LC HISTORY - the soviet union

How did lenin first come to power (points)

• april thesis

• October revolution 1917

What where the april theses

• lenin in exile when tsar fell

• Germans helped him return to russia

• Demanded PEACE, BREAD AND LAND

• Urged his supporters to

  • Not support provisional government

  • To create a republic of workers

  • To work towards the nationalisation of land and factories

  • To end the war

What happened in the october revolution

• 1917

• Bolsheviks staged a coup (military overthrow)

• Lenins revolution overthrows kerenskys provisional govt and leads to the establishment of the first communist government

Communism def

All economic activity is directed by the state, no private ownership for the common good of people

Difference between how lenin dictatored and how stalin dictatored

Lenin - party dictatorship

Stalin - personal dictatorship

Lenins communist dictatorship points

• cheka

• Reforms

• Civil war

• War communism

• Kronstadt revolt

• Ew economic policy

• Repression continues

• Orthodox church

• Womens bureau

• Lenins last testament

How did stalin establish his dictatorship in parliament

• elections in november 17th to elect new other parliament

• Lenin dissolves assembly after bolsheviks get only a quarter of votes (BANS OTHER PARTIEs)

What were the cheka

• secret police

• Felix dzerzhinsky attacked all critics of communsit party

• Shut down opposition newspapers

• 1918 to 1922 cheka executed 140,000 opponents of the communist party

How many did the cheka execute

140,000 opponents of communist party

Comment on the reforms lenins party wanted to do

• great

• Way ahead of other countries

• Not put into place as lacked resources

What were lenins reforms

• free education

• National insurance (free healthcare, a dole, pensions)

• Private ownership of land abolished - land redistributed without compensation

• Women given right to vote and gender equality guaranteed (first country)

What happened during the civil war during lenins time

• red army (trotsky) v white russians (divided)

• forced seizure of power by communists/refusal to accept 1917 election

• rise of opposition

• outbreak of bitter civil war 1918-20

• white russians badly organized, didnt fight w common aim (some wanted to honour election, some wanted tsars back)

  • communists better organized and united, 3.5 miilion soldiers

dates of lenins civil war

followed 1917 election

1918 - 1920

War communism dates

1918 - 1921

what was war communism

• lenin introduced during civil war

  • nationalised industry and agricultural means of production

  • food and coal rationed, peasants forced to hand over surplus grain

  • refused to do so, famine quickly spread across russia

why were the sailors at kronstadt important to lenin

allies before the civil war

when was the kronstad revolt

1921

describe the events of the kronstad revolt

• sailors at kronstad revolted against pure communism

• caused lenin to realise compromise is needed

• red army crushed revolt (to prevent the look of weakness

  • but lenin refferred to it as the “flash that lit up reality better than anything else”

what did lenin reffer to the kronstad revolt as

• flash that lit up reality better than anything else

What happened after the kronstadt revolt

• lenin retreating back from pure communism with new economic policies

  • grain requisitioning ended, replaced by grain tax of 25%

  • peasants could sell surplus grain in open market

• Businesses

  • small private business w less than 20 operate freely

  • same with industries with less than 100 workers

• large industries eg coal mining, oil refineries, banks, transport under state control (90% of all industry)

Describe lenins mistake when making his new economic polciy

• allowed peasants to sell surplus grain privately

  • gave up 25% of grain, but 75% was kept and could be sold

• middle class farmers nepman and kulaks started to dominate economic activity

  • grew up class system, creating issues for stalin

• Some leading members of bolsheviks, including trotsky, saw NEP as abandoning communist ideas

• Lenin defended this, saying it was necessary to take a step back to save the revolution

• nep brought good overall improvement in the soviet economy

lenins quote to do with his new economic policy

• we must take a step backward in order to go two steps forward at a later date

How did lenin/stalin build a communist state ? how would u discuss it

• talk about early compromises, like the civil war ending in pure communism, but how that led to the revolt, which led to the change in economic policy

• which led to the mistake of the middle class

What did lenin do politically after the kronstad revolt

• repression increased

• march 1921, division and debate is NO LONGER TOLERATED in party

• political prison camps increased from 84 IN 1920 TO 315 BY 1923

where was the only place that discussion was allowed in the USSR

• politburo

How was the church treated in lenins leadership

• badly

• teaching of religion banned under 18

• communist youth movements (komsomol) issued leaflets denouncing religion

• religious services banned and churches turned into museums

• only civil marriages recognized

Describe feminism in communist russia under lenin

• womens bureau established in 1920 under aleksandra kollontai

• aim was to encourage women to play an active role in political and economic life of ussr

