stalins dictatorship p.t.2:

Question 1

was stalins position secure by 1934?

Answer 1

he announced that anti-leninist opposition had been defeated as they all admitted their errors i.e. tomsky, bukharin. however, stalin still received 150 negative votes in the CC. this created a split in the politburo with kirov wanting to stop grain seizures and stalin wanting to maintain peace of industrilisation. only 2 of the politburo firmly supported stalin ( molotov, kaganovich) whereas kirov received a long standing ovation for his speech.

Question 2

what was the impact of removing the title general secretary?

Answer 2

it meant that stalin was no more important than other secretaries i.e. kirov as they were all given equal rank.

Question 3

what power did stalin give yagoda following kirovs death?

Answer 3

head of the nkvd, he was now allowed to arrest and execute anyone found guilty of terrorist plotting, around 6500 were killed just in this december. but circumstances were suspicious (stalin and yagoda implicated.

Question 4

what did stalin do to party members who were opposition?

Answer 4

zinoviev, kamenev and 17 others were arrested and accused of instigating terrorism and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. 843 former associates of zin. were also arrested. 11,000 former people were arrested. 250,000 party members were expelled as anti-leninists. also a purge of kremlin employees. chairman of CC - yenukidze was expelled. stalins old way comrade also died in suspicious circumstances

Question 5

what happened in august 1936?

Answer 5

a show trial involving kamenev, zino, and 14 others took place, its purpose was to prove existence of political conspiracies. all 16 were found guilty and executed. yagoda was replaced by yezhov for his ‘failure to uncover this’.

Question 6

what happened in jan 1937?

Answer 6

a further show trial of 17 prominent communist was staged, this included radek and were accused of plotting with trotsky. 13 were sentenced to death. also accused bukharin of knowing about it and he was expelled from the party and executed.

Question 7

how did stalin treat ‘heros’ of the civil war?

Answer 7

8 military commanders incl. tukhachevksy (hero!!!!) were arrested, tortured and made to sign false convictions, they were subsequently all shot. followed by a further purge of military personall - 767, 512 executed, 29 died in prison, 13 suicide, 59 in jail. military intelligence also executed.

Question 8

what was the largest political show trial?

Answer 8

march 1938. 21 interrogated and bukharin and rykova and 13 others sentenced to be shot for trotksy terrorist organisation. bukharin was shot.

Question 9

was there an actual threat?

Answer 9

getty suggests that there was was evidence that trotsky was in communication with zino to oust stalin but the scale of the purges went far beyond the likely number of oppositionalists, even if it did exist.

Question 10

who was the great terror directed at?

Answer 10

increasingly ordinary citizens, in all sections in society who were terrorised, executed or sent to labour camps.

Question 11

when did the purges reach their height?

Answer 11

mid 1937 and lasted until dec 1938 when beria replaced yezhov.

Question 12

how did stalin use surveillance?

Answer 12

it was everywhere. ordinary citizens were encouraged to root out hidden enemies - check colleauges, friends, family for oppositional thoughts.

Question 13

what was the role of the NKVD in the purges?

Answer 13

they maintained a strict vigilance, employing reliables in offices, everyone lived in fear of a knock at their door since arrests were continuous and many died in prison.

Question 14

who was purged?

Answer 14

leading party members

armed forces

managers, engineers, scientists.

NKVD

peasants and industrial workers

relatives of those purged

Question 15

how were leading party members purged?

Answer 15

70% of cc were shot, 1108/1966 delegates were arrested. old bolsheviks removed through show trials.

Question 16

how were minority nationalities purged?

Answer 16

leaders of republics charged with treason, 350,000 put on trial spec. 140,000 poles

Question 17

how were the managers etc purged?

Answer 17

lost positions and some were executed

Question 18

how were the NKVD purged?

Answer 18

yagoda and more than 23,000 nkvd men were put on trial and most were shot

Question 19

how were peasants and workers purged?

