Great Patriotic War Flashcards
Give some strengths of the political conditions f the USSR on the eve of WWII
Stalin ruled over an authoritarian and centralised single party state
- No institutions independent of Stalin’s controls were permitted, no levels of society escaped the Great Terror, and the Party continued to exert extreme power over the institutions of government
Give some weaknesses of the political conditions f the USSR on the eve of WWII
Stalin encouraged the creation of a complex bureaucracy that at times weakened his pdrsanol control
Corruption and falsification of statistics were common practice
Give some strengths of the economic conditions f the USSR on the eve of WWII
USSR was transformed into an industrialised and more urbanised nation
By 1940 they’d overtaken Britain in iron and steel production and were not far behind Germany
Concentration on heavy industry, transport and power resources would help Stain secure victory
Give some weaknesses of the economic conditions f the USSR on the eve of WWII
Economic development was uneven
Consumer products neglected and rarer than NEP (1921-27) + quality poor
USSR still producing less grain than during the NEP and insufficient investment in modern farming techniques/machinery
What did Stalin appeal to during wartime speeches
People’s love of their country and threat to their culture - rather than defending socialism
People fought for the nation, not for communism
Give some reasons why Russia initially performed so poorly in WWII
Stalin ignored military intelligence of a build up of Nazi forces by the Soviet border
Recent propaganda had praised the Soviet German freindship after the NAzi Soviet pact which left the Russian nation psychologically unprepared for the invasion
Purges of senior officials in Red army had resulted in a weakened and cautious military leadership - no general dared try anything new for fear of being purged leading to sterile tactics
Military equipment = insufficient quantity and quality. Most planes/tanks/guns were out fo date
Give 4 reasons hw the USSr were able to achieve victory
Stalin’s absolute authority and actions helped boost morale and he became a symbol fo national unity. He appealed to nationalism rather than socialism
Stalin realised the need to let his military commanders plan campaigns and so gave them increasing authority . Incompetent marshals were replaced by talented men , some of whom returning from gulags
Used Terror to ensure the loyalty of Soviet citizens. During Stalingrad - 272 order issued - 150,000 soldiers who tried to retreat were shot
Harsh conditions in the 1930’s may have made it easier for Russians to accept tightened discipline and harsh conditions
Why is the USSR claiming victory against Germany questionable
Casualty rates were quadruple German losses
Lost 27 million people against a country less than half its size
Give some industrial success during the war
1,500 factories and their workers were shifted from Western Russia and Ukraine eastwards to the Urals and Siberia
Focus on rearmament during 5 Year plans meant railways were constructed to link industrial centres to the front line
Because the USSR economy was already centrally planned it made it much easier to turn into a wartime economy
By mid 1943, industrial output in terms of……..and……….exceeded………….
Quality
Quantity
Germany
How much foreign aid was donated to the uSSr by USA alone
$11 billion
What was the political impact of the War on the USSR (4)
Extent to which USSR was dominated by Russia ethnic nationalism was one of the most obvious impacts (1.5 million nationalities were deported and one;y 2/3 survived the journey east)
Increasing numbers of the military joined the Communist Party - providing a liberalising influence on government. However, this would only be felt after Stalin’s death
Helped strengthen the belief in the communist system. Stalin claimed that it had proved the superiority of communism over fascism.
Made the USSr a state with a popular nationalist government, bring the state and t people closer together
Give the impact of the GPW on Stalin
Stalin’s reputation soared and became a national hero. Any pre-war doubts about him were silent in the face of Soviet victory
War made him more paranoid
Give some negative economic impacts from the GPW
Most of the economic achievements of the 5 year plans of the 1930’s were destroyed - particularly in Ukraine and Western Russia with 70% USSR’s industrial capacity destroyed
Death toll lead to a hugely reduced workforce with the agriculture labour force particularly decimated
The priority of rearmament at the expense of consumer goods only worsened, stagnating consumer goods
Food production massively damaged. The harvest of 1945 was 60% what it’d been in 1940. A drought in 1946 lead ti a fame that killed 1.5 million
Give some negative economic impacts from the GPW
Movement of 1500 factories east opened up new natural resources for exploration. New railways also made the country more integrated industrially
