Life In Communist Russia Flashcards
After WW1
Tsar (Emperor) Nicholas II was forced to step down in February 1917. Vladimir Lenin came in to power.
Bolsheviks
Lenins followers
Karl Marx
A German political thinker who said that the working class should stage revolutions to end private ownership and distribute wealth, making society ‘classless’. Essientally communism.
Communism
A system of government where the state controls all aspects of the economy (property, business and jobs) and of society, with limited rights for individuals.
The Red Army
The Bolsheviks army
The White Army
An alliance of various anit-communist groups)
The Russian Civil War
Leon Trotsky and his Red Army fought the White Army. In july 1918, Tsar Nicholas II, his wife and five children were executed.
Ending of Russian Civil War
By 1921, Lenin and the Bolsheviks had gained control of the country and renamed it the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
Lenins Death
Before Lenin he died, he wrote a testement, he was very critical of Josef Stalin, he died on 21 January 1924 without a named successor.
Stalins rise to power
Leon Trotsky was the frontrunner for the leadership of the Communist Party. Many of the leaders dislike him, they were worried he would have to much power as a leader. Stalin took control of Lenins funeral arrangements and gave the speech there; this led people to believe that he was to be Lenin’s successor.
Stalin played the various members off against each other. Stalin wanted Socialism in One Country. By 1928, Stalin was the absolute ruler of the USSR.
Economic Policy in Stalins Russia
Stalin used a scheme called Collectivisation. Many farmers would’nt surrender their farms. Stalin began to Gulags and sent many Kulaks there. By 1936, 90% of farmland had been colectivised.
Five-Year Plan
A set of targets (and policies designed to meet them) over a period of five years.
The First Five-Year Plan
It was during 1928-1932, it focused on heavy industry and the production of coal, oil, steel and electricity.
Kulaks
Wealthy independent farmers
Gulags
Forced labour camps
The Second Five-Year Plan
It was during 1933-1937, it had a continued focus on industry and also on transport and the production of consumer goods. The Moscow underground was built, as were canal and rail links
The Third Five-Year Plan
It was during 1938-1941, it was cut short due to the 1941 invasion by Germany. Instead, the focus switched to the production of arms and ammunition.
Results of the Five Year Plans
Some regions were devasted by famines
Rewards such as higher wages were given to the most productive workers.
Many of the workers were provided with an apartment, free schooling and free basic healthcare.
Terror in Stalins Russia
Stalin was a dictator, reorganised the Cheka (secret police) and renamed them the NKVD. They arrested and tortured, people who could be a threat to the country. The NKVD ran the gulags. Prisoners were forced to carry out manual work such as felling trees, mining or building railroads. It was an extremely high death rate.
Stalin organised three show trials between 1936 and 1938.
The Cheka
The Bolsheviks’ secret police
Show Trial
It was a stage trial held in public to influence popular opinion. It was a method of propaganda. The defendants had been tortured for their confessions. Their families were also threatened with arrest and torture.
The First Show Trial
In 1936. It was known as the Trial of the Sixteen because 16 Communist Party leaders were tried for the assassination of a man and for trying to overthrow the government. All were execucted, despite Stalin saying that they would be safe if pleaded guilty.
The Second Show Trial
In 1937, also the Trial of the Seventeen. 13 executed and rest were sentenced to ten years in the gulags.
The Third Show Trial
In 1938, also known as the Trial of the Twenty-One. Stalins three rivals were executed, it took three months to confess and only do so when threats were made against his family.
