o15. Economic Developments under Stalin

state capitalism

october 1917 - spring 1918

a degree of state control but private markets would remain an important feature of economic life

lenin's decree on land

october 1917

legitimised peasant seizures and declared that all land belonged to the "entire people"

lenin's decree on workers

november 1917

workers' control over their own factories, ability to "supervise management" through factory committees

lenin's early decrees only...

legitimised processes that were well under way

lenin thought transition to socialism must be...

gradual and careful in order to prevent collapse

veshenka

set up in december 1917

council of the national economy

established to supervise and control economic development

lenin's fears about true nationalisation proved to be...

well-founded

workers failed to organise their factories

problems of workers managing themselves:

- some helped themselves to stock and equipment

- some workers gave themselves pay rises

- this had an inflationary effect

- food prices rose

- hoarding of goods

- food shortages

- starvation

- riots

petrograd citizens living on how much bread?

50g a day by feb 1918

war communism

spring 1918 - august 1921

all private trade and manufacture were forbidden

food riots

february 1918

grain crisis

spring 1918

food requisitioning

the seizure of grain and other food supplies from the countryside by the red army and the cheka, in order to give it to starving soldiers and urban workers

cooperative farming

encouraged by lenin to farm more efficiently, only a small minority of households complied

food-supplies policy

may 1918

soldiers ensured grain made its way from farmers to towns

in reality, they brutally confiscated grain, firewood, and livestock carts, as well as taking a share of the grain they seized as a "reward"

kulaks

disliked by lenin for their prosperity

what did lenin do to the kulaks?

he had their entire stocks seized

they hid their crops and grain, and there were even cases of kulaks murdering members of the requisitioning squad

industries nationalised

spring 1918

railways, banks, merchant fleet, power companies, and the putilov iron works

sugar nationalised

may 1918

oil nationalised

june 1918

nationalistion extended to nearly all factories and businesses

november 1920

true reason for war communism

to supply the red army with munitions and food

otherwise, it is a complex policy. can't really tell why lenin imposed it when he was prepared to take a gradual approach to the economy instead.

total industrial output in 1921

had fallen to around 20% of its pre-war levels

typhus epidemic

1920

3 million deaths

1921 famine

harvest produced only 48% of that in 1913

millions died

population decrease due to 1921 famine

170.9 million in 1913

130.9 million in 1921

demands for economic change (4)

- intense peasant revolts

- uprisings in major cities

- kronstadt sailors

- worker's opposition group

tambov peasant revolt

august 1920 - june 1921

70,000 men peasant army

100,000 red army troops deployed

martial law

declared in january 1921

military was in charge and citizens' rights were suspended

kronstadt rebellion

march 1921

30,000 sailors

red army sent 5 miles across the ice to crush the rebels

took 15000 rebels, shot the leaders

deemed "white traitors"

workers' opposition group

aleksandr shiyapknikov

alexandra kollontai

members of bolshevik party

argued for greater worker control

new economic policy (nep)

august 1921 - september 1928

allowed for private ownership of smaller businesses and permitted private trade, although state control of heavy industry continued

gosplan

established by sovnarkom decree in february 1921 to advise a NEP

support for NEP

supported by bukharin, zinoviev, and most of the leadership

rank and file bolsheviks saw it as an ideological betrayal.

efficient use of resources

rationing was ended

industries had to pay their workers from their profits

grain

no more requisitioning

still had to give some to govt as a tax

could sell any surplus produced

scissors crisis

1923

peasants responded more quickly than urban areas

huge increase in agricultural produce brought its price down, but a lack of industrial goods for peasants caused them to hold back goods

response to scissors crisis

capped industrial prices and replaced peasant's quotas with money taxes from 1923, forcing peasants to sell

1926 production levels

same as 1913

nepmen

businessmen who became rich through the NEP. these people caused a lot of resentment because they were so much richer than others

great turn

december 1927

15th party congress

end of nep, announcement of first five year plan

reasons for the great turn (5)

- nep failing to produce growth

- bukharin no longer a threat

- war scare in late 1920s

- move towards true socialism

- suited stalin's personal style of having a strong state

targets of five year plans

overly ambitious

criminal offence to not meet the target

corruption and faulty reporting were commonplace

socialist economy (4)

- equality (no class divisions)

- central planning

- collective ownership (no private property)

- social ownership of means of production (you get what you make)

stalin's two goals

1928

collectivisation of agriculture

massive industrialisation

first five year plan

1928-32

goals reached so quickly it only needed four years... (most definitely untrue)

aims of first 5yp (4)

- increase production by 300%

- develop heavy industry

- boost electricity production by 600%

- double output from light industries

electricity output

trebled

coal and iron output

doubled

steel production

increased by a third

industrial complexes e.g.

magnitogorsk

downfalls of first 5yp

- chemical industry did not succeed

- consumer industries neglected

- too few skilled workers

second five year plan

1933-37

stalin is confident and optimistic due to supposed success of first 5yp

aims of second 5yp

- continue development of heavy industry

- new emphasis on light industry

- develop comms

- boost engineering and tool making

shift in the aims of the second 5yp

1936

greater emphasis on rearmament

4% of GDP in 1933

17% by 1937

'three good years'

1934-36

moscow metro

1935

volga canal

1937

dniepostri dam

extended with four more generators to make it the largest dam in Europe

steel output

trebled

coal production

doubled

1937

ussr virtually self sufficient in metal goods, machines, and tools

downfalls of second 5yp (3)

- oil production failed to meet targets

- no appreciable increase in consumer goods

- emphasis on quantity over quality

third five year plan

1938-1941

aims of third 5yp

- development of heavy industry (fear of war)

- promote rapid armament

- complete transition to communism

spending on armament 1938-40

doubled

introduction of collectives aimed to

provide for more efficient farming

give more opportunity for mechanisation

make grain collection easier

"socialise" the peasants (petty-bourgeois attitudes)

collectivisation stage 1

1929-30

announcement on kulaks

december 1929

"annihilate the kulaks as a class"

kulak percentage of peasant households

4%

percentage of peasant households destroyed

15%

number of peasants forced to migrate

c150,000

migrate north and east to poorer land

how did people avoid kulak status?

destroying crops

killing livestock

stalin's 1930 goal for collectivization

25% of households would be collectivised by the end of the year

collectivisation by march

58%

through force and propaganda

speed of collectivization

"dizzy with success"

brief return to voluntary collectivisation

by october, only 20% collectivised

collectivisation stage 2

1930-41

machine tractor stations

2500

provided seed

maintained and hired machinery to kolkhozes

result of dekulakisation

c10million successful farmers removed

cattle, pigs, sheep destroyed

25-30%

1929-33

famine

1932-33

stealing from a collective

august 1932

became a capital crime

% of veg sold privately

52%

% of meat sold privately

70%

% of milk sold privately

71%