8+9 Post-war reconstruction, industry and agriculture

What proportion of the population had been killed between 1941-45?

1/8

What did Stalin promise in 1945 about the USSR and industry?

He promiesd that the USSR would be the leading industrial poewr by 1960

When were the Gosplan instructed to prepare a new 5YP?

August 1945

What was the 4th 5yp like?

Set ambitious targets for both industry and agriculture

What proportion of the plan’s expenditure was to be spent on Ukraine?

1/3

Why was lots of money focused on Ukraine in the 4th 5YP?

it was one of the areas that had been worst hit by the war but held great agricultural and industrial importance

In what way did industry somewhat falter in 1945-46?

The country struggled to switch from a wartime economy to one that met the civilian needs of its people

What was mining output like after the war?

Half of the 1940 levels

What was transport infrastructure like immediately after the war?>

Badly disrupted

What change intensified lots of the social and ecobomic issues in Russia?

The sudden withdrawal of Lend-Lease in August 1945

What was industry like by 1950?

There had been a considerable industrial recovery

What are three factors that contributed to the country’s recovery after the war?

War reparations, central planning and the committed efforts of the Soviet people

What was the government’s attitude to former enemy countries who now had pro-Soviet governments?

Still demanded they pay war reparations

How did the USSR exploit their territory in Germany?

Transported large amounts of equipment and materials from their occupied zones in Germany. Sometimes whole factories, including their workers, were shifted to Russia. HOWEWhen wVER historians agree this was not a decisive factor in the Russian recovery

When was the famine in the USSR?

July 1946 - 1947

What was the famine of 1946-47 caused by?

Chaos after the war (shortage of agricultural labourers, lack of machinery) as well as severe drought

What did Khrushchev claim about the famine of 1946-47?

That it was intensified by Stalin’s policies as he exported grain abroad rather than using it to relieve the starvation of his own people

What continued issue did the Soviet ecobnomy face?

The economy was still overloaded by military expenditure, especially with the intesnficiation of the Cold WAr

By how much did the army actually increase after the war?

Size of the army had almost doubled by 1953

How many collective farms ewre destroyed during the war?

100,000

What was food production like after the war?

60% of 1940 levels

Which factors worsened the situation in agriculture?

Severe labour shortage, decrease in land under cultivation