The Nature of Government under Lenin / Stalin in Power)

Question 1

What did the Party Congress of 1921 do?

Answer 1

Address the CRISIS created by the Civil War:

War Communism: created famine.
Red Terror: backlash against Communist repression.

Question 2

What were some of the aspects of the crisis following the Civil War?

Answer 2

• From autumn of 1920: peasants in Tambov rebelled against War Communism and Cheka brutality— by Jan 1921: a rebel force of 50,000 was fighting the Commies across the whole Tambov region

• early 1921: wave of strikes across Russia’s main cities:
— Petrograd: Red Army responded by opening fire on unarmed workers

• sailors at the Kronstadt naval base rebelled against communist brutality. Demanded an end to War Communism, a restoration of democracy

Question 3

How did Lenin respond to the crises, during the party Congress of 1921?

Answer 3

Replaced War Communism with the NEP

BUT continued to persecute other political parties ; refuse a return to democracy

Question 4

What oppositions did Lenin face within the party?

Answer 4

Two factions:

• Workers’ Opposition— reintroduce Workers’ control of industry
• Democratic Centralists— make the Communist Party more Democratic

Question 5

How did Lenin respond to the 2 opposing factions in the party?

What effect did this have?

Answer 5

• Tightened communist political control.
• Introduced resolution: “On Party Unity”— banned factions inside the party on pain of expulsion.
• helped strengthen Lenin’s position within the party: made opposition to his policies more difficult to organise
• YET still debate within the party on key issues, eg. economic party

Question 6

What was Lenin’s legacy?

Answer 6

Died in 1924–
Left behind a HIGHLY AUTHORITARIAN POLITICAL LEGACY

✅ succeeded in creating a dictatorship of the proletariat to defend the revolution
❌ destroyed soviet democracy, replaced it with a one-party state

Question 7

What happened to the Sovnarkom under Lenin?

Answer 7

He didn’t abolish it, but it ceased to function as the main centre of government

From 1920: the Politburo effectively became the Government of Russia—
Sovnarkom? Much smaller role: approved the decisions that the Politburo made.

Question 8

What was the “party-state”?

Answer 8

By 1921, the new gov based on two parallel structures:

1) the Communist Party
2) the Soviet State

From 1921: opposition parties formally banned.
SO
Communist Party dominated the Soviets— created a new form of government, the “party-state”

Question 9

What was the new elite after the Civil War changed the nature of the Communist Party?

Answer 9

1918– a group of workers and revolutionaries
1921– increasingly dominated by administrators from the former middle class

MOREOVER

Party used its power to ensure Communist Party members received:
- more food
- better accommodation
Than ordinary workers

By early 1920s: although the Party claimed to rule on behalf of the workers, it was becoming a privileged new elite.

Question 10

Sum up Stalin’s time in power

Answer 10

Between 1928-53:

• transformed the government
• violent purges (Great Terror)— created a PERSONAL DICTATORSHIP

Question 11

Between 1923-28, what was Stalin up to?

Answer 11

Engaged in a power struggle against Trotsky, Bukharin, Zinoviev

Question 12

How did Stalin win the power struggle?

These techniques CONTINUED to be the BASIS of his DOMINANCE throughout his RULE

Answer 12

Series of tactics:
• only he was true Leninist: changed the nature of the party— a new ideological orthodoxy established
• dominance over the Politburo: expelled his main rivals and packed it with supporters (Lenin— free to debate)
• PATRONAGE:
- General Secretary— give well paid/powerful jobs to his supporters
- Rabkrin head— power to investigate/sack Party members/gov officials
Could count on loyalty^^^
• establishes the principle that Stalin had the right to use terror against disloyalty

Question 13

What did the Purges of the 1930s do?

Answer 13

Consolidated Stalin’s hold on power

Question 14

What were the causes of the Purges of the 1930s?

Answer 14

1928– undisputed leader of the party and union.
^^ expelled Trotsky, placed Zinoviev under house arrest

YET

• Party still full of people who had supported his rivals —> feared he would lose power
• his economic policies created economic chaos
• Kirov (Leningrad head) emerged as a popular figure within the Party

Question 15

What was the extent of the Purges in the 1930s?

Answer 15

Stalin responded to his perceived threats by launching the Great Terror / Great Purge — campaign of ARRESTS, TORTURE, MASS IMPRISONMENT, EXECUTIONS, that finally removed his opponents

@ height from 1935-38

• responsible for the deaths of around 10 million soviet citizens— about 10% of population.

Question 16

What were the political consequences of the Great Purge?

Answer 16

Eliminated his old rivals

Most public aspect? Three SHOW TRIALS: 1936, 1937, 1938— humiliation and execution of Bukharin, Zinoviev and Trotsky’s main supporters

At a deeper level? Death or imprisonment of a whole GENERATION of Communists who had known/worked with Lenin—>
Stalin would appoint a new generation of Party leaders who owed their positions to HIM, loyal to only HIM

By mid 1930s—> his position wholly secure

Question 17

What did the Great Terror lead to, in terms of government?

Answer 17

Important change in Soviet government.

LENIN: ruled through the Party, allowed debate at the top (even worked with a range of Communists— eg. Bukharin, Trotsky— who had radically different visions)

STALIN: terrorised the Party— ended Party rule, established Stalin rule: Party and state had very limited authority.
By 1935– neither Party nor state could oppose him.