Chapter 13: The Political And Economic Condition Of The Satellite States Of Central Europe

Question 1

How many satellite sates where there ?

Answer 1

7

Question 2

Name all the satellite states ?

Answer 2

Albania, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, East Germany, Czechoslovakia

Question 3

Why did the west name them satellites ?

Answer 3

In the west they were called satellites no because they clung closely to the Soviet Union like satellites round a planet

Question 4

What did the creation of the satellite heighten ?

Answer 4

They heightened a feeling in the west that Stalin intended to spread communism known as the Red Scare

Question 5

What did the satellite states provide ?

Answer 5

• gave them a buffer zone between themselves and a hostile west
  -gained large territory with which they could trade
  -it enhanced their power and in theory strengthened communism
  -east Germany and Berlin in particular became symbols of the struggle between the two superpowers for supremacy

Question 6

What methods were used to invade and establish communist rule in the satellite states ?

Answer 6

-fear of oppression such are arresting e.g Poland
-abolish monarchy and replace it with a communist rule e.g Bulgaria
-communist government winning elections

Question 7

What eventually led to the collapse of the wider soviet empire ?

Answer 7

-glasnost
-Gorbachev reforms
-unrest

Question 8

What could be the advantages and disadvantages of the creation of satellite sates for the USSR ?

Answer 8

Adv: it helped the USSR to have a buffer zone in case of war with the west (protection
-trade, preserve communism
Dis: led to more fuel and tensions with America and needed to ensure communism was in place

Question 9

How was the leadership and organisation in Poland ?

Answer 9

• leaders in Poland had modelled themselves on Stalin including carrying out purges of suspected political opponents
  -Stalin death left them unsure how to position themselves especially once Khrushchev began his process of de-stalinisation

Question 10

How was the communist part and political control in Poland ?

Answer 10

• the polish communist party was called the PUWP (polish united workers party) and created a party that fully supported the Soviet Union

Question 11

How was the economic organisation and industry ?

Answer 11

-Sovietisation= the rapid industrialisation of Poland and an attempt to collectivise polish peasents
-industrialisation had failed to deliver what the workers had failed to deliver what the workers had been promised, made to work long hours in often unsafe conditions
-lived in crowded, insanitary conditions and food was poor with short supply
-1956 there were strokes and riots by 100,000 polish workers protesting for better working conditions

Question 12

Strengths of polish economy ?

Answer 12

-Poland has valuable raw materials and industrial potential
-by 1955 collective farms had covered around 9% of Polands farmland
-in 1953 the party began offering financial rewards to collectivise which had a more positive response
-under Gomulka, plan targets were increased,work norms were raised and wages failed to keep pace with increased production

Question 13

Weaknesses of the polish economy ?

Answer 13

-following the Stalinist model investment was focused of heavy industry and on steel production
-growing discontent of workers
-gomulka ignored the new calls for introduction of market pricing rather than state controlled pricing and for private businesses to be allowed again in June and kept following the soviet model
-Poland only supplied to the USSR therefore was limited in other areas of foreign trade
-by 1959 only 1% of arable land was collective farm land

Question 14

How was the leadership and organisation in Czechoslovakia ?

Answer 14

-Antonin Josef Novotńy was first secretary of communist party called the CPCz, selected by the Comintern for development as leader
-novotny was a hardline Stalinist with the full backing of the Soviet leadership
-CPCz shared powers in theory with 5 other political parties, united under that national font organisation
-played a leading role in the coup which brought the CPCz to power in 1948

Question 15

How was the communist part and political control in Czechoslovakia?

Answer 15

-largely resisted pressure for reform with the CPCz and novotny involved in show trials and purges in the CPCz during the 1950s and was unwilling to pursuer de-stalinisation
-by 1960 there was 9000 political prisoner in Czechoslovakia
-ruled over the entire country with the separate of Slovak communist party subordinate to it
-deviationist had been purged in in 1952 following Stalin split with Yugoslavia and soviet concerns over satellite states straying from the proper paths to socialism
-11 reformist from the CPCz including general secretary Slansky were executed in 1952 after a show trials
-widespread arrest and interrogation led to many people being executed or imprisoned

Question 16

How was the economic organisation and industry in Czechoslovakia ?

Answer 16

-deeply dependent on exports of high quality metal work machinery and consumer products, it was on the world largest manufacturing economies, despite it relative small size and low level of natural resources
-Czechoslovakia was relatively quick to adopt collectivisation with 43% of farmland collectivised by 1953
-Czechoslovakia was Eastern Europe most industrialist country and had a long history of farming collectives and industries were already geared for supplying the fertiliser that made collective farming more productive

Question 17

Strengths of the Czechoslovak economy ?

Answer 17

-Czechoslovakia has been highly dependent on exports of high quality, metal work, machinery and consumer products
- Czechoslovakia was on of the world largest manufacturing economic despite its relatively small size and low level of natural resources
-Czechoslovakia was relatively quick to adapt to collectivisation with 43% of farmland collectivised by 1953, full collectivisation was achieved by 1960
-Czechoslovakia was Eastern Europe more industrialised country and had a long history of farming collective

Question 18

Weaknesses of the Czechoslovak economy ?

