May AGRICULTURE COPY Flashcards
Describe Russian industry in 1917.
- Contained 5.3% world industry, and production had continued to rise during the war to 216 million rubles in 1917.
- Remained far behind Western nations. The communists would have to grow the economy to defend the revolution.
Describe Russian agriculture in 1917.
- Agricultural production had fallen, grain down to 81% of 1913 levels.
What was Lenin’s view of a socialist economy?
- Marx had specified that a communist society would need an advanced economy. Lenin believed the economy had to grow and become more efficient through State Capitalism before starting socialism. In a letter to Trotsky, wrote “within a year socialism will have gained a permanently firm hold”, after the State Capitalism stepping stone had been taken.
What was State Capitalism?
- Nationalised large industries, run by Vesenkha. Specialists managed factories.
- Was unpopular, rejected by Bukharin and other radicals.
What happened during Land Reform? What was it’s significance?
- Redistribution of land amongst peasantry, without compensation.
- Popular amongst peasants,.
Why was War Communism launched?
- To allow high levels of industrial production, and food production to feed soldiers and workers to aid communist victory in the the civil war.
What was the ‘Food dictatorship’?
- Grain requisitioning by Cheka.
- Rationing by the Supply Commisariat. Largest rations went to workers and soldiers.
What measures were taken as part of War Communism?
- Food dictatorship.
- Labour discipline : working day extended to 11 hours in 1918, work made compulsory for all between 16 - 50 .
- The abolition of money. Due to hyperinflation, money became worthless, so workers were paid through rations.
- Trade made illegal, complete nationalization, and conscription.
Extreme and unsuccessful emergency measures.
Was War Communism an ideological success?
- Centrally planned, money abolished. Lenin and Bukharin argued War Communism was a significant revolutionary achievement.
What were the consequences of War Communism?
- Economic collapse: Heavy industry production fell to 20% of 1913 levels, 70% of locomotives in need of repair..
- loss of Incentive to work as peasants were not paid. Industrial workforce decreased to 1.2 million by 1922. shortage of commodities, buildings in Petrograd torn down for fuel.
- Central planning lead to growth of black market, 60% of food came from black market.
- Famine, 6 million dead.
- Tambov and Kronstadt 1921.
Why was the NEP launched?
- Economic compromise: increasing grain production to retain political power. Urban workers were key Bolshevik support and were becoming disillusioned - the bread had not arrived.
- Lenin came to believe Russia lacked “the missing material prerequisites” (modernized industry) to build socialism. The NEP was laying a foundation for socialism.
What was the NEP?
- Agricultural production became a free market.
- Small factories of fewer than 20 people denationalized.
- Chervonets, a stable currency reintroduced.
- Private landholdings, as collectivisation was met with strong opposition.
- Lenin: : “The NEP is earnest and long term”.
In what ways was the NEP an economic and thus political success?
- Grain production increased from 37 million tonnes in 1921 to 76.8 million in 1926, with personal economic incentive returned. The breakup of quasi-feudal estates also helped increase production beyond prewar levels.
- Electrification.
- All industrial production, except for pig iron, recovered to 1913 levels. However, production plateaued in 1926 due to a lack of investment.
What problems were there with the NEP?
- The Scissors Crisis: agricultural production increasing much faster than industrial production leading to the graph which Trotsky nicknamed. Failed price controls to counteract this. Peasants withheld surpluses, or sold them to NEPmen.
- The Party viewed NEPmen as profiteering parasites, by 1922 NEPmen accounted for almost 75% of retail trade..
- Corruption, drugs, gambling.
How did the left of the Party react to Lenin’s economic policies?
- To Trotsky, the Scissors Crisis was clear proof that the NEP would not be able to industrialize the economy. To close the scissors, intensive planning would have to be used.
- Dictatorship of industry, ending private property and the market and a return to a policy like War Communism. He understood this would cause discontent amongst peasants.
How did the Stalin and the right of the Party react to Lenin’s economic policies?
- Bukharin became a key supporter of the NEP arguing it would allow industrialization eventually, created economic growth and satisfied the peasants.
- Stalin supported Lenin against Trotsky’s faction, but was non committal and would of course switch.
What were the aims of the Five Year Plans?
- Large scale investment and central planning: Stalin believed the USSR could catch up with the USA in 15 years.
- Attempt to address the failure of the NEP to develop new factories.
- Eliminate NEPmen.
What dates were the Five Year Plans?
- 1928-1932
- 1933-1937
- 1938-1941
Describe the nature of the Five Year Plans.
- A grandiose plan to protect the Party from external and internal threats through rapid growth of industry.
- Lists of targets acoompanied by propaganda campaigns that celebrated successes and heroic ideological objectives of the plans.
What successes in the Five Year Plans were there for industry?
- Industrial production: coal 35.4 million tonnes 1927 to 165.9 million tonnes by 1940, partly due to Magnitogorsk, Lipetsk, and Tula.
- Oil 11.7 million tonnes to 31.1 million tonnes 1940.
- Productivity gains due to the Stakhanovite movement, rewards for most efficient: 34% increase in productivity in chemical industries between 1936-40.
What successes in the Five Year Plans were there for transport?
- Moscow Metro’s first tram lines opened 1935.
- Moscow-Volga canal competed in 1937, with the Yagoda’s .
What successes in the Five Year Plans were there for rearmament?
- 1940 one third of government spending was allocated to rearmament.
- ## 9 military aircraft factories completed 1939-1941.
What problems were there with production during the Five Year Plans?
- Quality of goods: in some industries 40% of what was produced was wasted. - - -Uncoordinated ministries undermined by Stalin’s other policies…
- Terror, the purging of experts and managers.
- Gosplan’s unrealistic targets lead to falsified figures, worsening the inefficiencies of planning.
- Filtzer: Soviet growth self consuming, and so could not improve the lives of Soviet citizens.
Describe the shortages of consumer goods during the Five Year Plans.
- The limitations of planning, Stalin’s priorities, and production techniques caused shortages in consumer goods.
- Queues for shoes and clothes in Leningrad 6000 in 1938.