Unit 10: Communism, Decolonization, and Modern Trends

Communism

Extreme liberal ideology. Coined by Karl Marx, focused on the future and ignored the past, appealed to downtrodden laborers of the Industrial Revolution, belief in the notion that all people are “Equal” (never achieved in practice). Abolishment of private property and religion, God was to spread around the world.

The Russian Civil War (1917-1923)

Multi-Party civil war between various factions of Russia (an estimated 10 million died).

The Red Terror

Lenin’s use of terror and secret police to execute his enemies, “The Whites.” Political oppression dominated Russia.

War Communism

Meant to be a temporary measure during the Russian Civil War that became mostly permanent. The government became authoritarian and assumed control of everything. State-controlled industry, foreign trade, and banned private enterprise. Strict discipline of workers (no strikes) and obligatory labor for the non-working class. Seized all private property and outlawed religion. Did major damage to the economy.

New Economic Policy (NEP)

Lenin’s temporary plan was to help strengthen the devastated economy by introducing aspects of capitalism. Allowed private ownership of light industry and retail. Opened the country to foreign investment. Permitted small farmers to own their own land and sell their goods at the market. State-controlled heavy industry, banking, transport, and foreign trade. It worked, and the economy grew (was polarizing for communist purists).

1924

Lenin died of a stroke. Leadership of the USSR became a deadly fight among Lenin’s lieutenants.

Leon Trotsky

Idealistic leader who was seen as Lenin’s successor but forced out of Soviet Union in exile. Settled in Mexico, assassinated by a Soviet agent on Stalin’s orders in 1940.

Joseph Stalin

Violent, paranoid leader (1924-1953) who took over in a power struggle after Lenin died. Abolished measures of the New Economic Policy. Focused national attention to industrialization. Ruled collectively with others until he consolidated power in the 1930s to become a totalitarian dictator. Stalin means “Man of Steel,” (a name he gave himself).

Five Year Plans

Stalin’s programs to modernize and industrialize the Soviet Union. The USSR successfully industrialized at a huge cost. Forced people to relocate to areas of development. 7 million people died as a result of Stalin’s first Five Year Plan.

Collectivization

The process of combining individual farms into large, state-controlled farms. Soviet leadership thought it would help increase the food supply and develop a less individualistic culture. It was a massive failure; the food supply actually went down.

Holodomor (1932-1933)

The starvation of 5 million Ukrainians as a result of Soviet collectivization policy. Used in an attempt to break Ukrainian nationalism.

Stalinist Purges

Stalin had 11 million “enemies” arrested, jailed for life in gulags, or executed. Meant to remove political enemies (real and perceived). Targeted specific institutions and ethnicities (military, doctors, intelligentsia). The military in particular was in a sorry state on the eve of WWII because so many of the top military officials had been removed.

Post Stalin’s Rule

Stalin achieved his goals but he also discredited communism with his repression and violence. The Soviet Union was far from the “Worker’s Paradise” leaders such as Lenin had promised. It became a brutal totalitarian state. However, communism continued to spread after WWII because of the post-war conditions and the success of the Soviets over the Nazis.

Communists

Extreme liberal-minded people who felt change could only come through revolution. They wanted economic and political equality and the abolition of private property. Many industrialized countries had communist political parties. The conditions in Russia were ripe for the revolution they were hoping for.

1917

Protests and military mutinies convince Nicholas II to abdicate the throne. A new government wanted reform and democracy, but did not want to quit the war (WW1).

Vladimir Lenin

An exiled Russian Marxist who authored communist political pamphlets raging against the government. Powerful speaker. Said the workers would need guidance from a soviet to create a communist revolution. Delivered to Russia during the chaos of 1917 by the Germans.

Soviets

Socialist worker councils (unions) that became very powerful and influential.

Petrograd Soviet

The most influential of the Soviets. Demanded the end to Russia’s participation in the Great War.

Bolsheviks

Communist radicals who gained control of the Petrograd soviet. “Peace, Land, and Bread” was

their slogan. Spread throughout Russia, riling up the working classes.

Red October (1917)

Bolsheviks overthrew the provisional government and put Lenin in power. Withdrew from WW1. Published secret agreements between other Russian countries. Russia descended into civil war (1917-1923). As many as 10 million Russians died as a result. The Tsar and his family were executed.

Soviet Union (U.S.S.R.) (1922)

The new name of Russia after the Revolution. For 25 years, the Soviet Union would be the world’s only communist country and was seen as a pariah. After WW2, Soviet influence became a driving world force.

