since these names are crossed out by Lenin, the remaining names
remained uncrossed out, and a line is drawn under them. The names
in the second column, written by Lenin under the line, are apparently
crossed out at the next meeting.
At these meetings, judging by the record of speakers, representatives
of the Left Socialist Revolutionaries were present: G. D. Zaks, I. Z. Steinber, V. A. Karelin
A. L. Kolegaev, V. A. Algasov, If. 11. Groshyan.
Sve[rdlov]
Stal[in]
Obol[ensky]
Karel[in]
Sve[rdlov]
Len[in]
Len[in]
Trut[ovsky]
Kryl[enko]
Koll[ontai]
Sve[rdlov]
Pr[o]sh[yan]
Karel[in]