stalinism in wartime Flashcards
in what purge had stalin killed a large proportion of senior officers?
1937-38
what was operation barbarossa?
the german invasion of the USSR
when was operation barbarossa?
21/22nd of june 1941
did stalin make the public announcement that russia had been attacked?
no, he could not bring himself to make it
what did stalin set up on the 23rd of june 1941 and what was its significance?
•the Stavka (a supreme military command)
•it was responsive for all military planning and consisted of competent generals
what happens to stalins authority on the 27th of june 1941?
•he withdrawals to his dacha (second home)
•he is not seen or heard from in public for ten days
what occurs on the 30th of june 1941?
•the state defence committee is set up by the politburo
•it was a civilian body responsible for organisation and coordination of things during the war
what changes in stalins authority on the 1st of july?
he resumes authority as head of government and leader in both stavka and the state defence committee
when does stalin make his first public wartime address?
3rd of july
when does stalin assume overall military command?
•20th of july
•stalin becomes the supreme war leader
what decisions did stalin make as the war went on which contradicted his previous ones?
•if military leaders were incompetent they were fired
•men from gulags were bought back to lead the military
what was order 227 that stalin issued?
•’not one step backwards’
•any soldier who fell behind or tried to retreat was to be shot on sight
how many soldiers were sentenced to death under order 227?
•more than 150,000
what political impact did the war have on ethnic minorities?
•stalin deported ‘suspect’ ethnic groups
•around 1.5 million were forced to uproot
•only 2/3 survived the deportation
why did large numbers of the military chose to join the party?
because stalin put emphasis on the political education of the troops
how many new members joined the party over the war period?
3.6 million
how many members of the army and navy joined the party in the war?
2.5 million people
what did the war help strengthen?
the belief in the communist system
•by may 1945 stalin could declare that the war had shown the superiority and resilience of the socialist system
•it was a victory for communism over fascism and was thus hailed as a vindication of both stalin and the stalinist system
what percentage of russian goods were in areas that germans had invaded?
•63% of the country’s coal
•68% of its iron
•58% of its steel
•45% of its railways
•41% of its arable land
what did the military budget rise to by the end of 1942?
•it went from 29% to 57%
•munitions manufacture was 76% of all production
how many new industrial enterprises were built during the time of war?
3500
what proportion was the grain harvest in 1942 compared to 1940?
the grain harvest of 1942 was only a third of that of 1940
how much money was given to the USSR by the USA under the lend-lease scheme?
11 billion dollars of aid
what law was introduced in december 1941?
a law which mobilised all undrafted workers for war work
•overtime became obligatory and holidays were suspended
what did the average working day/ week increase to during the second world war?
•12 hour days
•70-77 hour weeks, it became normal for workers to sleep in their factories
what did factories being placed under martial law mean?
that there were severe punishments for lateness, negligence of absenteeism
•unauthorised absence from work was classed as desertion- the punishment was death
what happened to a soldier if he was taken captive in war?
his family’s military ration cards were confiscated
how many soldiers were killed between 1941-1945?
8.6 million
•this daily rate was twice that of the skies
what is the estimated amount of deaths caused in the war from starvation alone?
25 million
what was the death rate in 1942 labour camps?
25%
what was the second world war known as in russia?
the ‘great patriotic war’
what happened with churches during the war?
they were reopened to lift morale and resolve
•the church was not allowed any real autonomy
what happened to stalins reputation during wartime?
it soared, he turned into a national superhero
what happened to stalins mental state after the war?
•he was more paranoid than ever
•he was tentative in accepting prisoners of war back, many of them were transferred directly to soviet labour camps
how many civilian deaths were there during the war?
19 million
how many villages were destroyed during the war?
70,000
what had society been open to during wartime?
western influence
between what dates was the period of high stalinism?
1945-53
when was the state defence committee dissolved?
the 4th of september 1945
what was the politburo reduced to during high stalinism?
an advisory body
how many members did the party have by 1952
7 million members
how many members did the komsomol have by 1952?
around 16 million
how did stalin change the party?
by reducing party autonomy, stalin this reduced it to a mere chain of command
it’s earlier dynamism gave way to a rigid bureaucratic structure, duplicating the official governmental structure
who launched a cultural purge in 1946?
Zhdanov
what were the views on western vs russian culture?
•everything western was condemned as bourgeois and decadent
•all things russian were regarded as superior and uplifting
what happened to censorship during high stalinism?
it increased massively, nothing of western influence was allowed into russia
what was high stalinism characterised by?
a revival of terror, stalin demanded an excessive isolationism from the non- soviet world during these years
what oppressive law did stalin pass in febuary 1947 which was telling of his paranoia?
a law was passed outlawing marriages to foreigners
what was beria responsible for?
a vast expansion of the gulag system
what happened to the NKVD under high stalinism?
•it was strengthened and reorganised under two separate ministries
•thousands were arrested for ‘counter- revolutionary activities’
how many wartime survivors did stalin send to the labour camps?
around 12 million
how did stalin deal with people who had fallen from favour?
he removed them from history books and airbrushed them out of photos
what was the leningrad case of 1949?
•stalin decided to take a stand against the ‘leningrad party’
•on the basis of false evidence, several leading officials were arrested
when was the purge in georgia?
1951-52
what was the doctors plot?
•stalin accused 9 doctors of failing to diagnose and treat zhdanov professionally
•the doctors were accused of a conspiracy to murder soviet leadership
•hundreds of doctors were arrested and tortured
•jews were rounded up and deported as they were accused of using their positions in the medical profession to harm the USSR
•the 9 named doctors were duly condemned and sentenced to execution- but stalin died before this took place
when did stalin suffer a mild stroke?
1946, this may have been responsible for his increasing paranoia in the post-war years
how did stalins cult of personality develop in high stalinism?
•he was presented as god like
•portrayed as a man of the people
•towns were named after him (stalingrad, stalinogorsk, stalino)
•stalin prizes were given out for work
•deluxe statues were made
when did stalin die?
march 1953
•there was public displays of grief
what did the ‘zhdanovshchina’ bring?
an intense persecution of artists and intellectuals
