Russia (Stalin): 15/25 - general (FYP onwards)

what kind of imagery did the government use after the Great Turn away from the NEP

return to war imagery of Civil War/war communism

• e.g. socialist offensive, class enemies, campaigns and breakthroughs

• people who opposed/criticized the regime’s policies became guilty of treachery

key general features of the five year plans:

• central planning → state decides what is produced, when, and where

• production/output targets (set very high)

• and also shorter (one year or quarterly plans) for individual enterprises

• one-person management + Senior party officials often appointed/dismissed planners/managers for political rather than economic reasons

example of a spectacular project built to demonstrate new Soviet industrial might

• Dnieper dam (for two years, the world’s largest construction site, and increased Soviet power output fivefold)

what did failure to meet targets mean, since they were backed by law

treated as a criminal offense

in 193_, how many industrial commissariats, and what were they

how many by 193__

heavy industry, light industry, timber and wood

1934 - by 1939, 20 commissariats

what happened to private industry under the FYPs

• consequences for Russian consumers

(consumer goods, e.g. shoes, textiles)

• starved of supplies and resources during the first FYP

• so: difficult to buy clothes, shoes, etc. (Russian citizens asked to sacrifice their standard of living for longer-term objectives)

why did Stalin want to go from NEP to FYP (4)

• rapidly industrialise as he feared attack from the capitalist West.

  • also wants self-sufficiency, less dependent on West

• NEP had created a few issues such as high unemployment and it had only brought production back to 1913 levels.

• Ideologically, the NEP was seen as too capitalist as it allowed small privately owned businesses to exist which created more successful peasants (Kulaks), traders and retailers called NEP men.

• Politically, it helped Stalin to remove his rival Bukharin during the leadership struggle because it isolated the right of Communist Party as it supported the NEP.

what was the Gosplan

‘State Planning Committee '

• responsible for delivering the five year plans

  • set targets for factory managers and workers and ensured they were achieved.

set up 1921

what did people originally think about the FYPs

enthused by the spirit of cultural revolution

wanted a part in moving forward to a better society/to make sacrifices to build a new socialist world for their children

• believed life would be better → reverse high unemployment rates of NEP

• if you exceeded targets you would be rewarded with higher pay, better working conditions and possibly better housing

how many new factories were created between 1928 and 1937

5,000 new factories were created between 1928 and 1937 under the planning and supervision of the Gosplan.

example of foreign involvement in USSR development in the 1930s

• Henry Ford helped Russia to develop a car industry

  • Russian engineers were trained by Ford in the US

first FYP: dates, emphasis, how well planned?

October 1928 to December 1932

• emphasis on heavy industry (coal, oil, iron, steel, ELECTRICITY etc.) - 80% of total investment

poorly planned: basically a propaganda device to create a sense of urgency in citizens and rapidly industrialise

April 1929 - two versions of the first FYP were produced: the ____ and much higher ______

which one was chosen?

coal went up from ___million to ___million

‘basic‘ and ‘optimum‘

ofc optimum was chosen

targets increased massively: e.g. total coal output from 35 to 75 million tons

first FYP: successses

• electricity production tripled

• pig iron doubled

• huge new industrial complexes were built

  • including tractor works - good for agriculture

• economy was kickstarted, impressive growth in many sectors

honestly, that it happened at all - that Stalin begins to prove himself and makes himself historically important

first FYP: weaknesses due to ‘external factors‘

e.g. Great Depression

• Great Depression - 1929+ - had driven down the price of grain and raw materials - so USSR couldn’t gain enough money from exports to pay for all its machinery

what new class enemy did Stalin create during the first FYP

and what was the effect

• bourgeois specialist (equivalent of kulaks)

  • blamed pre-1917 managers for sabotage or not reaching impossible targets so were imprisoned/made a point with at show trials

  • but the loss of skilled staff caused further issues, and the constant dismissals/hirings created instability

• so by 1931 the ‘offensive‘ against them was quietly dropped

fact for unskilled staff recruited to industry in 1933

1933 - only 17% of workers recruited to industry had any skills

in the coal industry in 1930, how many times a year did the average worker change jobs

three times a year

(quicksand society)

first FYP: weaknesses/bad that happened

• poor transport → trains couldn’t cope with freight - bottlenecks, hijacking

• under/overproduction: some factories couldn’t get enough raw materials (held up by poor transport), some overproduced in a rush to meet targets → wastage (parts no other factory wants/can do anything with, or poor quality)

