The Communist Century: Global Communism and the Cold War

Origins of the Russian Revolution and the Rise of the Bolsheviks

• The Russian monarchy was overthrown in the March Revolution due to significant failures during World War I.
• An ineffective democratic government followed, which was subsequently overthrown by the Bolsheviks (a socialist party) under the leadership of Lenin during the October Revolution.
• Support for the Bolsheviks came primarily from soviets, which were urban working-class councils.
• The party established a political party dictatorship known as communism.
• A civil war was fought for control of Russia between the Reds (Bolsheviks) and the Whites (a coalition of monarchists, nationalist parties, and foreign governments attempting to crush socialism).
• Lenin led the country through the civil war; he viewed communism as a temporary necessity to maintain control while a peaceful socialist government was being constructed.
• Lenin’s death in $1923$ threw the Communist Party into chaos.

The Rise of Stalin and Totalitarianism

• A power struggle ensued between Joseph Stalin and Leon Trotsky.
• Trotsky remained committed to Lenin’s vision of a temporary dictatorship to build a socialist society.
• Stalin was committed to a permanent totalitarian communist dictatorship with state ownership of all property.
• In $1928$, Stalin exiled Trotsky from the Soviet Union; Trotsky was later murdered in $1940$.
• Stalin consolidated power and established the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
• The state became fully totalitarian under Stalin’s direction, characterized by:
      - No private ownership of business.
      - No private property.
      - A fully command economy.

Stalin’s Five Year Plans and Collectivization

• The first Five Year Plan was implemented in $1928$, setting massive industrial goals and forcing rapid industrialization.
• Relocation: Millions were forced into cities to work in government industries and live in housing projects.
• Production: Government quotas dictated the production of both industrial and consumer goods.
• Industrial Focus: The plans favored heavy industry (steel, machinery, and weapons).
• Neglect of Needs: Consumer goods were neglected, and basic necessities were rationed by the state.
• Shortages: Massive shortages occurred due to hoarding and corruption by political appointees.
• Collectivization: To control food production, private land was seized and turned into massive state-run communal farms (kolkhoz).
• Peasant Resistance: Peasants were required to work under quotas; many revolted by destroying crops and animals.
• Famine: Resistance and grain hoarding in urban areas led to regular shortages; famine resulted in the deaths of over $5,000,000$ people.

Propaganda, the Great Depression, and WWII

• Successes in heavy industry were used as propaganda victories; this included the construction of thousands of miles of railroads and tens of thousands of tanks, planes, and rifles.
• Regular military parades were used to reinforce the image of Soviet success.
• The Great Depression had minimal impact on the Soviet Union because government control of property meant individuals had no life savings or private work to lose; nothing belonged to the people.
• The collapse of global markets in capitalist countries made communism and the USSR appear invincible and unaffected by poor economic decisions.
• The buildup to WWII and the eventual victory against the Nazis cemented the reputation of communism as the Soviet military expanded significantly.
• Totalitarian control over media ensured that the misery of the Russian people remained hidden from outsiders.

Post-War Expansion and Global Appeal

• The spread of communism accelerated after the defeat of the Nazis in $1945$.
• Having survived the destructive force of the German war machine, the USSR became a symbol of communist capability, representing a complete turnaround from the disaster of WWI.
• Stalin became a global symbol of strength, attracting followers and funding communist and socialist parties worldwide.
• Communism was seen as a viable alternative to democratic capitalism and a "true" revolution (unlike the French or American revolutions), promising the liberation of the lowest class, the end of aristocracy, and the eradication of privilege and exploitation.

The Partition of Europe and the Marshall Plan

• After the Nazi defeat, Western forces occupied half of Europe while Soviet forces occupied the other half.
• Mistrust between the former allies led to attempts to bring occupied lands under their respective influences.
• The Marshall Plan: A US initiative to infuse billions of dollars into Western Europe to promote democracy, prevent a second Depression, prop up capitalist governments, and stop the spread of communism.
• Stalin’s Response: He viewed the Marshall Plan as US imperialism and a threat to communism. He demanded a buffer zone of "friendly governments" to protect the USSR from European aggression.

The Cold War Divide: NATO vs. the Warsaw Pact

• Europe was divided into democratic and communist factions.
• Western Europe was placed under American military protection via NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization).
• Eastern Europe was placed under Soviet military control via the Warsaw Pact.
• This division was nicknamed the "Iron Curtain."
• Germany and its capital, Berlin, were divided and became the frontline of the standoff.
• The US committed to the policy of Containment, the Truman Doctrine, and the Domino Theory, providing financial and military support to any government resisting communism.

The Chinese Communist Revolution

• The fall of the Qing dynasty in $1911$ led to chaos. The Nationalist government (Guomindang) was established in $1928$ under Sun Yat-Sen but controlled only large urban areas while feudalism remained in rural regions.
• The Japanese invasion in $1937$ weakened Guomindang control. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) led an effective guerrilla war against the Japanese.
• The CCP won the support of the rural population through land redistribution, promises of equality, and resistance efforts.
• After WWII, the CCP received arms and money from the USSR via Mongolia.
• The CCP defeated and exiled the Guomindang in $1949$, establishing the People’s Republic of China under Mao Tse-Tung.