• inspectors visited factories to ensure laws protecting womens rights were being implemented

• limited success due to limited resources

• huge propaganda was shown to get women working

lenins last testament

1923 - lenin suffered stroke

• wrote testement saying he feared stalin abusing power

• failed to name a clear successor

• refers to trotsky as a brilliant organiser but is self righteous and has difficulty working with others

• died jan 1924

• father of communism

• although regime repressive, government introduced many worthwhile changes

Lenins achievements -

• established communist state (saved the revolution)

• stabalised the economy

• greater spread of wealth

  • social reform - gender equality

quote on lenin being great

“ he was a very great man, and even despite his faults, a very good man “ ajp taylor, historian

lenins failures

• repression

• no political/religious freedom failed to stop stalin (his last testament was too vague)

churchhills quote on lenin

“their (russian peoples) worst misfortune was his birth and the next worst thing was his death”

churchhill

Describe Stalin’s background pre coming to power

• limited role in the 1917 revolution

• general secretary of the party in 1922 - brought him to prominence

• used this position to prepare for leadership by placing his allies in senior positions within the party

• complete control of russia by 1927

Describe Stalin’s power struggle

• after lenins death in 1924

• STALIN, KAMENV AND ZINOVIEV took over the leadership of ussr, while trotsky became isolated, amd eventually expelled from the party altogether

• stalin then turned on kamenev and zinoviev and gradually demoted them.

  • 1928 - outwitted all his rivals and became undisputed leader of the soviet union until his death in 1953

When did stalin assume complete control of russia

1927

how did stalin isolate trotsky

• few friends within the party, distrusted

• trotsky - favoured permanent revolution, which was unpopular of russian people who were fed up with war and revolution, including the 1905 revolution, world war two, civil war in 1917

• stalin had a policy of socialism of one country, offering russia peace, which was much more popular

• 1926, trotsky expelled from party

• 1928 exiled from ussr

• 1940, murdered by a stalinist agent in mexico in 1940

characteristics of the stalinist state

• socialism in one country

• totalitarian state

• show trials/purges

• propaganda/cult of personality

• socialist realism

• education

• youth movements

• collectivization

• five year plans - modernization

describe stalin’s totalitarian state

1928 - 53 ruled with iron fist

• nkvd secret police force, saught out and destroyed any threats to stalin

• communist party advisors (spies) worked alongside senior army officers to ensure loyalty to stalin

• strict censorship on media

• every adult right to vote, however only one party existed

Reasons for stalins purges

• elimate potential opponents of his rule (old bolsheviks, supporters of trotsky, army (specifically the old guard)

• massive paranoia of plots against him

• according to niokolai bukharin - jealousy (he is “unhappy of not being able to convince everyone, himself included, that he is greater than everyone else”

• killed kirov in 1934, who was a popular charismatic leader of the leningrad soviet, stalin used his killing as an excuse to unleash his reign of terror

• his economic policies were severe, and many leading members opposed htem and were killed

Names of waves of stalins purges

• purge of lower ranks of party (1934 - 36)

• show trials (for old guard) (36-38)

  • trial of sixteen august 1936

  • trial of seventeen 1937

  • trial of twenty one march 1938

  • purge of the army june 1937

describe the first purge stalin carried out

• purge of lower ranks of party

• 1934 - 36

• nkvd imprisoned or shot hundreds of thousands of party activists

• many sent to gulags (few survived in harsh conditions)

• 850,000 members + killed in great terror

• on the 12 december 1936, in jsut one day, stalin signed 3182 death warrants

what were the show trials in general

• highranking members of the party purged during a series of public trials (not secret, but attendees handpicked)

• the accused at these confessed to chargers of collaborating with foreign powers to overthrow the communist state

• black propaganda

• foreign journalists attended

• evidence standards low, accused usually tortured and put under pressure to make public confessions

what did people in the show trials confess ot

• plotting with trotsky

• economic sabotage

• facism

• part of plots against kirov

what happened in the trial of the 16

august 1936

• zinoviev/kamenev, and fourteen other leading party members shot in cellars of a prison in moscow

• most in this tiral accused of being involved in plot to kill kirov

what happened in the trial of 17

january 1937

• other leading party activists killed

• incl karl radek

• soviet unions leading political writer

• accusations including sabotage, opposition to various soviet practices, plotting against the party ad with trotsky

what happened in the trial of 21

march 1928

• great purge

• highest ranking party members executed incl bukharin ( who opposed collectivisation), rykov (leading soviet scholar) and yagoda (former head of secret police)

what happened in the purge of the army

june 1937

• between second and third show trial, stalin conducted a secret purge of the general staff of red army

