Authoritarian States and Cults of Personality Part II: China & the Soviet Union

Vocabulary-style flashcards covering key people, events, and concepts from Stalinist Soviet Union and Chinese nationalist movements.

Stalin (Joseph Stalin)

Soviet leader who rose to power after Lenin's death (1924); centralized authority, built a cult of personality, and launched rapid industrialization through the Five-Year Plans.

Cult of Personality

Propaganda or public image that elevates a leader to near-divine status to legitimize autocratic rule (used for Stalin).

Five-Year Plans

Soviet state plans beginning in 1928 to rapidly industrialize and collectivize agriculture, centralizing the economy.

Socialism in One Country

Soviet doctrine emphasizing building socialism within the USSR and focusing resources domestically.

Collectivization

Policy consolidating individual farms into large, state-controlled enterprises to boost agricultural output.

Soviet Famine (1930-1933)

Mass famine caused by forced collectivization, estimated deaths range from 5 to 9 million.

Great Purge (1936-1938)

Campaign to eliminate perceived opposition within the Communist Party and military; mass arrests, show trials, and executions.

Gulag

System of forced labor camps where many purge victims were imprisoned.

Vinnytsia Massacre (1937)

Mass executions of perceived threats or disloyal elites as part of the purge campaign.

Leon Trotsky

Marxist rival to Stalin, expelled from the USSR leadership in 1927 and assassinated in Mexico in 1940.

Disloyalty Purges

Purges of party members and military officers deemed disloyal by Stalin, contributing to a climate of fear.

Animal Farm allegory

George Orwell's novel using farm animals to critique totalitarianism; Old Major=Lenin, Napoleon=Stalin, Snowball=Trotsky.

Old Major

Allegorical representation of Lenin in Animal Farm.

Napoleon

Allegorical representation of Stalin in Animal Farm.

Snowball

Allegorical representation of Trotsky in Animal Farm.

Lenin

Leader of the Bolshevik Revolution; died in 1924, whose death precipitated Stalin's rise to power.

Chiang Kai-shek (Generalissimo)

Leader of the Kuomintang (GMD); dominant military figure who sought to reunify China.

Generalissimo

Honorific title used for Chiang Kai-shek as military and political leader.

Kuomintang (GMD / KMT)

Chinese Nationalist Party established to unify China; rival to the CCP; pursued modernization and unification.

Sun Yat-sen

Founding father of the GMD; his death in 1925 created a power struggle that helped propel military leadership.

Northern Expedition (1926-1928)

GMD military campaign to defeat warlords and reunify China under GMD control.

Shanghai Massacre (April 1927)

GMD purge of communists in Shanghai; thousands killed and left-right factions within GMD split.

Wuhan/Nanjing Factions

Internal GMD factions (left vs right) that emerged during the civil conflict with the CCP.

Nanjing Decade (1927-1937)

Period when the GMD controlled much of China from Nanjing, with limited CCP influence.