Purges Snd Show Trials Flashcards
When was the murder of Kirov
1st December 1934
How did Kirov die
There was a lack of NVKD guards and Nikolaev shot Kirov in the back of the head with a revolver
What did Stalin claim the assassination was
Plot led by Trotsky, zinoviev and Kamenev to overthrow the government
In summer 1932 Martemyan Ryutin
Executed
What do some people believe was the reason why Kirov died
The assassination was under stalins order
Kirov was extremely popular and voted against Stalin
By killing Kirov his position as leader is more secure
Total control
Stalin wanted total control
He believed groups needed to be disciplined
Purges allowed him to do this
Stalin believed terror was the best way of achieving loyalty
Stalins personality
He was deeply paranoid
Couldn’t trust anyone
Held grudges for long time
Saw threats everywhere
Terror economics
Gulags became vital for stalins industrial drive by providing slave labour
Gulags population 8 million
Stalin encouraged workers to report managers to NKVD
Roles of yezhov , the NKVD
They carried out the purges
Destroy all threats to communists
Spied on people
Intimidated people
Arrested people
Gulags run by NKVD
Reasons for and features of Moscow show-trials 1936-1939
Stalin wanted to remove all his old rivals Kamenev , bukharin ,zinoviev
Stalin wanted to frighten the rest of the community if they were not loyal
Wanted to grow support as he was killing dangerous enemies
The trial of 16 1936
1st trial when zinoviev and Kamenev were found guilty of organising the assassination of Kirov
They were both executed
The trial of 17 1937
13 of Trotskys allies were executed
The trial of 21 1938
Final show bukharin tried to prove innocence but pleaded guilty
Purge of the wider communist party
70% of the 1934 central committee were executed or imprisoned
1 million party members became victims of the purges
Purge of the armed forces
Stalin believed the army would try to overthrow him
They had access to weapons and man power
In may 1937 8 generals were arrested
Most army senior officers were shot 14/16
35,000 men imprisoned or shot
All admirals from the navy shot
