communist government in the USSR, 1917-85 Flashcards
What were the 5 stages to a one-party state?
- A democratic and representative government - Decrees
- Political centralisation - Politburo > Sovanarkom
- Authoritarianism - Cheka, Red Terror
- New elite and bureaucracy - Nomenklatura
- Ban on factions and on-party unity
Who were the Bolshevik Party’s main opposition?
- Left-wing Marxist groups - SR’s & Mensheviks
- Right-wing Tsarist supporters - liberal groups
- Nationalist groups within the Russian empire
What happened during the Constituent Assembly of 1918?
- Didn’t play out in the Bolsheviks favour.
- SR’s were victorious with 210 seats.
- Lenin then shut down the assembly and condemned it as an ‘Instrument of the Bourgeoise’.
How did the Bolsheviks destroy opposition?
- Remove Bourgeoise voting rights.
- Newspaper restrictions on SR’s, Mensheviks.
- 1921 - all opposing parties banned.
- Imprisoned 5,000 Mensheviks.
- SR’s in Party fired.
Why did Lenin sign the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?
- WW1 sopped energy and resourced of the government.
- To focus and consolidate over Russia.
How did the Bolsheviks win the Civil War?
- Red’s were more organised in military, economic and political terms.
- War Communism.
- Peasant support.
- Conscription.
What was banned during the 10th Party Congress?
Ban on factions & on-party unity - penalty for breaking this was expulsion from Party.
Why was Democratic Centralism a false reality?
- Soviets undermined because of ruling by decree, not involved in any decision-making.
- Dominated by Bolsheviks.
- Representatives turned into rubber-stamping bodies.
What was the Nomenklatura system?
- Ensure the development of a more committed communist bureaucracy.
- Included drawing up lists of approved party employees suitable for certain jobs from which appointments can be made.
- Encouraged loyalty to party leaders and an effective tool of centralisation.
- Increased membership.
What did the Soviet Constitution of 1924 say?
- Bolsheviks could extend control through Russian Empire.
- Confirmed the power of CP.
What were some examples of opposition in the Party towards Lenin?
- Kamanev & Zinoviev opposed Lenin’s decision of revolution in 1917.
- Fierce debate of BL Treaty.
- NEP caused factions (left + right wing).
- Stalin appointed as General Secretary in 1922 to keep an eye on opposition.
Stalin became Party Secretary in 1922, what powers of influence did this give him?
- Access to 26,000 personal files.
- Decided agenda of Party meetings, restrict issues of debate.
- The right to appoint Party positions, promote his own supporters.
- Launched Lenin Enrolment to increase industrial workers in Party ranks, members were uneducated and politically naive.
- Able to outvote and outmanouvre opponents.
Who were Stalin’s opponents in the Politburo?
- Leon Trotsky - the obvious successor
- Gregory Zinoviev - strong power base in Leningrad
- Nikolai Bukharin - ‘golden boy’ of Party
- Mikhail Tomsky - leading figure in trade union movement.
- Alexei Rykov - chair of Sovnarkom
- Lev Kamanev - Moscow party secretary
The Party was divided into the Right and the Left by 1928, who was on both sides and what did each division want?
- LEFT : Trotsky, Kamanev and Zinoviev - called for ‘permanent revolution’ by encouraging proletarian revolution throughout the world and favoured breaking the NEP.
- RIGHT : Bukharin, Tomsky and Rhykov - prefered to stick to Lenin’s policies, (at least short term).
How did Stalin deal with the Right of the Party?
- Undermined Bukharin by stressing his disagreements with Lenin in 1920s.
- Accused him of Trotskyism and forming factions.
- Undermined his support for the NEP by highlighting it’s failures.
- April 1929, forced to admit errors of political judgement.
- Right removed from all posts, except Rykov.
How did Stalin deal with the Left of the Party?
- 1926, their views criticised at the 15th Party Congress, accused of forming factions, expelled and demoted from the Politburo.
- In 1928, Zinoviev & Kamanev readmitted after renouncing previous views.
- Trotsky exiles to Asia and a year later expelled from the Soviet Union.
