Stalin's rise to power Unit 3 Flashcards
Who were the contenders for power?
Stalin
Trotsky
Tomsky
Rykov
Bukharin
Kamenev
Zinoviev
Lenin’s decline
1921 - unwell May 1922 - 1st stroke Mid 1923 - obvious that Lenin would not return to work 1924 Lenin dies - with no obvious successor Coffin displayed in Red square Cult of personality begins Statue in every town Petrograd becomes Leningrad
What key roles did Lenin hold?
1919 - Head of the Orgburo (admin role - supervising work of local groups)
1922 - General Secretary - appointed lower and middle rank communists - loyal to Stalin
1924 - ‘Lenin enrolment’ 128,000 joined and all loyal and thanks to Stalin for their promotion.
How did Stalin get rid of the others? Stalin’s political manoeuvrings to win
Trotsky undermined by the Triumvirate - Stalin, Kamenev, Zinoviev
Alliance with Bukharin advocating NEP, attacked by Zinoviev
Kamenev, Bukharin and Trotsky expelled from the party and Trotsky exiled
Abandoned Bukharin for rapid industrialisation, his supporters backed him.
Economic reasons Stalin won
NEP was not communist - Stalin initially supported it and compromised for the peasants but refused to do it twice
NEPman were becoming a richer class of peasants Lenin said NEP was temporary
1925 - workers living standards, declining
Peasants hoarding grain due to the low price
Permanent revolution versus socialism in one country - ideology why Stalin won
Left - Permanent revolution, the believe that Russian communism can’t survive alone and would need economic resources and a larger W/C
Right - the belief that world revolution is unlikely, preservation of the Soviet Union should be the priority, ‘socialism in one country’, the workers state would rival capitalist nations. In 1924 Stalin put this forward and showed Trotsky as out of touch.
Why the Great Turn?
No heavy industry made Russia weak
Modern war needed an industrial base to weapons
Self-sufficiency needed for heavy industry
Socialism could be achieved via mass industrialisation and making most of the population workers
Stalin needed to prove himself
Catch up with the West - industry, military and living and working conditions
Ideology and nature of leadership
Lenin - personality, authority and vision
Politiburo had the majority of power, from winning votes in the party congress, elected via the central committee. It wasn’t a battle of support from all the people but about support from the central committee
What was Lenin’s testament 1923?
He was critical of the main contenders - Trotsky - violent and arrogant, Zinoviev and Kamenev disloyal pre revolution, Stalin - rude and impatient, Bukharin - did not understand the ideology - the was suppressed - and Stalin benefited from this.
How did coercion and propaganda change after the death of Lenin? How did this benefit Stalin?
Launch - propaganda campaign to build socialism and show the heroism of the W/C - if you didn’t share this you were a traitor or saboteur.
Cult of Stalin - initially Stalin was pictured as Lenin’s disciple, then the rightful heir (showed him with Stalin) and then the heroic leader
How did Russia engage with Foreign powers?
1920s - agreements with Britain and Germany h/e the Comintern was still working for world-wide revolution
China 1921 - Chinese Communist party was formed. Comintern advised them to work with nationalists, there was a failed revolution in 1927 but Stalin refused to change policy
1926 - Treaty of Berlin a non-aggression pact
Comintern failed efforts and the rise of fascists dented hopes.
1924 - Moscow instructed Communist parties in Europe to act as a united labour front to radicalise socialists.
Shows their lack of power and influence to exert revolutionary activity.
