agricultural and social developments in the countryside Flashcards
what was the great turn?
a policy shift where Stalin defeated the bukharinists + consolidated dictatorial power over the party, enforcing revolution changes to the soviet economy
what was voluntary after 1929?
collectivisation
how were peasants forced into collective farms after 1929?
campaign of intimidation -> kulaks targeted as Stalin announced they would be annihilated as a class
what methods were used to enforce collectivisation?
- expansion of the urals-siberian method: enforced in may 1929 across almost all grain producing regions of the ussr
- help from poorest peasants: local party officials called on them to help identify kulaks, poorest peasants had the most to gain from collective farm they would be able to use richer peasants land, livestock etc
- help from party activists: nov 1929, 25,000 activity were sent into the country side to help dekulakisation, officially sent to promote benefits of collective farms but in reality they searched households for hidden grain + tried to round up kulaks
- a mixture of propaganda + fear: people who resisted joining collective farms were likely to be classed as kulaks too
process of collectivisation 1929
only 5% of farms were voluntarily collectivised
during the year 15% of peasant households identified as kulaks, those who weren’t shot by OGPU for ‘terrorism’ were forced into exile in Siberia. in 1929, 150,000 kulak families were deported to Siberia.
process of collectivisation 1930
march - Stalin announced 50% of peasant farms had bee collectivised, he also criticised local party officials for their overzealousness + allowed brief return to voluntary membership of collective farms
oct - return to this meant no.s had dropped + only 20% were still collectivised
process of collectivisation 1931
once spring crop had been sown in 1931, collectivisation was enforced again
when were all farms collectivised?
1941
what was the ideal type of farm for a communist purist?
sovkhoz, a state owned farm where they were paid a fixed wage
what are kolkhozes
created by combining small, individual farms together
from farms that already existed
consisted of around 75 families living in one village
paid by dividing any farm earnings by the no. of labour days they contributed to
communal fields in which everyone worked but members also allowed small private plots to farm
what are sovkozes
created on land confiscated from tsarist era, large seats + owned + run by the state
members recruited from landless rural labourers, often housed in barracks
members classified as workers not peasants + paid a wage for their work
organised for large scale production on industrial lines
viewed as ideal for of socialist farming
what are the similarities between kolkhozes + sovkozes?
- both required to meet high quotas set by the state
- price set for quotas was low, meant industrial workers fed cheaply + state could make profits on exporting grain in order to finance industrialisation
- after 1932 both were restricted by internal passports to stop them leaving
what were machine tractor stations?
set up from 1931, these hired out tractors + machinery to collective + state farms
advantages of MTS?
- provided mechanisation + expertise to modernise farming
- tractors were the main focus, by 1933 there were 75,000 Mts tractors
- mechanisation reduced peasant labour, they could go become industrial workers
disadvantages of MTS?
- far more farms than MTS by 1940 one MTS foe every 40 farms
- tractor hire price were high bc state was squeezing farm for money
- efficiency only improved in some places bc machines often only completed part of the process
what was the impact of collectivisation on the famine 1932-1934
many regions experienced a drought in 1931, esp Ukraine,
famine spread, the govt continued to demand grain quotas + were met despite drops in production.
estimated 6-8mill died
what was the impact of collectivisation on kulaks + other peasants
- widespread violent opposition, many peasants killed their livestock + destroyed their machines as they feared they’d be branded as kulaks if they kept them
- armed forces were brutal to the unrest, burning down villages + deported those who resisted
- deported peasants often exiled to Siberia to labour camps, 1000s died in harsh conditions which were run by OGPU. 10 million deported as kulaks under Stalin
- farmers struggled to cover cost of production as state prices high let alone share profits among other members.
- may of those who could leave, did - by 1939 about 19 million peasants had migrated to towns + cities
why did collectivisation fail in increasing agricultural production?
- loss of most successful + knowledgable peasant farmers through dekulakisation
- destruction of the USSR’s livestock in herds in opposition to collectivisation
- poor organisation of many farmers
- lack of incentive for kolkhozniks to produce more grain
evidence that increasing agricultural production failed
- during period of peasant opposition production fell massively, 1933 harvest was 9 mill tonnes less than 1927
- grain output did not exceed pre-collectivisation levels until after 1935
- livestock no.s fell by 25-30% during collectivisation + did not recover until 1953
how was collectivisation successful in achieving social aims?
- put farming completely under state control, no opportunity for farmers to hold back grain in order to benefit from higher prices
- capitalisation eradicated in countryside except for peasants privately owned plots
- money from grain exports funded industrialisation + poor contains fuelled migration to the cities ( urban pop. inc from 22 mill to 63 mill)
how was collectivisation a failure in achieving social aims?
- living standards fell in both urban + rural areas, towns + cities wages fell
- famine killed approximately 6-8mill, huge social cost
how was consolidating Stalins position a success due to collectivisation?
- ussr succeeded in its aim of exporting more grain ( rose from 30,000 tonnes in 1928 to 5 mill in 1931) -> provided investment for industrialisation + justified Stalins great turn away from NEP
- party agreed with Stalin that peasant ophpostio was acc class war - kulak counter-rev terrorism -> needed to be exterminated
- collectivisation allowed regime to extend political control to countryside
