History Chapter 2 Rise of Stalin Content Page

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Background information for Stalin’s Soviet Union

1. Abdication of the Tsar
a. Russia joined WW1 to support serbia and suffered
b. People lost confidence in the Tsar
2. Provisional Government
a. Economic and Political problems
b. Government allowed popular discontentment and unhappiness to be expressed
c. Strikes seized control of the lands and factories
3. February Revolution
a. Social unrest
b. What the soviets wanted
4. October Revolution
a. Peasants on strike >>:(
b. Bolsheviks(Reds) VS Whites
5. Civil War
a. Why did the Bolsheviks win?

How did Stalin rise to power?

What was communist Russia like under Lenin?

1. Establishment of the USSR
a. Central bureaucracy
b. Important posts were taken up by members of communist party of the Soviet Union
c. Full control over society and economy
2. Measures to enforce dictatorship
a. Closure of democratic constitution assembly (free speech)
b. Formation of the Cheka (NKVD)
c. Banned opposition party
d. Controlled media
e. Banned newspapers that criticised the revolution

Reasons for the rise of Stalin

1. Non-disclosure of Lenin’s testament
a. Trotsky → big threat
b. Troika alliance
2. Trotsky’s unpopularity in the Politburo
a. Lenin’s right-hand man
b. Enemies have material to attack him with
c. Permanent revolution
3. Stalin’s manipulations
 a. Pretended to be close to Lenin
b. Control over Party Organisation
i. Secretary general
ii. Chief editor of Pravda
iii. Stalin gained control of the Cheka
c. Exploitation of ideological divisions
i. Pretended to be close to Lenin
ii. Control over the organisation
iii. Exploitation of ideologies (Moderates VS Radicals)

Impact of Stalin’s rule

Economic impact of Stalin’s rule on the Soviet Union

1. Collectivisation
a. Great Famine (1932-1933)
2. Rapid industrialisation
3. Evaluation of the five-year plans (PLAN 1)
a. Little growth in consumer industries
b. Excess and shortage
4. Evaluation of the five-year plans (PLAN 2&3)

Political Impact of Stalin’s rule on the Soviet Union

1. Background information
a. Unstable russian society
b. Opposition to the Stalin’s leadership
2. The Great Terror (1934 - 1938)
a. Kirov affair
3. Purges and show trials I
a. Purges of Leningrad party
4. Purges and show trials II
a. Sus of the red army (bcs of Trotsky’s connections)
b. Officials were accused of treason
5. Arrests and Interrogations
a. People forced to turn against their friends and family
b. Nobody dared to challenge him
6. Loss of intellectual, skilled workers and officer
a. Engineers, Scientists
b. Administrators
c. Military personnel
7. Propaganda: cult of the leader
a. Used propaganda to build profile
b. Soviet Realism
c. Credited the success of the USSR to Stalin
Social Impact of Stalin’s rule on the Soviet Union (NEGATIVE)
1. State control of society
a. No more private industries
b. Members of working class were given preferential treatment
c. Long queues
2. Falling standard of living
a. Housing (due to industrialisation)
b. Long hours
3. Famine
a. Ambitious 5YP
b. Food was not given to the factory workers
4. Lack of consumer goods
a. 1st 5YP → agricultural and industrial
b. 2nd 5YP → Stalin did not care about the welfare of the people
c. 3rd 5YP→ promised to produce more “luxury” goods
5. Living in fear
a. Fear of secret police
b. Constantly being watched and judged
c. Consequences of being noticed for the wrong reasons
6. Impact of policies on various social groups (Minority republics)
a. Loss the autonomy within the USSR
b. Language was governed by their own government
c. Modernisation + industrialisation >> cultural traditions
d. Effects that Soviet Russia felt under Stalin's policies were also felt in minority republics

Social Impact of Stalin’s rule on the Soviet Union (POSITIVE)

1. Creating the ‘New Soviet Man’
a. Launched a cultural revolution
b. Stakhanovism
2. Women’s entry into the workforce
a. Legalising abortion and divorce
b. State-controlled childcare centres
3. Compulsory schooling and increased literacy rates
a. Males: 40 - 94%
b. Females 14 -65%
c. Komsomol and Young Pioneers
d. Schools and unis advocated vocational education
 Background information for Stalin’s Soviet Union 1917