Regional Communist Revolutions: Korea, Vietnam, Cuba, and Cambodia

• Korea:
      - Split between Red and Allied armies after Japanese colonization.
      - Kim Il-Sung established the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea with Soviet support.
      - In $1950$, the North invaded the South, leading to a three-year war involving the US and China. The country remains divided along the $38^{th}$ parallel.
• Vietnam:
      - Formerly the French colony of Indochina. Guerrilla war against the French began in $1948$, ending in French defeat in $1956$.
      - The Communist Party under Ho Chi Minh controlled the north. A $15$-year war between the North and South (backed by the US, USSR, and China) followed.
      - US withdrawal in the late $1960s$ allowed the North to unify the country in $1975$.
• Cuba:
      - A communist revolution in $1959$ led by Fidel Castro overthrew US-supported President Batista.
      - Castro nationalized US business interests, leading to an alliance with the USSR after US attempts to overthrow him.
      - The state became totalitarian, involving massive persecution and the immigration of the former aristocracy to the US.
• Cambodia:
      - A radical revolution in $1975$ led by Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge (supported by China).
      - Attempted to create a self-sufficient, agrarian communist society by emptying cities and forcing populations into agricultural communes.
      - The "Killing Fields": A genocide targeting the college-educated, religious followers, and Chinese/Vietnamese minorities.
      - Rejection of technology led to millions of deaths from disease and famine.

Core Characteristics of the Cold War

• Definition: An ideological struggle between Western democratic ideals (US) and communist ideals (USSR). Each side viewed the other as an incompatible way of life that had to be defeated.
• Global Influence: Both sides used economic and military aid to ensure loyalty and formed military alliances to bind smaller allies.
• Proxy Wars: Because of the nuclear age, superpowers avoided total war, instead backing non-nuclear groups (e.g., Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan).
• Space Race:
      - Began in $1957$ with the Soviet launch of Sputnik 1 (the first artificial satellite).
      - US created NASA to close the gap.
      - Ended with the US moon landing in $1969$.
      - Contributed to Soviet bankruptcy.
• Arms Race and MAD: The USSR achieved its first atomic bomb in $1949$. Continuous development of ICBMs, MIRVs, and submarine missiles led to the policy of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD).
• Cultural Imperialism: Both sides used propaganda to broadcast their achievements. The West exported consumer goods and music ("McDonaldization"), while the USSR exported durable machinery and farm equipment.
• Brinkmanship: The willingness to go to the "brink" of nuclear war to shame the enemy (e.g., Bay of Pigs, Cuban Missile Crisis, U-2 Incident).
• Information Wars: Yearly investments of hundreds of millions into propaganda. Soviet stereotypes included "godless barbarians" and "warmongers"; Western stereotypes included "greedy pigs" and "exploiters."

Life Under Stalinist Communism

• Property: Elimination of private property and social class.
• Religion: Religion was eliminated as a distraction. The Russian Orthodox Church went underground. Mosques and Qurans were burned, and Jewish communities faced pogroms.
• Women: Social equality opened education and workplace opportunities, though traditional patriarchy and expectations of motherhood remained.
• Corruption: Urban working classes were favored, but rural populations were exploited. Political allies climbed the social ladder quickly, leading to rampant corruption.
• Suppression: Political power was centralized in Stalin. Dissent was not tolerated. State control was enforced by secret police (Cheka, NKVD).
• The Terror: Stalin’s purges killed or imprisoned over $8,000,000$ people. Many were sent to forced labor camps (gulags) in Siberia.
• Environment: Rapid industrialization (completed within two decades) caused widespread ecological damage.

Life Under Maoist Communism

• Similarities to Stalinism: Industrialization, collectivization, command economy, state control of media, and increased literacy/scientific education.
• Differences: Mao was more dedicated to eradicating traditional Chinese culture (Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism). Monasteries were burned, and ideas like filial piety were ridiculed.
• "Speak Bitterness Meetings": Landowners and elites were publicly shamed, stripped of land, and relocated for re-education.
• The Great Leap Forward ($1958$):
      - Focus on rural industrialization and infrastructure.
      - "Four Pests Campaign" caused ecological damage.
      - Homemade steel furnaces were promoted.
      - Famine killed $35,000,000$ people in $3$ years; the program was abandoned in $1961$.
• The Great Cultural Revolution ($1966$):
      - Aimed to destroy traditional society and eliminate enemies (doctors, lawyers, etc.).
      - Red Guards (youth militias) punished older generations.
      - Guidance came from Mao’s "Little Red Book."
      - Violence led Mao to use the army to restore order.

The Fall of Communism and Reform

• Causes of Downfall:
      - Failure to replace traditional culture.
      - Excessive spending on the military and Space Race.
      - Deadlock in heavy industry vs. consumer goods.
      - Resistance to totalitarian methods.
• Collapse of the USSR:
      - Mikhail Gorbachev introduced "glasnost" (openness) and "perestroika" (restructuring) in the $1980s$.
      - Private business and religion were partially allowed; state control over media loosened.
      - In $1989$, communist governments in the Warsaw Pact fell; the Berlin Wall was torn down.
      - In August $1991$, an attempted army coup against Gorbachev failed. The USSR dissolved in the early $90s$.
• Chinese Reforms (Deng Xiaoping):
      - After Mao died in $1976$, Deng allowed privatization, foreign investment, and the re-establishment of traditional culture (Confucius, Buddha).
      - Resulted in unsurpassed economic growth; China became the world’s industrial center.
      - Political Control: Unlike the USSR, the CCP maintained strict control. Democracy was viewed as unstable. The $1989$ demonstrations (Tiananmen Square) were violently crushed.
      - This model created a new precedent: "Totalitarian Capitalism." Only North Korea remained strictly communist.