The Cold War (1945-1991)

Period of tense hostility between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Neither nation went to war with the other. Both nations competed with each other in technology, sports, economics, reputation, and influence.

Eastern Europe

Stalin demanded the right to use it as a “buffer” against Germany. The U.S. and its allies wanted them to choose for themselves. Became known as the Eastern Bloc.

Satellite Nations

Countries (Poland, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary) that became dependent on and dominated by the Soviet Union.

“Iron Curtain” (1946)

A metaphor coined by Winston Churchill that claimed that Europe (and the world) was divided into communists and democratic capitalists.

Truman Doctrine (1947)

A pledge that the U.S. would be active in stopping any further expansion of communism. Led to a massive increase in U.S. involvement in world affairs that exist today. The creation of NATO was a product of the doctrine.

The Berlin Airlift (1948-1949)

Successful U.S. response to the Soviet blockade of West Berlin by supplying the city with vital goods entirely by air. Was a massive undertaking that showed U.S. resolve to meet communist threats. Considered the first of many major Cold War Crises.

Containment (1947)

U.S. policy that treated communism as a disease. The goal was to keep communism from spreading to other countries. Became a cornerstone of U.S. Cold War strategy. The U.S. fought wars in Korea (a stalemate in the 1950s) and Vietnam (a loss in the 1960s and 1970s), trying to “contain” communism.

Domino Theory

U.S. fear that if one nation fell to communism, the rest would follow. Would commit the United States to intervene in many countries and regions.

Countries That Didn’t Pick A Side

Many countries (India, Finland, & Sweden) tried not to align themselves with the U.S. or the Soviet Union. Newly independent countries (decolonization) dealt with lots of pressure from the superpowers.

The Arms Race

Intense competition between the U.S. & Soviet Union to create more powerful and sophisticated weapons. The goal was to the keep a strategic advantage over the other. Occurred throughout the entire Cold War but was most intense during the 1950s and 1960s.

The Atomic Race

In 1949, both superpowers had atomic bombs. Relied on fission reactions. In 1952, the U.S. tested the first hydrogen bomb, which used fusion reactions and was exponentially more powerful. In 1953, the USSR tested its first hydrogen bomb. They tested H-bombs with larger yields until the mid 1960s.

Delivery Systems

The superpowers also created better technology to deliver their destructive bombs further and faster. At first, the U.S. focused on bombers and spy planes. ICBMs allowed nuclear bombs to be delivered across the world without planes. First developed by the USSR due to its smaller air force. U.S. quickly caught up. Became the primary delivery method after the 1950s.

Submarines

Both sides developed submarine technology as a platform to launch nuclear missiles. The stealthy nature of subs made them an especially dangerous weapon of the arms race.

MIRV - (Multiple Independent Reentry Vehicle)

One Missile, lots of a nuclear warheads. With a MIRV, one ICBM can strike multiple targets.

The Space Race

Cold War competition (like Arms Race) during the 1950s and 1960s that focused on science, technology, and space. Started when the USSR successfully launched Sputnik in 1957. The U.S. was terrified and geared up to beat the Soviets in space exploration.

Downfall of the Space Race

The Soviets also beat the Americans at getting the first man into space. The U.S. vowed to get the first man on the Moon. They achieved this in 1969 (Apollo 11). After this feat, the Space Race died down.

Major Cold War Events of The Early 1960s

Three subsequent events in 1960, 1961, and 1962 brought the world to the brink of nuclear annihilation. (The U2 Incident (1960), The Berlin Crisis (1961), & The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)).

The U2 Incident (1960)

The Soviet Union shot down a U.S. spy plane and put the surviving pilot on trial. Huge embarrassment for the U.S., which claimed they were not flying over the USSR.

The Berlin Crisis (1961)

Tired of East Germans defecting into West Berlin, the Soviets built the Berlin Wall. Increased tensions became a physical symbol of the divisions the Cold War created until its removal in 1989.

The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)

Tense, 13 day nuclear standoff between the U.S. and Soviet Union over nuclear missiles in Cuba. Started when the U.S. discovered the USSR was setting up missiles in Cuba. Closest the world ever came to nuclear war.

Detente

After the great tension and danger of the early 1960s, both superpowers attempted to “Bring down the temperature.” Both sides agreed to Peaceful Coexistence. Worked on better communication and even agreed to weapons limitations. However, they still tried to sabotage and undermine each other.