1. Abdication of the Tsar (15 March 1917)

a. During the winter
b. Russia joined WW1 to support serbia and suffered
i. Soldiers were badly trained + ill equipped → not prepared for war
ii. Tsar Nicholas II (chief commander) was blamed for Russia’s poor performance
c. Poor economic conditions
d. Live and work in poor conditions
e. People lost confidence in the Tsar → causing him to abdicate

2. Provisional government
a. Temporary government
b. Only leader is changed → other party members stay the same
c. Continued popular discontent and unrest because of
i. Economic and Political problems persisted
1. Did not pull Russia out of the war during WW1
2. Slow land reforms due to the power holder’s vested interest
a. The former land owners did not want to give up their land
ii. Government allowed popular discontentment and unhappiness to be expressed
1. Strikes from workers/peasants/soldiers
a. Allowed free speech, which was a negative liberty
i. Free speech = make country more unstable and chaotic
b. Freed political prisoners (communist leaders)
i. Under the Tsar, Russia wasn’t communist
iii. Strikes seized control of the lands and factories

3. February Revolution (Feb 1917)

a. Workers went on strikes
b. Social unrest → Tsar abdicated
i. Tsar → Bolsheviks
ii. Soldiers/peasants/workers → Soviets
c. What the soviets wanted:
i. More political rights
ii. A say in the decision-making
iii. Were motivated by the ideology of communism
d. Bolsheviks executed the Tsar family in July 1918
4. October Revolution (25 Oct 1917)
a. Were facing Political and Economic problems
i. Peasants went on strike
b. Bolsheviks (Reds) VS Whites
i. Lead by Vladimir Lenin
ii. Trotsky
iii. Stalin (Chief editor of Pravda → propaganda newspaper)
1. Wanted more political rights and power
2. Stormed the winter palace and overthrew the government

5. Civil War (Jan 1918)

a. Bolsheviks won
b. Despite setting up a government, the Bolsheviks did not gain control of the whole country
i. Anti-communist (“whites”)
1. Wealthy landowners
2. Military officers unhappy with the TOBL
3. People who supported the Tsar (Monarchists)
4. Whites were supported by the British and French → capitalist countries
c. Why?
i. Greater unity and military strength
ii. Had strong support from peasants
 What was communist Russia like under Lenin?

1. Establishment of the USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics)

a. Established in 1922
b. One party per state rule
c. Beginning of an authoritarian rule
i. Consolidation of authoritarian gov from 1917-1924
1. Central bureaucracy: One-party gov.
2. Important posts were taken up by members of communist party of the
Soviet Union
3. Full control over society and economy

2. Measures to enforce dictatorship

d. Closure of democratic constituent assembly
i. Allows only party members to select future leaders
ii. Public cannot select anymore
e. Formation of Cheka → Secret Police
i. Anyone who criticised the government will be brainwashed by the Cheka
f. Banned opposition parties → Arrested members
i. Instil fear in the public
ii. Prevented people from having opinions against the gov
iii. Garner more support from public
g. Controlled media through Pravda
h. Banned newspapers that criticised the revolution
 Reasons for the rise of Stalin

1. Non-disclosure of Lenin’s testament

a. Lenin made it clear to remove Stalin’s position as Secretary-general
b. Trotsky → seen as a big threat
i. Powerful personality
ii. Close connections to the army ( see Purges and show trials II )
c. Troika alliance
i. Stalin teamed up with Kamenev and Zinoviev against Trotsky

2. Trotsky’s unpopularity
a. Lenin’s right-hand man
b. Leader of the Red Army
i. Led the overthrow of the provisional government
ii. Support from the military → gave Trotsky power
c. Enemies had material to attack him with
i. Outspoken man
ii. Often argued with Lenin
1. Eg: Criticised the new economic policy (NEP)
2. People thought that this openly challenged the organisation’s policies
3. Act of disloyalty against Lenin
d. Permanent revolution
i. Wanted to promote revolutions around the world → failed :( L Trotsky
ii. Stalin wanted ‘socialism in one country’
1. Needed to strengthen the soviet union before moving on the other
countries
2. Stalin made sure that other party members with on board with his idea
3. Cleverly made it seem like Trotsky was swaying away from the party’s
policy
4. RESULT: Trotsky’s credibility was negatively affected

e. Trotsky fell ill :( L Trotsky

i. Trotsky → ill → too weak to organise his own supporters
1. Trotsky’s support based diminished because Stalin replaced T
supporters with S supporters
ii. Chose to remain silent on Lenin’s criticism of Stalin
1. Couldn't make it on time to Lenin’s funeral
2. Didn't want to seem defensive = more guilty
iii. Unable to deal with party politics → party began to exclude him from decision
making
1. Undermined his position in the party
 Stalin’s manipulations

