Stalin

When did Lenin die

1924

By when was Stalin the undisputed leader of the USSR

1928

Briefly explain how Stalin became leader

Used Zinoviev and Kamenev to take down Trotsky, and then took those two down too by allying with the right communists, before taking them down too by criticising the NEP, leaving himself as the only suitable leader

Why was Russia in a bad position in 1928 (2)

Food shortages in 1927 - increasingly internationally isolated after Germany join League of Nations, Britain breaks ties in 1927 and Poland becomes led by a vehement anti-communist

How does Stalin respond to the problems of 1928 (3)

Starts preparing for a potential war - restarts grain requisitioning rationing and collective farms - launches FYPs

Aims of the FYPs (3)

End Russian backwardness - prepare for potential war - industrialising to reach socialist utopia

Stalin 1931 quote showing aim of FYPs

‘We are 50 or 100 years behind the advanced countries. We must make up this gap in 10 years. Either we do it or they will crush us’

How long did the first three FYPs last

1928-1932, 1933-1937, 1938-1941

From 1928 to 1940, under the FYPs, Russia’s GNP increased from _____ to _____

100 to 203

From 1927 to 1940, under the FYPs, Russia’s coal production increased from ____ to _____

35 million tons to 150

Example of big industrial project

Dneiper Dam

Date of completion of Dneiper Dam + success?

1932 + biggest HEP dam in Europe

Number of new enterprises from 1928 to 1941, under FYPs

8,000

Impacts of rising industrialisation (6)

Quality of products suffered - production built on forced labour in the Gulags - declining working and living conditions - rising wage disparity - push for harder working with Stakhanovism created reward based economy - inefficiency and incompetency due to bureaucracy

What is Stakhanovism

The cult created around working harder and creating production records in return for rewards

Increase in industrial productivity in 1936 due to Stakhanovism

15%

How many people were in the Gulags + what percentage of steel did they produce

3.4 million + 12%

Rising inflation meant real wages in 1932 were ____% of those in 1928

50%

Example of mega industrial centre

Magnitogorsk

When did Magnitogorsk construction start + number of residents by 1933

1929 + 200,000

In Magnitogorsk, there was a death every _____ hours

4

How many people did rural-urban migration from 1929 to 1941

18.5 million

Changes in daily life under Stalin (6)

Religion - education - entertainment - censorship - healthcare - farming

How did religious tolerance change under Stalin

Increase in religious persecution as Bolsheviks were all atheists

By 1939, what proportion of churches were still functioning

1/40

How did Stalin positively reform education (4)

Increase in number of schools - decline in illiteracy - made it law to have 7 years of schooling - encouraged illiterate adults to go to night schools

How did Stalin negatively reform education (3)

Cut professors and nationalised unis - introduced fees for uni and secondary school - used education as an instrument of propaganda

Illiteracy rates for men and women by 1939

4% of men and 18% of women

In Leningrad, space per person decreased from _____ sq m in 1927 to _____ in 1935

8.5 to 5.8

How did Stalin increase social restrictions on families (4)

Illegalised abortion - illegalised homosexuality - made divorce harder and more expensive - passed law to say anyone over 12 should be treated as an adult before the law in 1935

When did Stalin pass a law saying all 12 year olds should be treated as adults

1935

How did Stalin change entertainment

Increased government funding to sports, radio and cinema so they could be used as propaganda

How did Stalin change censorship

Increased the number of newspapers so that more propaganda could be printed

Increase in number of newspapers being circulated in Russia from 1928 to 1939

9.4 million to 38 million

How did Stalin change healthcare

Increased the number of clinics and doctors, exacerbated by increasing literacy

What percentage of children in cities were born in hospitals

90%

How did Stalin change farming

Attempted to increase mechanisation

Were Stalin’s changes to farming successful?

No, they harvest of 1940 was still not as good as the one in 1913