• assistant war commissar tukhachevsky, ¾ marshals, 50 corps commanders and 154 divisional commanders all executed

• this was right as ww2 started

• nazis purposefully gave misinformation about having spies in red army to push stalin to do this

impact of the show trials

• leadership of communist party changed

  • all leading members of lenins central committee except stalin had been removed

  • new breed of high ranking communists like khrushchev, who unquestionably supported stalin replaced them

• 20 million executed or sent to gulags

• stalin ended up being portrayed as a ruthless killer in western europe, at a time where he wanted friendly relationships with the west

  • impacted on collective security down the line when stalin wanted to oppose the spread of facism, but many leaders saw him as a greater threat and fascism as a good blockade

• purge of army led to difficulties in war (russian finish war in 1939/40 was a disaster as russias massive army struggled to win

• brought communist system into disrepute

how did stalin use propaganda

• became a cult figure - uncle joe

• portraits of stalin covered walls, statues erected, pictures of him everywhere

• stalin presented as warm, modest and sincere man committed to the good of the people

• 1917 revolution role exaggerated, and opponents such as trotsky were airbrushed from history

• doctored many photoes, where he edited himself into photos with people such as lenin to appear closer to him, and also removed people he killed in show trials

what was the 1936 constitution

• turned russia into the soviet union

• set up the soviet republics that made up the ussr

• new constitution introduced gave the impression of freedom, rights and quality

• stalin claimed ussr was the most democratic constitution in the world

what was socialist realism

• writers, museums and artists encouraged to depict achievements of ussr in their work

• style known as socialist realism

• those who didnt conform didnt find work

education in ussr

• only true success

• progressive education system

• state run nursery schools for children under three

• three to seven attended infant schools

• secondary school compulsory 8-15 boys and girls

• adult education encouraged

• science and tech given great emphasis, which gave them a great advantage in the second world war

• 1953, ussr nearly universally literate

when was soviet union literate

1953

youth movements in ussr

• young people encouraged to join

• little octobrists 4-8

• lenin pioneer org 9-14

• komsomol 14-28

• members found it easier to reach management positions in industries, and were more likely to achieve higher educational scholerships

Stalin’s foreign policy headings

• Isolation ‘27 - ‘33

• collective security ‘33-’38

  • league of nations

  • pact of mutual assistance

  • spanish civil war

  • popular front

• failure of collective security 38/39’

• nazi - soviet pact ‘39

• operation barbarossa

• great patriotic war

• scorched earth

• victory + wartime conferences

Describe the time of isolation in the USSR

• 1927-33

• stalin thought permanent revolution was dangerous as it would involve ussr in conflicts abroad

• socialism in one country - popular, long term peace

• stalin suspicious of western powers, and didnt involve ussr in any treaties

• left soviet union isolated 27-33

Describe collective security

33-38

• rise of hitler, foreign minister (litvinov) abondons isolation and adopts collective security

• the cooperation of several countries in an alliance to strengthen the security of each.

Events of getting collective security

• 35, joins league of nations

• 36, pact of mutual assistance w frank and czech republic, however this pact would largely be ineffective due to frances reluctance to do anything without the backing of britain

• 36 involves in spanish civil war to divert hitlers attention from eastern europe

• 36 litvinov says for all non fascists, socialists, communists liberals etc should join together to form a popular front against fascism

Describe the failure of collective security

1938/39

• stalin distrusted by the west

• britain saw stalin greater threat

• late 1938, stalin disillusioned by britains appeasement and abandoned the idea of collective security shortly after the munich agreement of september 1938, one he wasnt invited to

What was the issue with the nazi soviet pact

1939

• stalin signs 10 year nonagression pact

• secret clause allowed stalin to place estonia, latvia, lithuania and the east of poland within soviet control

• allowed stalin space to reorganize the red army and finish his five year plan

• stalin was aware that hitler would break this pact early, hoped it would last until 43, so the third five year plan would be complete

• needed time to rebuild army after wiping all his top generals out

Ussr during operation barbarossa

• june 1941

• attack took stalin by surprise, refused to listen to warnings of invasion as he thought it was a ploy by churchhill to get russia in conflict with germany

• so red army caught by surprise, and luftwaffe gained superiority within 48 hours and destroyed 2000 soviet aircrafts within two days

what was the great patriotic war

• minsk and smolensk fallen

• 3rd of july 41, stalin abandoned the communist propaganda and appealed to russian nationalism in a radio broadcast to the nation