What were the two key instruments of terror in Stalin’s reign?
- Party Secretariat : collected information on Party members that could be used to condemn them as enemies of the people.
- The Secret Police : carried out surveillance, arrests, executions, ran the labour camps.
What happened in the Chitska of 1932-35?
- Response to the difficulties experienced during the launching of the FYP’s & collectivisation.
- Chitska removed criticising officials in order to speed up economic policy.
- By 1935, 22% removed from posts, non-violence process, but showed opposition to Stalin’s policies were mounting.
What happened at The Trial of the Sixteenth?
- Involved leaders of the Left.
- Accused for working as agents for Trotsky.
- Under pressure to admit absurd crimes.
What was the Shakhty Trial of 1928?
- Lack of commitment not tolerated.
- Managers and technical experts put on trial for holding back industrialisation.
What two groups did Stalin purge?
- Secret Police - 3,000 purged.
2. Red Army - 35,000 officers purged.
How did Stalin ensure control over the CP?
- Terror against previous opponents sent intimidation messages to current members.
- Power focused on sub-groups.
- Intimidation techniques - walking around room whilst others spoke.
Why was the Soviet Constitution of 1936 NOT democratic?
- Limited restrictions on rights of citizens.
- Nothing could threaten the CP.
What were Stalin’s limits on power imposed from within the leadership?
- Politburo filled with cronies : Molotov remained loyal even after his wife was imprisoned.
- Politburo refused to execute Rhyutin.
- Stalin’s ambitions for 2nd FYP doubted.
- Concern over use of brutality.
What were the differences between Stalinism & Leninism?
- Move away from Proletarian dictatorship to Stalin’s own dictatorship.
- Stalin was a product of the situation inherited from Lenin.
What happened during the high Stalinism years (1945-53)?
- Stalin cult of personality - facade of power, his health was in decline and those around him rivalled for power.
- Terror used to reinforce control.
- Mingrelian Affair 1951 - remove Beria’s allies.
What did Beria do straight after Stalin’s death?
- Signed an amnesty which released millions of prisoners.
- Doctors plot denounced.
- Kremlin doctors released.
What did Khrushchev do at the 20th Party congress of 1956?
Gave a Secret Speech accusing Stalin of:
- a cult of personality
- using unnecessary terror
- making economic mistakes
What were some of Khrushchev’s de-stalinisation reforms?
- Regular meetings of Presidium & Central Committee.
- Secret police under firm party control, no longer used for personal interest.
- De-centralised decision-making, more power at regional levels.
- Party & Government officials no longer faced prison for failure of meeting targets.
- 2 million prisoners released.
- Secret police lost control over Gulags.
Did fear disappear after de-stalinisation?
NO heavy punishment remained for corruption and critisism (internal exile, psychiatric hospital).
Secret police has even more methods of surveillance.
What did the crisis of 1957 show that change had occurred?
The anti-party group who wanted Khrushchev to be removed from leader power were not purged for exiling him.
What further reforms did Khrushchev introduce during the 22nd Party Congress?
- Stalin’s body removed from Lenin’s monsoleum.
- Major purge of Party Secretariats.
- Divided Party into agriculture and industry departments (reduced power of officials).
- 3 year tenures.
What led to the downfall of Khrushchev?
- Cuban missile crisis.
- Erratic and unpredictable behaviour.
- Economic policies led to disastrous harvest in 1963.
- Reforms made bureaucrats uneasy.
What aspects of de-stalinisation did Brezhnev reverse?
- Agriculture and Industry divisions.
- Limits on tenure removed.
- Guiding principle : collective leadership and trust in cadres.
- No subjectivism.
- SC of 1977 enshrined right for citizens to criticise Party secretaries.
Why did Brezhnev like the trappings of power?
- Awarded himself medals : Lenin’s peace prize.
- Enjoyed luxuries of life at top.
- Preferred to trust Party comrades.
How did Brezhnev increase political stagnation?
- Oligarchy
- Party full of his cronies
- Allowed corruption to go unnoticed
- Nepotism
- Gerontocracy
- Loss of control symbolised lack of family control