Answer 18

-with Sovietisation industries were nationalised, management was replaced with party appointees and all productions was centred around central planning
-as a result of Sovietisation trade to other satellites states and the USSR increased, with the USSR requiring favourable prices, but trade with the west was drastically cut
-growth was initially promising 7% on average between 1956 to 1960 but by the end of the 1950s, stagnation had set in and national income declined by 1963
-Czechoslovakia previous industrial success depended on foreign trade, specialisation and highly skilled workers, the centrally planned approach did not fit well with this legacy as there was no incentive to innovate
-without access to western markets the industries in Czechoslovakia fell behind technologically, by the late 1960s, economist in Czechoslovakia were pushing for decentralisation

Question 19

What was the Sejm? Did this make Poland any more democratic as a satellite?

Answer 19

• Sejm = polish legislature it included representative from more than one part but all parties belonged to the front national unity and were allied to the PUWP

Question 20

What was the role of the Catholic Church in Poland ?

Answer 20

-hugely important which reduce the influence of the PUWP as the church leaders and the pope were alternated leadership figure but also religion was a very important thing in Poland

Question 21

How was the organisation and leadership in Hungary ?

Answer 21

-raky was selected leader as the USSR first general secretary of the Hungarian communist party in 1945 his leadership was modelled on Stalin and described himself as Stalin best pupil
-the death of Stalin meant problems for Stalin best pupil, new soviet leadership was concerned that his harsh leadership would lead to discontent and insisted to appoint the reformist Imre Nagy as premier in a collective leadership
-he was responsible for significant land reform in Hungary and his role in the 1956 Hungarian revolution means he is now considered a national hero in Hungary
-Rakois complied but then did utmost to undermine Nagy’s calls for more economic and political freedom, succeeded in getting Nagy replaced by fellows hardline Erno Gero
-following Khrushchev secrect speech in 1956 the USSR had put pressure on the Hungarian communist party MSzP to replace Rakois as leader with Gero
-Gero leadership only lasted three month with the soviet leadership forcing him to resign after he made an ill-judged hardline speech on the second day of the Hungarian revolution of October 1956

Question 22

How was the communist party and political in Hungary ?

Answer 22

-once consolidating one-party rule in Hungary in 1948 he set about purging possible political opponents
-by 1956, some 350,000 Hungarians had been imprisoned and over 2000 executed
-Nagy first attempt to restore order but then backed the uprising calling for Hungary to leave the Warsaw pact but after the events he was excuted after a secret trial in June 1958
-once Hungary was under Soviet control Janos jozsef kadar was chosen to be the new general secretary and premier
-the MSzp the Hungarian socialist worker party was organised in a similar way to communist parties in all the other satellite states with a national front style organisation called the independent democratic font
-the fact that in the second world war Hungary had been ally of Germany meant they were treated badly, this meant that there was little enthusiasm for the communist party
-in free election of 1945 the communist only got 17% of the vote therefore the communist used elimination of the opposition called salami tactics by Rakois as he removed the opposition slice by slice brought the party to power
-by 1956 popular discontent with the party fuelled the Hungarian revolution

Question 23

Strength of the Hungarian economy

Answer 23

-Nagy new course of 1953 included more investment in light industry and agriculture: a 15% wage increase, an end to persecution of kulaks and allowing some small private businesses to
-soviet style nationalism transformed Hungary economy in return the USSR supplied Hungary with around half its energy supplies which led to the building of 2700km long pipeline to supply Hungary with natural gas

Question 24

Weaknesses of the Hungarian economy

Answer 24

-Hungary had been a primarily agricultural country with little heavy industry before the war, its relative lack of natural resource made it reliant on foreign trade
-the war had done a huge damage to the country and it had lost 40% of its pre war GDP, the Soviet Union also demanded it paid reparations and a million Hungarians were POW’s for many years after the war
-in 1948 collectivisation took all this away and was strongly resisted by the peasantry
-collective farms were forced to sell their produce at very low prices
-raids took place to find where people were hiding their grain, peasant were sent to labour camps
-by 1956 a third of all farming area of Hungary had been collectivised when 1956 Hungarian revolution nearly delivered the project
-the creation of central planning resulted in the creation of facilities that made no sense e.g a huge steel factory and town for steelworkers when Hungary did not possess these materials
-Nagy experiment was judged a failure by the USSR leadership, used this against him to remove him from the party

Question 25

How was the leadership and organisation in East Germany ?

Answer 25

-Walter Ulbritch became party secretary in 19540 and dominated politics in the GDR until 1971
-Stalin had thought highly of him having a direct hand in his promotion
-the SED was organised as the model of the CPSU
-the volkskammer ( GDR legislature) was made up of elected representatives from several different parties including the SED
-these parties had to give full support to the SED, voting as the SED directed, as elsewhere in the satellites states there was the appearance of multi party politics but it was not genuine
-the election within the party were described as democratic centralism in which there was a chain of authority carrying the views of ordinary workers up the party leadership who made the correct decisions on the basis of Marxist Leninist theory and then passed these decisions down to the people again

Question 26

How was the communist party and political control ?

