Stalin’s rise to power, 1924-1929 essay questions Flashcards
To what extent were divisions over the continuation of the New Economic Policy responsible for the contest
to succeed Lenin in the years 1924–28?
ELI5: fights between carrying on the NEP was the main reason for the contest of overtaking Lenin.
Intro
- Define what NEP was
- I believe it was to a far extent as the disputes between NEP was apart of the bigger picture of why there was a contest for power
- This was due to ideology
First Para;
- Continuation of the NEP characterized the ideological differences within the parties
- Although initially there was a consensus that the NEP was key for industrialisation, the NEP started becoming unattractive in the 1920s
- there was growth in the superclass, high unemployment and food shortages began reappearing.
- The main dispute began on when it should end
- this is where the two wings of the party diverged
- Trotsky on the left wanting the NEP to end
- Bukharin wanting the NEP to keep going
- thus making it fuelling the contest of power.
Second Para
- Similar to the first para, more ideological debates arose;
- permanent revolution or socialism in one country
- permanent revolution was by Trotsky believing funding working classes in other euro countries would stage revolution around Europe
- socialism in one country was by Stalin and he believed by focusing on Russia and creating a perfect socialist state, other countries would want to be like Russia
- thus fuelling the topic or whither how the party should go forward.
- However this point can be disputed by the fact it was only one 2/3 party member who debated this topic, while there were more that contenders, thus not fully being the reason why there was a contest
third para
- Don’t really believe in this one but there was a debate on the nature of the leadership of Russia
- they did not want a dictatorship and wanted collective leadership
- they feared Trotsky the most as he was commander of the red army and was known for being absolutely ruthless.
- However this can be disputed by the fact that Trotsky genuinely had no interest in being a dictator
- he didn’t use the red army to secure his position
- he argued for democracy in the party and openness
Why was there no outright successor to Lenin as leader of the USSR on Lenin’s death in 1924?
first para
- There was no key designation of who will become leader by Lenin
- thus making it hard to explicitly state a clear successor
- In Lenin’s testament setting out views on future leaders saying;
- Lenin expressed concern about Stalin’s leadership and called for his removal from the position of General Secretary
- Lenin critisied Trotsky’s suitability for leading the Party, noting his excessive self-confidence
- Lenin criticized Zinoviev and Kamenev’s judgment and reliability.
With most of the main contestants critisesed by Lenin, it was near impossible to state an ‘outright successor’.
Second Para
- the Communist Party was deeply divided over a range of issues
- Continuation of the NEP characterized the ideological differences within the parties
- The main dispute began on when it should end
- this is where the two wings of the party diverged
- Trotsky on the left wanting the NEP to end
- Bukharin wanting the NEP to keep going
- thus making it fuelling the contest of power.
Third para
- Similar to the second para, the broader question of the direction of the Soviet party
- more ideological debates arose;
- permanent revolution or socialism in one country
- permanent revolution was by Trotsky believing funding working classes in other euro countries would stage revolution around Europe
- socialism in one country was by Stalin and he believed by focusing on Russia and creating a perfect socialist state, other countries would want to be like Russia
- and these competing visions contributed to the intensity of the power struggle.
‘None of the contenders for power in 1924 possessed the qualities needed to be an effective leader of
Russia.’ Assess the validity of the view.
intro
- to assess whether they posed the qualities needed, we must look at 3 leaders who had qualities
first para
- Trotsky had various qualities which show he’d be an effective leader; trotsky had great organisational skills, political skills and authority as he was 2nd in power to Lenin
- for example, he arguably the most important reason in the victory in the civil war, Trotsky created the Red Army out of the Red Guards and from the remnants of the old Tsarist army, imposing a very tough system of discipline and control over the Red Army.
- However,Trotekys cons were that he was extremely arrogant, underestimating others, especially Stalin
- He was feared by colleagues as they felt that after the death of Lenin, hed use the red army to take over, this is even more of a problem when looking at the fact that there was a consensus that all contestants did not want a dictatorship.
second para
- Stalin was able to gain loyalty and trust as he held a crucial position as general secretary
- Stalin was ruthless and hardworking, allowing him to consolidate power and modernize the country. This is especially important when considering the fact that This quality was especially important to why Lenin was successful; using red terror to consolidate power and remove opposition. [explain what red terror was]
- however, Stalin played very minor roles in the 1917 revolution and was overshadowed by more important people, thus making him less effective
The third para
- Lev Kamenev was capable, intelligent and a skilful politician.
- He was a member of the Military Revolutionary Committee, which coordinated the Bolshevik’s armed takeover of power in Petrograd.
- He had a strong power base in Moscow
- Kamenev was also a skilled orator and a persuasive speaker. He played a key role in the propaganda efforts of the Soviet government
However, he gained a reputation for ‘flip flopping’, changing switching sides a lot like when Kamenev initially aligned himself with Stalin against Leon Trotsky, who was seen as a potential rival for leadership of the Communist Party. However, Kamenev later broke with Stalin and formed an alliance with Trotsky in opposition to Stalin’s policies.
- He was seen as soft and not capable of being a sole leader, especially when he was closely associated to Zinoviev who was more popular.
‘Stalin’s victory in the power struggle between 1924 and 1929 was due to the popularity of his policies.’