• war referred to as great patritic war

• red army divisions named after tsarist generals who led russia to victory in past

explain scorched earth

• marshal zhukov turned the tide of the war by 1943, by forcing the nazi soldiers to have to zig zag into the soviet union, slowing them down

• red army destroyed anything of value as they retreated

  • stretching german supplies

  • devestating effect on nazis for 42 and 43 winter

• 3rd five year plan - millions of people and machinery moved to central asia

• beyond bombing range

• endless supllies and arms provided for war effort

• 1942, stalin signs pact of assistance w britain and us to get food supplies into the ussr from the port of MURMANSK

when was operation barbarossa

june 1941

what did the nazis do as soon as they first invaded

• took stalin by surprise as he ignored churchhills warnings

• luftwaffe air superiority, 2000 soviet aircrafts destroyed within 48 hours

When did stalin address his nation

3rd july 1941

What were the first two soviet cities to fall

Minsk, smolensk

What happened w the victory

• decisive battle in stalin grad (august 42 to february 43)

• zhukov, rokossovky and yeremenko pincered the german 6th army

• after victory at stalingrad in 43, and then again in kursk

• germans couldnt regain initiative on eastern front

  • soviets freed stalin grand, which had lasted from september 1941 to january 44

How many soviet citizens died

more than 20 million

What were the names and dates of the wartime conferences

• tehran (1943)

• yalta (45)

• potsdam - post war

What happened in tehran

• roosevelt, stalin, churchhill

• stalin insisted that allies should open a second front in france to take the pressure off of the USSR

• made it clear he wanted germany partitioned after the war

What happened in the yalta conference

• feb 1945

• stalin churchill, roosevelt agreed germany to be divided four ways

• russia gained polish territory east of curzon line

  • stalin promised free elections in poland and other satelite states, but clarified later that they would be soviet style elections

What happened in the potsdam conference

• stalin dominated, only war leader still in power

  • roosevelt died - truman took over, Winston churchill did not get reelected after not backing the beverage report in britain

• His control of satelite state was accepted as a fait accompli

Soviet economic headings under lenin

• Treaty of brest litovsk

• 1917 - 1918 state capitalism

• 1918 to 1921 - war communism

• 1921 - 24 new economic policy

What was the treaty of brest litovsk

• march 1918

• russian economy in ruins in 1917 when lenin comes into power

  • due to neglect by tsars, and wartime difficulties

• Treaty of brest litovsk signed by russia after world war 1, dealt further blow

  • one third of iron works, three quarters of its coal industry, and one third of its population in ukraine

• Lenin viewed as short term treaty, could be reversed later

• Lenin signed it only to futher his goal of saving the revolution

• knew the treaty was bad, and therefore dragged his feet signing it

Describe the soviet economy under stalin

• basis - socialism in one country

  • emphasised the need to devolop the soviet union to survive in hostile world

• Emphasised this in speech in 1931, claiming

“we are fifty or a 100 years behind the advanced countries”

“We must make good this lag in ten years, either we do it or they crush us”

What was collectivization

• involved joining small and medium sized famrs into one large holding

Describe collectivization

• needed less people producing more food

• two main types of farms

  • kolkhozy - peasant coop farms, farmers pooled resources and sold output to state at fixed price

    • kulaks hated this, as they were doing better alone

    • land left idle, kulaks slaughtered livestock instead of surrendering it to collective farms

    • amount of cattle in russia fell from 200 million in 28 to 34 million in 1938

    • sheep fell from 146 million in 28 to 42 million in 38

    • Stalin reacted by making policies to eliminate kulaks as a class

  • Sovkhozy - government run state farms, farm workers hired as govt employees

    • muzhiks/poorer farmers much happier than kulaks, no longer in deep poverty and were paid a wage, protection against famine

    • however very inefficient

• 1940 - 97% of peasant holdings collectivised

• famrs were inefficiant, 1940, agricultural output hadnt returned to 1928 level

• Bucharen warned stalin to not kill the kulaks as they were knowledgeable farmers

Cattle and sheep statistics in russia

• 200 mil in 1928 to 34 million in 1938 cattle

• sheep - 146 million 1928, 42 million in 28

Percent of farms collectivised

1940 - 97% of private holdings collectivized

What were the five year plans

• Stalin was going to progress the ussr by a series of five year plans

  • first - 28 - 33 - concentrated on heavy industries (coal, iron, steel)

