The Economy under Stalin Flashcards
Main economic objectives for Stalin:
Industrialise Russia
Ambitious goals
Catch up with the west
Eliminate Nepmen
In July 1928, Stalin ended the NEP in order to end the
Kulak grain strike
Stalin reintroduced grain requisitioning from the peasants through the…
Cheka
Dekulakisation
Peasants responded to requisitioning with violence.
Requisitioning being one of the most hated aspects of War Communism
Stalin initiated “Liquidation of Kulaks”
Meaning to take farms and equipment from the richer peasants
However, in practice it meant that many peasants were killed or deported if they resisted government policies
Dekulakisation consequence
1.5 million Peasants sent to labour camps as a result of the dekulakisation campaigns
When was collectivisation introduced?
1929
Collectivisation
Stalin’s Collectivization refers to the forced consolidation of privately owned farms into collective farms (kolkhozes) in the Soviet Union during the late 1920s and early 1930s, aiming to increase agricultural output and promote socialism
Under collectivisation, peasants were forced to join…
collective farms, where land, livestock, and machinery were communally owned and production was centrally planned
The process of collectivisation involved…
the confiscation of private property, elimination of kulaks (wealthy peasants), and enforcement through coercion, including violence, mass deportations, and the imposition of grain requisitions
Collectivisation resulted in…
significant resistance and widespread suffering, with estimates suggesting millions of peasants died due to famine, repression, and disruptions caused by the policy
Collectivisation human costs
While collectivization led to increased grain production, its human costs and negative effects on agricultural productivity have been widely debated and criticised
Peasants responded to requisitioning/collectivisation by…
destroying their crops, animals and machinery - many peasants would prefer to destroy over help the government
Stalin’s policies led to the destruction of…
17 Million horses
26 Million cattle
11 Million pigs
60 Million Sheep and goats
Reduction of agricultural production was because of…
- Execution or deportation of kulaks who were often the most experienced farmers
- Absence of incentives as farmers were no longer able to make a profit
Collectivisation famine Ukraine
Holodomor
Holodomor famine
Collectivisation in the Soviet Union, through forced requisitions, disruptions of traditional farming practices, and the suppression of Ukrainian nationalism, contributed to the Holodomor famine by exacerbating food shortages and causing widespread starvation in Ukraine
Resistance to collectivisation had been at it’s fiercest in the Ukraine.
Stalin punished the farmers by seizing their grain and livestock.
Used famine to end resistance in the Ukraine
Holodomor’s death toll
The Ukrainian famine—known as the Holodomor, a combination of the Ukrainian words for “starvation” and “to inflict death”—by one estimate claimed the lives of 3.9 million people, about 13 percent of the population
Collectivisation was accompanied by…
mechanisation
Mechanisation
Government allowed farms to hire tractors from machine tractor stations, across the country
75,000 tractors they provided had little impact on soviet agriculture
Collectivisation allowed the government to ______ more grain than the NEP in 1928
procure
Collectivisation allowed the government to procure more grain than the NEP in 1928 - evidence
n 1928, the government procured 10.8 million tons of grain from the peasants.
Which rose to 22.6 million by 1933
Long term issue of collectivisation
- Collective farms a lot less productive than private farms
- Led to a decrease in production
- Decline in grain production
- Private farming continued on small scale in 1941
- Private farms very important for soviet agriculture
Agriculture during WW2
Consistently unable to meet needs of the soviet people and the army during WW2
During WW2, what did the Soviet government rely on?
Soviet government relied on US imports to provide almost a fifth of the calories consumed by the Red Army
WW2 rations
Bread rations fell by 40%
Potato rations fell by 80%
Recovery from war after 1945 - which plan?
Fourth Five Year Plan, 1945-1950:
Fourth Five Year Plan led to…
extremely high levels of industrial growth
Under the Fourth Five Year Plan, __ per cent of investment went into _____ _____
88
heavy
industry
How much did industrial output increase by under the Fourth Five Year Plan
80 per cent (from 1945-50)
Soviet post-war plans continued to focus on…
military spending
Emergence of Cold War in 1946 led to…
expansion of the Soviet military
Consumer goods
Production increased
However FYP focused mainly on heavy industry
Only 12% of the Fourth Five Year Plan food production
Although production of consumer goods doubled, they continued to be scarce
Reconstruction focused on factories rather than homes
Consumer goods
Production increased
However FYP focused mainly on heavy industry
Only 12% of investment went into consumer goods like food production
Although production of consumer goods doubled, they continued to be scarce
Reconstruction focused on factories rather than homes
Employment
Wages were kept low.
Made money more available for reconstruction
Women were forced to go out to work because their families needed income
Stalin recognized that women were vital for the reconstruction of soviet industry
Again, the FYP was full of inefficiencies and issues, nonetheless the economy was the fastest growing economy in the world
Although there was still major shortages of consumer goods and housing
Soviet agriculture recovered ______ from the impact of the war
slowly
Stalin’s top economic priorities after the war was…
industrial reconstruction
Stalin’s top economic priorities after the war was industrial reconstruction. What happened as a result of this in relation to agriculture?
As a result, Soviet agriculture suffered shortages pf resources and workers from 1946 to 1949
After war was over, Stalin re-imposed…
strict discipline over soviet farms