• bribery and corruption

  • no-one wanted to admit anything was wrong (in case accused of sabotage/criticising the party), so kept quiet and inflated numbers + buried under paperwork

in what year was the uninterrupted work week introduced

‘uninterrupted week’ introduced in 1929, with shift work planned over the weekend in order to stop factories from being idle at any time. 

what percent of the labour force by the end of the first FYP was made up of peasants

and what was the effect of this

around half

the ex-peasants were not used to disciplines of punctuality/monotony of factory work, illiterate

• resentful of being forced into disappointing industry work

  • high rate of absenteeism

• unskilled

  • did damage to expensive machinery, made poor quality goods

example of poor quality output

lorry tyres that only lasted for a few weeks

how many women entered the labour force

and in 1935 in Leningrad they made up almost what percent of the workforce, despite being paid less, less literature, less involved in political/technical education, and less likely to rise through social ranks

ten million

almost half of the workforce (44%)

what did the extravagant claims of super production output do for those speaking out/not

false numbers seemed to confirm that the system was working - so even more unlikely anyone would speak out

second FYP: dates, emphasis, thoughts on the first FYP

January 1933 to December 1937

• emphasis: consolidation of first FYP (+ transport, communication)

• party acknowledged problems of the first FYP (material shortages, transport disruption, lack of skilled workers, uneven growth, etc.)

differences between the first and second FYP

• second plan - targets were scaled back

• plan was worked out in greater detail (e.g. labour, material costs, prices)

• new investment into rail and training schemes for unskilled workers

when were the ‘Three Good Years‘

1934-36

successes of the second FYP

• heavy industries benefited from plants/infrastructure set up in the first plan - electricity production doubled

• by the end of the FYP2 (1937) - was basically self sufficient in metal-working and machine making

• much better transport and communication → almost 5x as many lorries as the start, double locomotives

• three good years → food rationing was ended in 1936, families had more disposable income

weaknesses of FYP2

• consumer goods industries still lacking despite some progress

• oil production stayed low (which caused a fuel crisis later)

• purges happen in 1936-7, deprive economy of skilled workers and planners

third FYP: dates, emphasis

Jan 1938 to June 1941 (when Germany invades Russia), only 3.5 years, is cut short

emphasis on armaments (USSR’s entry into WW2)

third FYP successes (2)

• heavy industry continues to grow

• defence and weapons grow rapidly

third FYP weaknesses

• consumer industries slow down as materials diverted towards war effort

• Gosplan thrown into chaos as purges created a shortage of qualified personnel e.g. managers, officials, engineers

• more chaos, waste and bottlenecks

main problems of the workers

• unskilled

• not motivated enough

• keep moving jobs

• absenteeism

how did the party try to fix those problems (6)

INCENTIVISATION

• wage differentials and incentives

  • managers were allowed to pay bonuses/reward outstanding workers (so people stayed put and acquired skills)

  • equal wages were abandoned as early as 1931

• piece work → payment based on how many pieces made

• propaganda encouragement e.g. Stakhanovite movement

ABSENTEEISM

• to deal with absenteeism - dismissal, eviction from homes, lose benefits

• 1938 - labour books and internal passports were issued

• absenteeism later became a crime which carried a prison sentence on a repeat offence

TRAINING

• training schemes (some were bad, they got better in FYP2)

In 1930, all criminals sentenced to more than ____ years where sent to labour camps to provide cheap labour

more than THREE year prison sentence → labour camp

what was the Stakhanovite record, how was he rewarded

102 tons of coal in one shift

in 1935

rewarded with massive bonus, apartment, cinema tickets, holiday resort tickets

how did the Stakhanovite movement affect workers

incentivised to work harder to get rewards/beat the norm

glory

propoganda

in 1936 the number of new workers coming into industry had declined, why? (2)

• better living conditions on collective farms

• drafting of young men into military

so mining and lumbering were hit hard

shortages of coal and timber as domestic consumption expanded rapidly

had living standards improved?

no of course not!