Answer 19

kulaks made up 50% of all arrests and more than half of total executions. colleagues, relatives, wives, children and friends were also purged and liable to be arrested or shot.

Question 20

when did the purges slow down?

Answer 20

it continued into ww2 but slowed down after the end of 1938

Question 21

who did stalin use as a scapegoat for the purges?

Answer 21

yezhov who was replaced by beria

Question 22

what did the 18th party congress review?

Answer 22

mass cleansings were no longer needed. 1.5 mil cases reviewed. 450,000 convictions quashed, 128,000 closed, 327,000 freed from gulags. yezhov shot, all old bolsheviks had been removed

Question 23

what did the purges do for stalins power?

Answer 23

stalin was in a position of supreme power, his political rivals had gone, quashing of sentences restored peoples faith in him. he had absolute control over the party.

Question 24

how had stalin continued the foundations set up under lenin for one party rule?

Answer 24

stalin led a highly centralised and authoritarian one party state. lenin had always favoured single party rule. i.e. force the constituent assembly to disband. lenins constitution had only permitted one party

Question 25

how did stalin support marxist doctrine of the state withering away?

Answer 25

stalin not only upheld it but went further than lenin had ever done, extending one party domination and centralisation. his 1936 constitution included democratic structures such as universal suffrage but he made it clear that the communist party were the only party who could put candidates up for election. which reinforced the one party state.

Question 26

what was the impact of the nomenklatura?

Answer 26

used to reward loyal officals, concentrated decision making in a small number of hands, increasingly in stalins, rather than the party and could make decisions without calling for a congress, meaning he was no longer dependent on the parties.

Question 27

what did centralisation mean for stalin?

Answer 27

it meant stalin held all the power, stalin rarely left moscow and disliked mass meetings. he also restricted others contact with him. commissars trembled at meeting as stalin paced up and down. no independent institutes were allowed to merge. no rival powers were countenanced and younger officials were placed in positions of power (dependent on stalin)

Question 28

how did stalin rely on the bureacratic system and how did this weaken his control?

Answer 28

the purges for example may have emanted from the centre but they required a dirve and momentum of their own in the hands of local officials. corruption within ranks i,e, lying etc. local officials would often protect one another at central demands and non compliance was widespread.

Question 29

how did lenin and stalin both show an intolerance towards opposition?

Answer 29

lenin - created the cheka, prison camp system. attacked menshiviks, srs and carried out non violent purges leading to 150,000 party members and produced a ban on factions. stalin - extended intolerance. extended class warfare at kulaks and bourgeoise. political attacks far more brutal. no bolshevik lost his life from political vindictiveness under lenin. nkvd arrested millions of ordinary citizens and 600,000 party members. persecution on a far more monumental scale, but even stalin could not exert perfect control - some welcomed germans + rural hostility.

Question 30

how was stalinist economy by 1941?

Answer 30

he had transformed russia into a highly industrilised and urbanised nation with all russian farms collectivised. but claims were often exaggerated. but still impressive. 17% to 33% lived in towns by 1939.

Question 31

what was one of the most impressive facts about the USSRs economy

Answer 31

by 1940, they had overtaken britian in iron and steel and were not far behind germany.

Question 32

how did stalin prepare USSR for war with economy

Answer 32

heavy industry, transport and power sources. third five year plan - rearmament rose from 27.5 billion roubles to 70.9 billion roubles.

Question 33

what were the crucial weaknesses of the economy?

Answer 33

development was uneven, although a massive growth in heavy industry, consumer goods were neglected - scarcer in 1941 than they had been under NEP - quality of goods poor. bureacrats set on meeting targets, nothing else mattered. central planning inefficient and not helped by stalins purges of managers. major crop failure of 1936 weakened nations reserves. less grain than under NEP. lack of attention for modern farming techniques.

Question 34

how did the economy impact peasants lives:

Answer 34

- communist control had grown stronger due to communal values - peasants under supervision of party officials - watched by nkvd units. - increased urbanisation and mass expansion of town populations created a stronger proletariat.

Question 35

how was a mass culture being developed?