Answer 26

• a mass purge of the GDR communist party, the SED took place in 1948 and was followed by another 1971
  -ulbritch purges of the SED continued in the aftermath of 1953 unrest, over 60% of SED me members were forced out of the party by 1954
  -in the GDR reformist were excluded from the party

Question 27

What factors made the SED aim to create a modern industrial socialist sates in the GDR difficult ?

Answer 27

• limited supply of calls and steel from Ruhr
  -the USSR demanding 25% of industrial products in the GDR as reparations for the damage done by Germany to USSR
  -before Berlin Wall, 200,000 in 1960 and 150,000 in the first half of 1961 the loss of labour especially skilled labourers to the west provided a drain which continued and grew as change spread

Question 28

How was collectivisation implemented in the GDR ?

Answer 28

• a wave of collectivisation had begun in 1952 but resulted in food shortages and price increased led to directly into unrest of 1953 and so collectivisation was halted
• a second wave of collectivisation was more successful so by 1960 80% of farmland was collectivised

Question 29

What was economic growth by the 1960s? How did this compare to west Germany ?

Answer 29

-the GDR economy was growing at about 3% a year but the west was averaging at 8%

Question 30

What did Ulbritch promise that was totally unrealistic?

Answer 30

He promised that the 7 year plans, the socialist economy would over take the federal republic of Germany with higher per capita consumption of food stuff and most consumer goods

Question 31

What was the new economic system ?

Answer 31

Permitted some decentralisation, profit incentives and greater decisions making power were granted to middle level managers and a move always from the emphasis on quantity ensured that the profitability of good was taken in account in industrial planning

Question 32

What was the impact of the new economic system ?

Answer 32

The system proved incompatible with the continuity of centrally fixed prices and in the wake of Prague springs in Czechoslovakia in 1968 the system was abounded in favour to increase centralisation

Question 33

Poland political strengths ?

Answer 33

-the party ran the country for the benefit of the workers until communism was achieved
-the Sejm included representatives from more than one party
-had a list of candidates to choose from
-intellectuals had strong presence and influences inside the PUWP and push for liberalisation

Question 34

Poland political weaknesses ?

Answer 34

-after Stalin death Poland still carried on the purges for political opponents
-party had full authority over government
-roman Catholic Church was hugely important in Poland and reduced the influenced of the PUWP
-USSR was not popular because of its role in Poland before and at the close of the war
-any attempt to Sovietise was resisted

Question 35

Czechoslovakia political strengths ?

Answer 35

-shared powers with other political parties under the national front organisation

Question 36

Czechoslovakia political weaknesses ?

Answer 36

-reformist did not make up an influential faction within the party
-the reformist from the CPCz including the general secretary Stanksy were executed on 1952 after a show trial
- widespread, arrest and interrogation led to many people being executed or imprisoned
-the CPCz influence by 1956 was therefore characterised by fear and repression
-Catholic Church activities were severely restricted
-900 people still imprisoned by 1960

Question 37

Hungary political strengths ?

Answer 37

-Hungary was a hot house of new ideas in socials policy with Nagy reform prefiguring later reform in the USSR
-appointed reformist imre nagy as premier in collective leadership

Question 38

Hungary political weaknesses ?

Answer 38

-during the 2nd world was Hungary supported Germany therefore the USSR had defeated Hungary and treated them accordingly
-little enthusiasm for the communist party= elimination of the opposition brought party to power
-by 1956 communist rule led to discontent and Hungarian revolution
-leadership based as Stalin and purged political opposition
-by 1956 some 350,000 Hungarians had been imprisoned and over 2000 executed

Question 39

GDR political strengths ?

Answer 39

• GDR was the frontline of the Cold War so it was very important to the USSR that it was secure and also reflected the achievement of socialism to the west
  -politically very stable
  -creation of the Berlin Wall led Ulbritch to build socialism in the east successfully that rapidly had highest living standards and worker productivity among its satellite states
  -party decentralisation and had elected representatives

Question 40

GDR political weaknesses?

Answer 40

-appearance of multi party system was not genuine
-Ulbritch purges of the SED continued in the aftermath of the 1953 unrest over 60% of SED members were forced out of party by 1954
-due to purges, large number of reform minded people created a social group with a grudge against the party to lessen party influence
-pay little attention to de- stalinisation

Question 41

What was the role of the Comintern ?

Answer 41

-the communist international organisation that bound all communist parties together in ruthlessly policed confurnity

Question 42

What was the role of the cominform ?

Answer 42

Cominform announced all satellite states to follow the USSR route to socialism

Question 43

What was the role of the Comecon ?

Answer 43

-council of mutual economic assistance 1949 under leadership of the USSR to coordinate the economies of socialist states

Question 44

When were the strikes in the GDR suppressed by the Soviet army and GDR police ?

Answer 44

1953

Question 45

When were did the workers riot in Poland ?

Answer 45

1956

Question 46

When was the Hungarian revolution?

Answer 46

1956

Question 47

When was the Warsaw pact signed ?

Answer 47

May 1955