Life in Soviet Russia

Communism in Russia

What is communism?
  • Communists believe in the overthrow factory and land owners
  • They want to abolish private property
    • They said it caused people to get richer and some to be poorer
    • Instead they want that the state is in control of industry and agriculture
Features of the communist system in Russia
  • One party dictatorships
  • Government ownership and control of industry and agriculture
  • Cult of personality
  • Propaganda
  • Control of press, radio, TV and cinema
  • Police state
  • Show trials
  • Executions
  • Gulags

Life in a Communist Dictatorship

  • Communist party controlled all power
    • Party controlled civil service, army and industries, press, radio, cinema and TV
    • News was censored and criticism of the Communist Party was not allowed
    • Used propaganda to control the minds of the people
    • Used secret police to oppositions and labour camps

Purges, show trails and gulags

  • Used to get rid of any of Stalin’s opposers
  • Gulags: labour camp
Changing names of the Secret Police
  • Cheka
  • GPU
  • OGPU
  • NKVD
  • KGB
Effects of purges and show trials
  • Greater control by Stalin and the Communist Party and the country
  • Greater fear among ordinary people of criticising aspects of Soviet
  • Soviet army weakened
Stalin’s show trails
  • First show trial: 1936
    • 16 leaders tried
    • All executed
  • Second show trail: 1937
    • 17 leaders tried
    • 13 executed
    • 4 sent to gulags
  • Great show trial: 1938
    • 21 leaders tried
    • 18 executed
    • 3 sent to gulags

What was life like in the gulags

  • Set up under Lenin’s rule
  • Expanded by Stalin
  • Mostly in Siberia
  • Prisoners worked
    • mining
    • chopping down trees
    • farming
    • factories
  • 1-2 million died in the harsh conditions

How did Industrialisation and Collectivisation Affect People’s Lives?

  • Stalin introduced 5 year plans
    • Set targets for industry
    • To catch up with west Europe
  • GOSPLAN set targets for all industries
  • Each region set targets for factories + mines
  • Each manager sets targets for foremen and workers

5 Years Plans

  • First => 1928-32
  • Second => 1933-37
  • Third => 1938-41
  • Forth + Fifth => 1945-55
Consequences of the 5 year plans
  • By 1940 the Soviet Union was the 2nd largest industrial country in the world
  • Some new industrial cities built => especially in Siberia
  • Huge Dams were built for electricity
  • Urban population grew by 29 million between 1929-39
  • No unemployment

Collectivisation

  • All land was taken over by the state
  • Collective farms were formed
  • People who refused the changes were killed or sent to gulags
  • Millions died due to famine and conflicts

How did women’s lives change?

  • More equal with the men in the workplace
  • More women worked in jobs such as engineers, construction and labouring
  • Kindergardens and creches were introduced so women could work
  • Child allowances were introduced
  • Women with large families were honoured as Mother-Heroines

Health and Education

  • Free healthcare
  • More hospitals built
  • 70% of doctors were female
  • Communists wanted free education
  • Huge literacy campaign
  • Education used for propaganda
  • Youth organisations were set up
Communist Youth Organisations
  • Little Octobrists => 7-9 years
  • Young Pioneers => 10-14 years
  • Komsomol => 15-28 years

What was Life like in Soviet Russia during WWII

  • In 1941 Germany attacked the Soviet Union => Battle of Stalingrad => victory for Russia
  • Russian people suffered during the war especially in German conquered lands => Stalingrad + Leningrad => Moscow
    • Leningrad => 700,000 people starved or died
  • Rationing system
  • Everybody could be ordered to work for war efforts
  • 17 million Soviet Citizens died in War