Chapter nine - The power vacuum and power struggle Flashcards
When did Lenin die?
January 1924
What was party democracy?
Allowing dissent and debates within the inner circle of the party elite
What was the Triumvirate?
Formed in 1922-23 between Stalin, Kamenev and Zinoviev formed to block the ambitions of Trotsky
When was Lenin’s testament written?
December 1922
When was it supposed to be made public?
The 1924 party congress
What were the strengths of Stalin?
Position as General secretary
Mastered the theories of Marxism-Leninism
Underrated by his opponents
He had placed himself close to Lenin during his period of illness
Fear of Trotsky
What were the weaknesses of Stalin?
Seen as crude and violent
Played only a minor role in the 1917 revolution
His colleagues knew Lenin had turned against him
What were the strengths of Trotsky?
Intellectual and theorist
Man of action during the Civil War
Formidable political skills
What were the weaknesses of Trotsky?
Feared Trotsky’s control over the Red Army
He used to be a Menshevik
No serious attempt to build a power base
He made serious errors of judgement
Where was Kamenev’s power bae?
He ran the local party in Moscow
Where was Zinoviev’s power base?
He was party boss in Leningrad
What was Stalin’s role as party secretary?
Gave him control over the business of the Politburo. Drawing up agendas and papers gave him control over what was discussed at meetings.
Positions in Orgburo and Secretariat?
Gave him control over appointments to key positions. He could put his supporters in key positions - party secretaries between a regional and local level were increasingly Stalin’s men.
Control over party organisation?
He could select delegates who were sent to the annual party congress where issues of policy were discussed. This accounts for hostile behaviour towards Trotsky from 1924 onwards and number of delegates who voted the way Stalin wanted.
Control over party membership?
Able to get rid of radical students and soldiers. Lenin enrolment of 1924 and 1925 doubled party membership to one million. Tended to be young urban workers and ex-peasants who would do what Stalin told them.
