History - Stalin and Mussolini

How did Vladimir Lenin change life in Russia? (5 reasons)

Women declared equal to men.

Peasants who had excess grain forced to hand it to

government to avoid other citizens starving.

Factories taken from owners and placed under control of workers’ committees.

All land taken from Tsar and old landlords.

Maximum 48-hour week for factory workers.

Where and when was Stalin born?

Gori, Georgia, in December 1879.

How did Stalin make life better in the USSR? (3 points)

1929-1940: number of school children increase from 12M to 35M (192%).

By 1940, most Soviet people were literate and the literacy rate increased from 51% to 88%.

Stalin encouraged women to work in jobs associated with men, e.g. science and engineering.

How did Stalin make life worse in the USSR? (4 points)

Hated religion and closed Muslim schools, mosques, churches and burned religious pictures.

A secret police called NKVD arrested people accused of opposing Stalin - children encouraged to tell on family, neighbours and friends.

1934: Purges began. Millions killed or sent to Siberian gulags. 13M people died from the cold, hunger and ill treatment. 20-40M people died from purges.

Stalin also accused leading communists of being traitors. Many forced to confess when the NKVD threatened their wives’ and children’s lives.

Who were the winners and losers of Stalin’s regime?

Winners: middle class, women, children and industrial workers.

Losers: anti-communists, religious people, peasants, communist leaders and LGBTQ people.

When was Mussolini born?

1883.

From 1871, to 1914, Italy had how many Prime Ministers?

25.

Why were Mussolini and many Italians furious after WW1?

Italy gained hardly any land after the Treaty of Versailles. They were promised part of the Austro-hungarian empire if they won the war, but they didn’t.

How did Mussolini’s Fascist Party gain popularity?

When unemployment soared and Italy descended into political anarchy.

What happened in October 1922?

Mussolini and his Fascist Party conquered Rome out of fear of a communist takeover. King Victor Emmanuel III asked Mussolini to restore order.

What title did Mussolini give himself?

‘Il Duce’ - ‘The Leader’.