• severe overcrowding as people flocked to cities

• high crime rates

• poor sanitation

by the end of the 1930’s, what percent of the Russian urban population were former peasants

40% were former peasants who had moved within the decade

argument for FYPs being a good choice

• party had reached an impasse at the end of the 1920s. economy was stagnant and capitalism was in crisis in the rest of the world

  • Bukharin’s idealistic plan was unacceptable

  • rapid industrialisation and collectivisation were a way out of the impasse

For the period of 19___to 19___, the Soviet Union claims that industrial production increased by ____ per cent, whilst the West estimates that the actual increase was just _____per cent. 

for 1928 to 1940

increased by 852%

West estimates 260%

when was the first purge of the Communist party?

and what were these called

1918

there were periodic purges, chistki (cleansings) throughout the 1920s

why did these early chistki happen

example, Lenin’s Enrolment of 1924

leaders seeking to exercise more control over the party

e.g. Lenin’s enrolment of 1924, or when the party was in crisis (think Civil War, collectivisation), it took in more members

and then shed the undesirables when the crisis was over

how violent was a chistka

non-violent process

• party members not allowed to renew their documents

• expelled but not usually arrested

in the chistka of 1932-35, what percent of the party was cleared out (non-violently) after collectivisation

who were they generally

over 20% was cleared out non-violently after collectivisation (having gained more members during that time)

mainly illiterate and inactive members

three phases of the purges

1. chistka of 1932-35 in which over 20% of the party were expelled

2. show trials (execution/public trial of prominent old Bolsheviks)

3. Yezhovshina, after Yzhov head of the NKVD (mass terror from 1937-8) where thousands were arrested/executed/exiled to labour camps

what’s the difference between Lenin and Stalin’s Great Terror use of terror

Lenin → yes, terror/class warfare to crush OPPOSITION (with understanding that terror shouldn’t be used on comrades)

Stalin → used terror INSIDE the party, as well as wider society

what propaganda constitution did Stalin publish, and when

2 things included in it

the most ‘democratic‘ constitution in the world

December 1936

• freedom of speech and the press

• freedom from arbitrary arrest

• the right to demonstrate

obviously hollow and lies

why was there anger and panic among party leaders during the FYPs

some party members were reluctant to implement the terror the government demanded

unwilling to identify kulaks, to get rid of specialists/managers, argued about high grain collection targets

how did gov officials try to fix the lack of discipline

• the chistka - dec 1932

• an attempt to re-establish control of the party

what did Ryutin do to deserve Stalin wanting to execute him

• was he executed? why

• Ryutin circulated a 200 page criticism of Stalin (referring to him as an evil genius, and his personal dictatorship)

• not executed, because Stalin was still subject to the majority of the Politburo — e.g. Kirov opposed him

1932

who was Sergei Kirov

• key traits

Party Secretary in Leningrad

• charismatic orator

• popular in the party

• opposed Stalin

when was he murdered, how

• 1st December 1934

• shot by an assassin (possibly orchestrated by Stalin)

why could Stalin have wanted Kirov dead?

• Kirov received a longer applause than Stalin during the 17th Party Congress

• He received more votes than Stalin for a position on the Central Committee

• Kirov opposed Stalin over the pace of industrialisation, methods of terror, alienation of the peasants

what happened just after the assassination (why it marks the start of the Great Purges)

• thousands in the Leningrad party were arrested (on Stalin’s orders)

• Stalin used Kirov’s murder as an excuse to purge, witch-hunt for Kirov’s assassin’s co-conspirators

Kirov’s murder was seen as evidence of a….

widespread conspiracy against the Soviet State and its leaders (Stalin)

Zinoviev and Kamenev were taken out of prison in August 1936 - why?

show trial 1.

• they confessed and were executed the next day

why were show trials effective

and why the K/Z one was particularly significant

intimidation, sense of danger

paranoia - enemies all around, even if unexpected they confessed

• first executions of Central Committee members (no-one is safe)

when was the 2nd Show trial

• January 1937

• randos, but they confessed guilt

when was the Third Show Trial, and who

March 1938

• most dramatic → Bukharin who was able to defend himself

• in the end he as well as 20 other including Rykov and Yagoda (prev. head of NKVD) confessed and executed

detail on how snitching increased

• Stalin encouraged lower-ranking party members to criticise/denounce those in higher positions

• high-ranking officials denounced people below them to show how loyal they were to the regime

  • some people denounced colleagues to get their jobs

• propaganda drive encouraging snitching

and anyone with connections to those accused also arrrested

what happened in July 1937 - quota system

percentage to be shot?