Assess the validity of this view.
First para
- Exploitation of his opponents were more important than the popularity of his policies
- issues
- Continuation of the NEP characterized the ideological differences within the parties
- The main dispute began on when it should end
- this is where the two wings of the party diverged
- Trotsky on the left wanting the NEP to end
- Bukharin wanting the NEP to keep going
- Stalin would deliberately switch his opinion to what’s most popular
- He supported NEP to turn people against Trotsky.
- Then dropping NEP in 1927 in in favour of industrialisation to turn people against Burkheim,
- He capitalized on the weakness of the left party, as they underestimated Stalin.
2nd Para
- Stalin was also competent and his actions around Lenin death further solidified his position.
- He tricked Trotsky into not attending Lenin funeral
- he was able to make his main rival Trotsky seem arrogant
- He created the image that he was Lenin’s disciple
- although this para isn’t so strong necessarily on its own, it co-intines with other the previous paragraph
- Without his policies, he wouldn’t have the opportunity to exploit enemies
3rd para
- Socialism in one country presented teh idea the world revolution wont happened any time soon thus russians should just build their own socialist state.
- his policy became very popular with party members on the right
- however, policies alone would’ve not been enough as Burkeim would’ve had more of a chance of being victorious if he wasn’t as street wise as stalin in exploiting his opponents
‘The personalities of the contenders to succeed Lenin enabled Stalin to defeat his opponents in the years
1924–29.’ Assess the validity of this view.
1st para
- Exploitation of his opponents was the most important reason Stalin defeated them
- his enemies’ personalities were alwasy underestimating Stalin thus allowing him to exploit
- Continuation of the NEP characterized the ideological differences within the parties
- The main dispute began on when it should end
- this is where the two wings of the party diverged
- Trotsky on the left wanting the NEP to end
- Bukharin wanting the NEP to keep going
- Stalin would deliberately switch his opinion to what’s most popular
- He supported NEP to turn people against Trotsky.
- Then dropping NEP in 1927 in in favour of industrialisation to turn people against Burkheim,
- He capitilized on the weakness of the left party, as they underestimated Stalin.
2 Para
- Further adding onto this point
- Stalin was also compitent and his actions around Lenins death furhter solidified his position.
- He tricked Trotsky into not attending Lenins funeral
- he was able to make his main rival Trotsky seem arrogant
- He created the image that he was lenins desiple
para 3
- however Socialism in one country presented the idea the world revolution wont happened any time soon thus Russians should just build their own socialist state.
- his policy became very popular with party members on the right
- without his policies being successful, he wouldn’t have the ability to advance, as just exploiting his enemies wouldn’t be enough
‘The launch of ‘Stalin’s Great Turn’ was primarily motivated by economic factors.’ Assess the validity of this
view.
first para
- Stalin wanted to increase grain supplies, and not have to focus everything on the peasants supplying Russia
- the Soviet Union was heavily reliant on grain imports, which made it vulnerable to price fluctuations and supply disruptions in the global market.
- Stalin believed that collectivization was the most effective way to increase grain production.
2nd para
- Stalin also wanted to catch up with the west in terms of standard of living.
- The government invested in infrastructure projects such as housing, transportation, and public utilities, which had the potential to improve living conditions. The government also implemented social welfare policies, such as free education and healthcare
3rd para
- Stalin wanted to increase military strength. He wanted the country to focus on heavy industry, to build arms,
- but was aware highly industrialised economy hat a country had to have a well developed industry to manufacture weapons,
- and due to the war scares in 1920s, Stalin was sure in 1930s war would occur
4th para
- Stalin’s motivation was also influenced by Marxist-Leninist ideology, which saw the state as the ultimate arbiter of economic and social progress. The Great Turn was seen as a way to accelerate the transition to socialism and ultimately communism, and was therefore seen as a key step in the realization of Marxist theory.
- Socialism could only be created in a highly industrialised economy
‘Political motives were the most important factor in the decision to abandon the New Economic Policy.’
Assess the validity of this view.
1st para
- Stalin’s desire to consolidate power was a political factor which wasn’t that important imo
- The NEP allowed for a degree of economic freedom thus creating a class of wealthy entrepreneurs called NEPmen
- Stalin sought to eliminate the NEPmen through the abandonment of NEP as the NEP created a class of potential rivals and solidify his position as undisputed leader of the party
2nd para
Stalin also wanted to catch up with the west in terms of standard of living.
- The government invested in infrastructure projects such as housing, transportation, and public utilities, which had the potential to improve living conditions.
- Stalin wanted to increase military strength due to the war scares in 1920s, Stalin was sure in 1930s war would occur
3rd para
Stalin’s motivation was also influenced by Marxist-Leninist ideology, which saw the state as the ultimate arbiter of economic and social progress. The Great Turn was seen as a way to accelerate the transition to socialism and ultimately communism, and was therefore seen as a key step in the realization of Marxist theory.
- Socialism could only be created in a highly industrialised economy
4th para
- Stalin wanted to increase grain supplies, and not have to focus everything on the peasants supplying Russia
- the Soviet Union was heavily reliant on grain imports, which made it vulnerable to price fluctuations and supply disruptions in the global market.
- Stalin believed that collectivization was the most effective way to increase grain production.