1. Pretended to be close to Lenin → when Lenin died…

a. Gave the public an impression that Stalin was trusted by Lenin
b. Made it a grand affair
i. Established himself as chief mourner → deeply sorrowful
ii. Gave a funeral speech

👀
iii. Renamed Petrograd to Leningrad in tribute of Lenin
c. In the eyes of the public: thought Stalin was gg to be the next leader

2. Control over the party organisation

a. Secretary-general
i. Job scope: Appoint and reassign party members
ii. Replaced the Trotsky supporters in the party with Stalin supporters
iii. EFFECT: Stalin supporters would be loyal to Stalin
1. They feel indebted to Stalin for hiring them
2. Thus, Stalin will have more influence
iv. Trotsky had less supporters → Allow Stalin to have a upper-hand
b. Chief editor of Pravda (propaganda newspaper)
i. Wrote positive things about Stalin
ii. Wrote degrading things about his political opponents
iii. EFFECT: Stalin had more support from public → More influence
c. Stalin gained control of the Cheka (NKVD)
i. Trotsky’s support base shrank
ii. Trotsky’s reputation destroyed
iii. Forced to resign

3. Exploitation of the ideological divisions

a. MODERATES
i. Communist and followed Lenin’s leadership
b. RADICALS
i. Formed new ideas
ii. Challenged the NEP
c. STEP 1: Remove Trotsky
i. Stalin allied himself with the moderates
ii. Saw Trotsky as a radical
1. eg: he criticised the NEP during Lenin's rule
iii. Trotsky = expelled
d. STEP 2: Isolated Kamenev and Zinoviev
i. Broke up the troika alliance
ii. Convinced the moderates that K&Z were plotting with Trotsky
iii. K&Z = expelled
e. STEP 3: Attack Bukharin and Rykov
i. Switched over to the radicals
 ii. B&R were moderates → attacked Stalin for rapid industrialisation and
central control of the economy
1. Stalin was in control of the imports and exports
2. Prioritised exporting out all his food in order to import
machinery (industrialisation plans)
iii. Whole politburo sided with Stalin
1. bcs stalin hired his supporters --> gratitude to stalin --> were
loyal to him
iv. B&K = expelled

Stalin switched sides whenever it was convenient

 Economic impact of Stalin’s rule in the Soviet Union L Stalin

1. Collectivisation
a. Opposite of the NEP
i. Aims: Larger units of land can be formed more efficiently
ii. Through mechanisation
1. Eg: Use of tractors
b. Everyone’s plot of land is owned by the government → gov redistributes the food
c. RESULTS:
i. No more Kolkhozy (Rich peasants) :(
ii. Many peasants killed their own animals, burnt their grain and produce/hid or
buried it → prevent them from being taken over by the state
iii. Peasants left countryside → More manpower for factories
iv. Soviet agricultural sector was greatly hampered
1. Bad harvest contributed to the great famine (1932-1933)
a. Death of million of peasants
2. State managed to collect grain it needed to feed the industrial towns and
export them to buy industrial equipment
3. Took until 1950s to restore the agricultural yield to the 1928 state
v. Stalin viewed the policy as a great success and publicised as such

2. Rapid industrialisation (Five-year-plans)

a. Rationale: Rapidly industrialise the country
b. Produce more mechanisation for farmers
i. Less farmers needed
ii. Produce more food to supply to factories and cities
c. Emphasis placed on development of heavy industries (second and third five-year plan)
i. Coal
ii. Iron
iii. Steel
iv. Electricity
d. RESULT: New factories were built → industry expanded

3. Evaluation of five-year-plans (PLAN 1)

a. Generally a success because it managed to propel the Soviet Union forward
b. Targets were not met
i. little growth in consumer industries
1. Woollen textiles
2. House building
ii. Had poor planning and coordination
c. Some industries had a shortage while some had an excess
i. Excess → waste produced
ii. Poor quality/hazardous → in a haste to meet the
five-year plan
4. Evaluation of five-year-plans (PLAN 2&3)
a. Focused on heavy industries
i. Coal
ii. Steel
iii. Oil
iv. Electricity
b. Declining state of growth → Emphasis placed on taking stock of production + better
coordination & planning
i. After 1937, USSR saw an economic decline/slowdown → oil, coal … stopped
growing
1. Decided that they want to put more emphasis on planning and
coordination
2. Cannot spam produce LOL
c. Gave priority to military production → Stalin thought there was gg to be another war
i. Moved the military factories to the Ural mountains → out of reach to invaders
d. Transport & communication networks improved
i. Army can move swiftly
e. Germany invaded the USSR
i. All the resources were focused on defeating Germans
 Political impacts of Stalin’s rule

