Collectivisation 1929-1941 Flashcards
Describe the first stage of collectivisation (1929 - 1939)
The government began the campaign with the issue of new procurement quotas. There was also a propaganda campaign against Kulaks to create divisions among the peasants.
In January 1930, Stalin announced that 25% of grain farming areas were to be collectivised that year. There was also a brief return to voluntary collectivisation.
Describe the second stage of collectivisation (1930 - 1941)
Stalin’s climb down was only a temporary tactic. Once the peasants had sown the spring crop, in 1931, the process of collectivisation speeded up again and the rate of collectivisation gradually increased, to reach 100% of households by 1941.
What was a Kolkhoz?
The typical collective farm. Created by combining small individual farms together in a cooperative structure. Many comprised a single village.
Kolkhozes in context
The average kolkhoz comprised c75 families and their livestock. Each one had to deliver a set quota of produce to the state. Quotas were high: up to 40% of quotes.
What was a Sovkhoz?
A small number of farms. Run as state farms, usually larger than kolkhozes and were created from land confiscated from former large estates.
Sovkhozes in context
Peasant opposition to becoming wage labourers forced Stalin to permit most farms to be of the kolkhoz type in the 1930s. Nevertheless, the official expectation was that all kolkhozes would be turned into sovkhozes in the long term.
What were Machine Tractor Stations?
MTS was a more modern method of farming, accompanying the establishment of kolkhozes and sovkhozes with a drive towards greater mechanisation.
How many MTS were there?
2,500 MTS were established however there was only one MTS for every 40 collective farms by 1940.
What caused the famine?
In October 1931, drought hit many agricultural areas. Combined with kulak deportations, this brought a severe drop in food production and by the spring of 1932, famine appeared in Ukraine.
It lasted until 1934.
What was becoming the top of the party’s agenda at this time?
Rapid industrialisation.
How many families were deported as a result of collectivisation?
Collectivisation caused around a million families to be deported.
In 1930, how many outbreaks of mass unrest were there?
13,754
How many victims of dekulakization were there by 1930?
320,000
How many individuals were deported to other parts of the USSR?
1.8 million.
How many died as a result of the famine?
5 million.