Quota system was applied to geographical areas

• in July 1937 - proportion to be shot set at a fixed 28%, with the rest going to forced labour camps

• before these enemies had actually be arrested!

when and why did the terror end

end of 1938

• destabilising Russian society

• admin systems falling apart with missing personnel

• reduced industrial production

who did Stalin blame the excess terror on

Yezhov and the NKVD

In 1938-39, ____ the admirals and ____ the Army’s leading officers were executed or imprisoned. 

and all but ___ air force commander

ALL the admirals

and HALF the army’s leading officers were executed or imprisoned

all but ONE air force commander executed

groups purged:

• managers

• scientists

• leading party members

• kulaks

• priests

• artists and historians

• national minorities

• anyone related to anyone purged

between 1937 and 1938, ____ million Soviet citizens were deported to labour camps and prisons

between 1937 and 1938, 20 MILLION deported to labour camps/prisons

~__% of officer corps purged in 1937

~10% of officer corps purged in 1937

Katyn Massacre (April–May 1940)

• 22,000–23,000 Polish officers, officials, and intellectuals executed

  • Blamed on Germans until 1990, when Gorbachev released proof of Soviet responsibility

how many orthodox priests shot in 1937

over 85,000 Orthodox priests

how many Gulags in Russia

400

how many estimated to have died in total

up to 20 million (Conquest)

very difficult to know because of faked census records, and the NKVD burned archives when Germany approached Moscow in 1941

___% of the male adult population were arrested by the NKVD.

10%

what happened to Yezhov

• Yezhov and 300 of his associates were shot in 1940.

why did Stalin carry out the purges?

• paranoia → felt threatened within the party, wanted to eliminated rivals to keep power

• looming war → wanted to remove anyone who might oppose his foreign policy, also can’t cede to slowing down pace of industrialisation

  • e.g. 1931 Manchuria, Hitler, all 4/6/10 stuff

• slave labour as for economic growth/to take part in foreign trade

origins of Stalin’s cult of personality, dates

• after Lenin’s death → takes on mantle of the disciple

• a modest, hard-working man

• gets a city named Stalingrad

1924-29

how was Stalin’s image used during the FYPs

• Stalin personally praised immensely for successes of FYPs

• Stalin’s image held soviet society together in a disorienting time of change

• Stalin’s image literally everywhere → paintings, statues

height of the cult, dates and how

1940 +

• Stalin as a beacon of confidence as war approaches

• Stalin becomes god-like, omnipotent and superior

• rewrote history in Stalin’s favour → rewrote textbooks, doctored photos

• people believed show trials were real and rooted out saboteurs

‘funny‘ story about no-one wanted to sit down first at a provincial meeting

• Stalin’s name was mentioned at a meeting

• no-one dared sit down first

• an old man couldn’t stand any longer and sat

• he was arrested the next day

why there was some genuine adoration for Stalin? (3)

• benefactor → through Stalin, some had gained power/money despite low backgrounds

• traditional defender of the people → similar to Tsars, received millions of letters asking for help

• charismatic leader

Stalin makes sure that all adults/children are informed of his life and achievments

biography published

5 aspects of the cult of personality

1. propaganda

   • image of caring leader who saved USSR

   • cities renamed, cultural life centred on him

   • his picture and name put up everywhere

   • nicknames - man of steel, sun, the boss, etc.

2. education

   • Russian a required subject in all schools

   • textbook with Stalin-centred history

   • children joined youth groups, e.g. pioneeri

3. culture/arts

   • censorship → books/articles have to be submitted to a committee before publishing

   • artists forced to produce Stalin-glorifying works

4. changing history

   • doctor photos to emphasise close links with Lenin and remove undesirables (e.g. Trotsky, K/V, Bukharin)

5. replace religion with Stalin

   • league of the godless smashed churches

   • Stalin becomes god-like figure, fatherly

   • attacks on religious groups