The Dictatorship of Stalin (1929-1953)

The Dictatorship of Stalin (1929-1953)

The Ascent of Stalin

• Following Lenin's death in 1924, the leadership of the party and the state was exercised by a group of leaders, including Stalin, Trotsky, Kamenev, and Zinoviev.
• There were constant conflicts among them due to differing viewpoints.
• Stalin gradually gained power, having been appointed as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1922.
• Stalin advocated abandoning the idea of world revolution in favor of "socialism in one country".
  • This meant focusing all efforts on consolidating and strengthening the revolution within the USSR.
• From this point forward, the Third International became an organization serving Soviet interests.

A Totalitarian Dictatorship

• In 1929, Stalin seized all powers and established a personal dictatorship.
• This was achieved through four primary means:
  • Cult of Personality: Propaganda was used to glorify Stalin's image as a great benefactor and father of the people.
  • Simultaneously, any positive attributes of his enemies were erased.
  • Reinforcement of the Communist Party's Power: Participation in political life through the Soviets required membership in the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
    • The party controlled the nominations, thus the Soviets ceased to be free and popular assemblies.
  • Terror: Used to silence any opposition.
    • The NKVD (political police) was used as the instrument of terror, with many citizens collaborating by denouncing alleged counter-revolutionaries.
    • The most intense purges occurred between 1933 and 1939, known as the Moscow Trials, where former party leaders were forced to confess to multiple crimes, leading to their condemnation.
    • Thousands of people were sent to concentration camps (gulags), mainly in Siberia, where they were subjected to forced labor.
  • Control of Culture: The Communist Party determined that art should serve as propaganda for the party.
    • The only official artistic style permitted was socialist realism, which glorified the revolution, its leaders, and groups considered the base of the revolution, such as workers and peasants.

A Planned Economy

• From 1927, Stalin promoted the idea that the state should plan the economy.
• The Gossplan, an organization responsible for designing and preparing economic plans, was created.
• Each plan lasted five years, called Five-Year Plans.
  • These plans set the economic objectives that the USSR had to achieve and the resources to achieve them.
  • The aim was for the Soviet Union to achieve industrial development and become self-sufficient from an agricultural and military point of view.
• All economic activities came under state control, and private property disappeared.

Collectivization of Agriculture

• The First Five-Year Plan established the collectivization of land.
• Landowners had to renounce the ownership of their land, which would become collective property.
• Kulaks, wealthier peasants who had prospered under the NEP, resisted and suffered severe repression.
• This plunged the peasants into terror, which resulted in a decrease in both agricultural and livestock productivity.
• Production never grew at the rate foreseen by the Five-Year Plans, and the population suffered scarcity and hunger.
• There were two types of collective farms:
  • Kolkhozes: large farms that operated as cooperatives.
  • Sovkhozes: state farms that used salaried labor.
  • Both promoted the use of machinery and the application of advanced agricultural techniques.

Industrial Development

• Economic policy prioritized heavy industry and energy production.
• Coal, oil, and electricity production doubled.
• Productivity was incentivized through various methods, with propaganda playing a significant role.
  • Workers were encouraged to work on rest days and maximize individual performance through selfless sacrifice.
• The initial results were spectacular, turning the USSR into an industrial power.
• However, this also caused economic imbalances because the manufacture of capital goods (such as machinery or armaments) was excessively promoted, while consumer goods (such as clothing or footwear) were neglected.
• As a result, the population suffered great shortages of some basic products.