  • second - 33-38 order of stakhanovites, heavy industry but more emphasis on consumer goods

  • third - 38 - 41 (cut short, war) armaments, moving things

Describe the first five year plan

• 28 - 33

• heavy industry

• oil refineries built in caucasus

• huge tractor factory in gorki

• output of electricity trebled between 28 - 32

• new industrial centres in urals and volga

Describe the second five year plan

33 - 38

• difficult start - famine due to collectivisation

• priority to heavy industry

• greater emphasis on consumer goods, and extension of transportation

  • railways built to central asia, and white sea and moscow volga canals constructed

  • some of the work on these canals done by slave labour of political prisoners

• Education

  • emphasis on technology, and science (stem)

  • equal oppurtunity

• Consumer goods

  • washing machines

• Work incentives

  • Order of stakhanovites

  • special honours if production targets surrpassed

  • movement named after alexander stakhanov, (person of the year time magazine) donbass miner who cut over 100 tons of coal in a single shift

  • successful workers awared w medals, visits to the kremlin, cash prizes and seaside holidays

  • wage differentials introduced in 33, difference in wage was big but not massive

describe the third five year plan

38 - 41 (cut short by nazi invasion)

• concentrated on rearming/preparing for war

• heavy industries moved east, beyond bombing range

Overview of five year plans

• Transformed soviet union into industrial giant, 39, soviet union second most industrialised country in the world

• downside, 33000 industrial accidents

how was soviet economy during war

1941 - 45

• nazi invasion in june 41 put pressure on russian economy

• five mounts of invasion, half countries population and 1/3 of soviet union industrial centres under german control

• 60% of iron / steel, 40% of railway, 60% of livestock and 40% of grain were lost

• stalin’s early prepartion to put ussr on war footing since 28 proved decisive

• moving much industry beyong ural mountains protected arms industry, and ensured ample arms supply throughout war

• rissan food supplies boosted by british and american convoys to port of murmansk

How much of industry did russia lose during war

• Within five months of invasion

  • half population, over a third of industrial centres under nazi control

  • 60% of iron and steel, 40% of railway system, 60% of livestock and 40% of grain lost

Overview of ussr economy under stalin and russia

• great strides in economic developments

• in a short space of time, russia transformed from backwards agricultural country to industrial giant and one of two superpowers,

• came at great human expense, including 33,000 industrial accidents, millions dying in famine, the slaughtering of the sailors at kronstadt

to what extent did stalin transform society and economy of soviet union

• a large extent

• first a backwards agricultural country, ended up being one of two global superpowers, and the most industrialized country in the world, in a short short period of time

How significant was role played by soviet union in world war two

• massive role

• stalin - moderate foreign policy, noone believed him due to harsh internal policy

• collective secuirty failing,

• operation barbarossa, great patriotic war victory/turning point

• wartime conferences

To what extent did stalin transform society and economy of soviet union

• Society

  • one person govt, totalitarianism

  • Show trials

    • restructure party, new loyal to stalin

  • youth

  • education

  • art

  • propaganda

• Economy

  • collectivization

    • less compromise than lenin

    • famine, food insufficiant

  • Five year plans

    • super power

    • massive help for war

How significant was role played by soviet union in ww2

• very big

• wanted collective security

• failure of collective security, signs pact of non aggression to buy time to prepare

• France and poland easily taken

  • struggled w russia

• Operation barbarossa

  • at first, great for hitler

  • then, issues

• Great patritoic war

  • motivated people

• Starting to win, scorched earth

• victory (battle of stalin grad)

• dominated post war conferences

What did lenin and stalin contribute to communism in russia

• Lenin established first communist govt

  • cheka helped secure

  • reformed russia, civil war, pure communism, kronstadt revolt, nep, repression

• Stalin, dictatorship, purges/show trials - brought communsim into disrepute, killed sm, collectivisation, five year plans (massively, quickyl industrialised russia, education success, helped down the line during war times)

How effective were internal and external policies of joseph stalin/

main characterisitcs of rule

agree that he transformed

• Internal

  • Very effective

    • economically (five year plans, not so much w collectivisation)

    • Socially - ruled w iron fist, purges and show trials ensured little opposition, nkvd

      • propaganda, incl youth propaganda, censorshipm cult of personality

      • eudcation/literarcy

• External

  • fp, not very effective, moderate, noone trusted him

  • collective security and its failure

  • nazi soviet packed bought him time to prepare for inevitable war

  • ww2, he ate it up

  • post war time conferences, again, very effective, superpower