Answer 35

through education, cult, propoganda, arts, show trials, claimed socialist values were well underway.

Question 36

what were the limitations of mass culture development?

Answer 36

robert service suggests that while there was support for state welfare policies and soviet achievements, there was also a feeling of resignation to lifes hardships hoping that one day it may get better.

Question 37

did quality of life increase under stalin?

Answer 37

no, under lenin the civil war made living standards excusable but low rations, poor housing and lack of consumer goods was not as excusable. internal passports restricted movements, strict censorship and propoganda was everywhere. mass organisations mobilised people.

Question 38

was a classless society created?

Answer 38

hierarchal society dominated by a privilaged elite around the party. urban class now ruthlessly driven by soviet masters and the state had not withered away, but became more forbidable and extensive/brutal.

Question 39

was stalin prepared for ww2?

Answer 39

no he was caught by surprise despite ignoring intelligence, seems to have miscalculated as to when the germans would turn east. but he did increase spending from 16.5% to 32.6

Question 40

how was the soviet union not ready for war?

Answer 40

the purges had removed senior officers, sapped strength of army. soviet fighting capacity had also been affected by inadequete training. a lack of military initiative had already been seen in the winter war with finland. dual command ineffective but increased party control

Question 41

how were the ussr ready for war?

Answer 41

stalins industrial drive had made them stronger than they would have been 10 years prior (230 tanks, 700 military aircrafts 100000 rifles) but most aircrafts etc were still of old design and the reconstruction of the navy had been slow.

Question 42

how was the soviet union unprepared psychologically for war?

Answer 42

having withdrawn anti-fascist propoganda, soviet troops were suddenly expected to fight their former allies.

Question 43

what was the german invasion of russia called?

Answer 43

operation barbarossa

Question 44

did a german victory look inevitable?

Answer 44

yes, they had penetrated deep into ukraine capturing more than a million prisoners. by 1941, a complete defeat looked imminent but a stiffening soviet resistence meant that the german advance was halted just before moscow

Question 45

how was stalin unprepared for operation barbarossa?

Answer 45

21 june 1941, appeared to take stalin by surprise. despite the british government warning him of an imminent attack, he seemed shocked and confused by the invasion.

Question 46

how were citizens told of the german invasion?

Answer 46

molotov had to make a public announcement through loud speakers as stalin wouldnt. ‘our cause is just, the enemy will be smashed, victory will be ours’.

Question 47

did stalin go into action straight away?

Answer 47

no it took him over a week, but historians do not know if it was a result of careful strategy or depression.

Question 48

what was the stakva?

Answer 48

supreme military command established who had control over heads of military services etc on 23 june

Question 49

what did stalin do on the 27th june?

Answer 49

he withdrew to his dacha (second home) and was not seen for 10 days, but he returned on 30 th june and agreed to restructuring

Question 50

what was the state defence committee?

Answer 50

created by the politburo on 30th june - exercises complete control over all party, state and military.

Question 51

when was stalins first public wartime address and what did he call for?

Answer 51

3rd july, the issue is one of life and death for the people of the ussr, the issue is whether the people should be free or fall into slavery

Question 52

what position did stalin assume on 20 july?

Answer 52

overall military command, making him the supreme war leader

Question 53

what did stalin appeal for in his wartime speeches?

Answer 53

rekindled patriotism and mollifying those who had opposed him in the 30s. he appealed to peoples love of the country and played on the threat to their culture rather than the threat to socialism. the people fought for russia, not for communism.

Question 54

how did stalin protest against the german evacuation?

Answer 54

he insisted that the red square parade should take place as normal (commemorate revolution) despite the germans coming dangerously close to moscow.

Question 55

how did stalin lead the war which benefitted them?

Answer 55

if military leaders displayed incompetence they were removed regardless of how close they were to stalin, i.e. budyenny replaced by a man of talent who had been brought back from the gulags. stalin also came to rely on zhukov who successfully defended moscow and led the soviet troops in 1945.