1. Background information
a. 1933
i. Communist party → unpopular
ii. Russian society → unstable
1. Due to:
a. Forced collectivisation
b. Harsh treatment during rapid industrialisation
c. Therefore, strained the relationship between party and people
iii. Central party
1. difficulties getting local party secretaries to meet high grain collection
targets
b. 1930
i. Opposition to Stalin’s leadership (even within Politburo)
1. 1932: Ryutin affair
2. Ryutin circulated to the central committee a 200-page essay criticising
Stalin’s dictatorship
3. Urged for Stalin’s removal
4. Stalin was unable to impose a death penalty as members of Politburo
opposed him

2. The Great Terror (1934 - 1938)

a. Stalin enforce discipline in the country
i. Purges and repression
ii. Remove domestic opposition of the Soviet government
b. Trials → Arrests → Interrogations
c. Kirov affair/murder
i. Widespread conspiracy against the Soviet Government and leaders
ii. Kirov → head of party organisation in Leningrad
iii. Was a potential alternate candidate for Stalin’s position (as sec-gen)
iv. Was assassinated before any actions could be taken
v. Stalin took advantage of this opportunity to eliminate his political opponents

3. Purges and show trials I (Purges of Leningrad party)

a. Extensive purge of the Leningrad party
b. Thousands were accused of being Trotsky supporters
i. Were involved in the plot to murder Kirov and other communist leaders
c. Zinoviev, Kiminev and Bukharin were accused of conspiring with Trotsky to overthrow
the government
d. Many had to confess to crimes they did not commit
i. After being tortured / having their families threatened
4. Purges and show trials II (Stalin being paranoid)
a. Suspicious Red army (because Trotsky had close connections to it)
i. Trotsky had been in charge of it → gained their respect + confidence after
Trotsky led them to victory in the civil war
ii. Stalin needed an army that was loyal to him (L Stalin was paranoid)
1. High-ranking officials in the army were accused of treason
2. Replaced officials with inexperienced younger ones
a. They owed their promotion to Stalin
b. Thus, Stalin was assured of their loyalty
c. Did not have to worry about them having an uprising

5. Arrest and Interrogations

a. Many people were forced to turn against their friends and family who opposed Stalin
b. They were either
i. Killed on the spot
ii. Sent to labour camps
c. Many of those who were forced to the camps died from
i. Overwork
ii. Poor living conditions
iii. Ill treatment
d. Stalin became very powerful
i. Nobody dared to oppose/challenge him
ii. Prevailing atmosphere of fear

6. Loss of Intellectuals
a. Examples of groups of people that Stalin purged

Engineers, Scientists Administrators Military

1. Loss of vital workers for the
5YP
2. Loss of skilled professionals
3. Factories produced
poor-quality goods → Faulty
bridges
1. Loss of skilled 1. Loss of experienced military
administrators commanders and officers
2. Poor management 2. No strong leadership +
within the Politburo Inexperienced soldiers
due to the lack of 3. Negatively affected the
personnel preparation for WWII

7. Propaganda: Cult of the leader

a. Used propaganda to build up his profile as the rightful successor of Lenin
i. Like the Tsars before him, he claimed to be a father to his people
b. Soviet Realism
i. Intimidated artists drew Stalin wearing ordinary clothes
ii. Retained the modest title of “secretary general”
c. Posters were hung up everywhere → Classrooms and factories
i. The success of the USSR was credited upon Stalin
 Social Impact of Stalin’s rule on the Soviet Union (NEGATIVE)

1. State control of society

a. No more private industries
i. Gov became only legal distributor of goods
b. Types of services that were determined by the gov
i. Education
ii. Housing
iii. Health services
iv. An individual’s vacation
c. Members of the working class/politburo were given preferential treatment
d. Long queues
i. Demand for food > supply that the government could supply

