2. Political authority and government to 1953

Question 1

political high stalinism

Dismantling Wartime Institutions

Answer 1

• Stalin dismantled wartime institutions due to concerns about Party reliability and military reputation.
• State Defence Committee (GO) was dissolved, military hierarchy was downgraded, with Stalin assuming the role of Minister of Defence.

Question 2

political high stalinism

Manipulation of Political Figures

Answer 2

• Stalin played major figures against each other to maintain dominance.
• Andrei Zhdanov challenged Georgi Malenkov’s policies, leading to Malenkov’s demotion and Zhdanov’s rise, but subsequent disagreements resulted in Malenkov’s reinstatement.

Question 3

political high stalinism

Centralization of Power

Answer 3

• ensured personal dominance by holding key positions in government and the Party.
• Regular Party institutions were undermined, with reduced frequency of Party congresses and Central Committee meetings.
• Decision-making was concentrated within Stalin’s inner circle, bypassing formal Party structures.

Question 4

political high stalinism

Party Membership and Recruitment

Answer 4

• Party membership rose to nearly 7 million by 1952, with recruitment mainly from administrative ranks.
• New members lacked ideological commitment, becoming cautious bureaucrats reliant on higher authority.

Question 5

cultral high stalinism

Cultural Purge under Zhdanov

Answer 5

• Andrei Zhdanov initiated cultural purge 1946, emphasizing conformity to socialist ideals and the cult of Stalin.
• Western influence was condemned as bourgeois and decadent, promoting Russian superiority.

Question 6

cultral high stalinism

Impact on Literature and Arts

Answer 6

• Socialist realism became standard in literature, art, music, and film.
• Mikhail Zoshchenko, Anna Akhmatova, Boris Pasternak, and Sergei Prokofiev faced condemnation and censorship for their perceived anti-Soviet works.

Question 7

cultral high stalinism

Scholarship and Intellectual Life

Answer 7

• Scholarship suggesting Western influence on Russian literature was condemned.
• Non-conforming scholarship and scientific theories dismissed,
• Marxist principles governed fields like mathematics, physics, and chemistry.

Question 8

cultral high stalinism

Suppression of Western Influence

Answer 8

• Western influence was blocked through censorship of foreign papers and radio transmissions, limited translation of foreign books, and restricted travel to and from the West.
• Anti-Semitism flourished, and Nazi atrocities were portrayed without mentioning Jews.

Question 9

revival of terror

Stalin’s Paranoia and Isolationism (1947)

Answer 9

• led to excessive isolationism from the non-Soviet world.
• Harsh treatment of returned prisoners-of-war and former army officers intensified.
• Relatives of those who had spent time outside the USSR were considered suspect.

Question 10

revival of terror

Internal Surveillance and Vigilance

Answer 10

• Within USSR, strict vigilance enforced, ensure loyalty.
• Casual contact with foreigners - lead to imprisonment.
• feb 1947 outlawed hotels and marriages to foreigners.

Question 11

revival of terror

Expansion of Security Apparatus (1947)

Answer 11

• Lavrenti Beria’s oversight led to an expansion of the security apparatus.
• NKVD reorganized into the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) and the Ministry of State Security (MGB).

Question 12

revival of terror

Continuation of Repression

Answer 12

• Tens of thousands arrested annually,
• 12 million wartime survivors sent to labor camps under appalling conditions.

Question 13

dealing w/ ‘opposition’

Revisionist Tactics (1948-1952)

Answer 13

• erased opposition figures to eliminate their influence.
• existence was expunged from historical records and publications.
• manipulated photography to airbrush and alter images of disgraced Bolsheviks.
• Altered images widespread

Question 14

dealing w/ ‘opposition’

The Leningrad Case, 1949

Answer 14

• 1949, Stalin targeted Leningrad party for perceived independence.
• Several leading officials, including Voznesensky, were falsely accused and arrested.
• After Stalin’s death, discovered four of those arrested, including Voznesensky, were executed.

Question 15

dealing w/ ‘opposition’

Anti-Semitism

Answer 15

• Initially favoring Jewish state in Palestine, Stalin reversed his stance when Israel aligned with the USA.
• became increasingly anti-Semitic, viewing Soviet Jews as potential enemies.
• Solomon Mikhoels, director of the Jewish theatre in Moscow, was likely assassinated by the MVD in 1948.
• campaign against anti-patriotic groups launched

Question 16

dealing w/ ‘opposition’

The Mingrelian Case (Georgian Purge), 1951-52

Answer 16

• 1951, purge targeted Lavrenti Beria’s followers in Georgia, accusing - collaboration with Western powers.
• aimed to weaken Beria’s authority and had anti-Semitic undertones.
• ongoing at Stalin’s death

Question 17

dealing w/ ‘opposition’

The Doctors’ Plot, 1952

Answer 17

• 1948, Lydia Timashuk, a doctor and part-time MGB informer, accused nine doctors of failing to diagnose and treat Zhdanov professionally.
  Stalin reopened the case in 1952, accusing the doctors of a Zionist conspiracy to murder Soviet leaders.
• alleged Jews, used medical positions to harm the USSR.
• doctors were arrested and tortured, and deported to remote regions.
• nine doctors were sentenced to execution, but Stalin’s death halted their fate

Question 18

cult of personality after 1945

Answer 18

• Stalin’s mild stroke in 1946 potentially worsened his paranoia.
• elevated to a god-like status, portrayed as Russia’s ultimate savior.
• media depicted him as a genius in all spheres.
• Towns competed to incorporate Stalin’s name, showcasing his omnipresence.
• Stalin’s photos were edited to remove imperfections, enhancing his portrayal.
• Standardized statues were produced to propagate his image.

Question 19

power vacum after stalins death

Stalin’s Decline

Answer 19

• health deteriorated, spending time on leisure activities.
• made no efforts to designate a successor, leaving a leadership vacuum.

Question 20

power vacum after stalin death

Party Congress and Uncertainty

Answer 20

• oct 1952, Party congress was convened, where Malenkov and Khrushchev delivered key speeches.
• Stalin’s request to step down as Party Secretary was denied, leaving delegates unsure of his intentions

Question 21

Political Instability After Stalin

Answer 21

• Stalin’s death in March 1953 plunged the nation into political uncertainty.
• Hysterical public mourning contrasted with an ongoing power struggle