2. Fall in standard of living (Housing shortage)

a. Industrialisation → move to cities for work opportunities
i. Increase in population → housing shortage
b. People not allowed to buy/build their own house OR purchase land → gov decided their
accommodation for them
i. Often put people in cramped places
ii. Bad sanitation
iii. Overcrowded cities

3. Fall in standard of living (Long hours)

a. 5YP → work long hours to meet quota
b. Long hours, little pay
i. Overworked, not fairly paid

Thus, the housing shortage and long working hours led to a steady fall in the standard of living
 Social Impact of Stalin’s rule on the Soviet Union (NEGATIVE)

4. Famine
a. Ambitious 5YP → Collected food at the expense of the farmers
i. Most of the food that the farmers tried to hide was taken by the party
b. Most of the food was not given to the factory workers
i. They were exported → invest in industry machinery and development
c. Famine until 1934
i. 7Million peasants died due to extreme shortage of food

5. Lack of consumer goods

a. Consumer goods (ie)
i. Chairs
ii. Textiles
iii. Sugar
b. 1st 5YP → focused on agricultural and industrial targets
c. 2nd 5YP → Stalin did not care about the welfare of the people → driven to achieve the
target of the 5YP instead
d. 3rd 5YP→ promised to produce more “luxury” goods
i. Did not keep promise
ii. WWII in September 1939 → Focus on producing military equipment

6. Living in fear
a. Fear of the secret police (they were everywhere)
i. Any anti-stalin sentiment → arrest
b. Constantly being watched and judged
i. If judged poorly, more difficult to find:
1. Housing
2. Jobs
3. Vacations
ii. If one stood out for wrong reasons, one might:
1. Sent to labour camps
2. Or killed
3. (Especially so during great terror 1934-1938)

7. Impact of policies on various social groups (Minority nationalities)

a. Minority republics(smaller states) of the former Russian empire lost their autonomy
with the creation of the soviet union
i. They did not have a say in how their country was being run
b. Although minority republics were allowed to use their own language, the language was
governed by their own government
i. ie: Government decided what was the “common language”
c. Stalin believed that modernisation + industrialisation >> cultural traditions
d. RESULT: Same effects that Soviet Russia felt under Stalin's policies were also felt in
minority republics
i. Many members of nationalist groups in minority groups that advocated autonomy
for themselves were among those targeted in the great terror.
ii. Speculated: In Ukraine→ millions of deaths during the great famine
(1932-1933) was a deliberate attempt to attack Ukraine nationalism
 Social Impact of Stalin’s rule on the Soviet Union (POSITIVE)

1. Creating the “New Soviet Man”

a. Launched a Cultural Revolution (1929-1931)
i. Attack on intellectuals, privileged class, artists, religious leaders to move the
soviet union to a more proletarian society
1. Stalin was paranoid that they had the potential to go against the gov
b. Stakhanovism (Creation of the “New Soviet Man”)
i. The state upheld achievements of supposedly ordinary people (ie teachers,
miners) → reality: they had connections with the Politburo
1. At first: People were motivated to exceed their industrial targets
2. After: Enthusiasm wared away
ii. Pressure to live up to the state’s standards
1. Negative psychological impact
2. Many people grew pessimistic and disgruntled with the 5YP

2. Women’s entry into the workforce

a. Russia legalised abortion and divorce
i. Women could have more control over their own lives
ii. Without interference from their husbands
b. Implementation of state-run child cares
1. Enabled women to work in factories
2. Many places were poorly maintained
ii. 1936 → abortion was illegal → to ‘protect motherhood and childhood” >:(

3. Compulsory schooling and increased literacy rates

a. Before revolution:
i. Only 40% of males were literate
b. After revolution (1939)
i. 94% of males were literate
ii. Women’s literacy from 13% to 65%

4. Compulsory schooling and increased literacy rates

a. School attendance was compulsory
b. Every child was entitled to 9 years of FREE education
i. Education system was loaded with propaganda
ii. Emphasised on communism and atheism
c. Stalin → father of the people
i. Teenagers were encouraged to join Komsomol (communist union of youth)
1. Indoctrinated them to be loyal to Stalin and the Communist Party
2. Many of them were promoted to prominent party positions
ii. Children (aged 10-15) were encouraged to join the Young Pioneers
 1. Sent to work on political campaigns or collective farms and industries
d. Schools and universities emphasised technical education
i. Meet national industrial targets
ii. Literacy rate → Further the interest of the communist party
1. He needed intellectual people running the Politburo