theme 1: government 1917-85 Flashcards
by what year was Russia a communist one part state?
1922
how did Bolsheviks prevent other political parties gaining influence?
banned bourgeois from voting (did not agree with Bolsheviks seeing as they were redistributing bourgeois possessions)
did not allow other parties to publish their own newspapers
april 1921 stated SRs’ and mensheviks belonged in prison
1921 other parties banned
why and when was treaty of brest litovsk signed and what were its consequences
lenin needed troops out of WW1 so they can fight in civil war. 1918
Russia lost control over Baltic states and lots of land and industry. was humiliating and created enemies
constituent assembly January 1918?
socialist revolutionaries gained more votes than bolsheviks, lenin shut down assembly and condemned it an instrument of the bourgeoisie
how did the civil war consolidate bolshvik power
they had won over the whites. people unlikely to switch sides and not be a Bolshevik because of their experiences in the civil war
how did stalin undermine trotsky
stopped lenins testament being read out stating preference for Trotsky
supposedly caused him to miss lenins funeral
trotsky wanted nep discontinued, used this to make him seem against lenin and expel him from the party
how did stalin undermine bukharin
stressed bukharins disagreements with lenin from early 1920s
accused him of Trotskyism as he criticised the increasing bureaucracy of the party
accused him of forming factions after he had a secret meeting with Zinoviev and Kamenev in 1928
how did stalin use his position as general secretary?
had access to files of everyone
controlled all the jobs so most people owed their positions to stalin
what did Khrushchev do to consolidate power?
arrested and executed beria so Khrushchev could have real power in collective leadership after stalins death
how did Brezhnev consolidate power?
sidelined potential rivals in the politburo and gave them less central and less important roles within the party
following the civil war what was power like under lenin
highly centralised due to need for quick decisions in civil war.
organisations that genuinely represented the people (trade unions and soviets) were bought under control and then sidelines
political opponents removed but debate was allowed
what happened in the tenth party congress
- banned factions in “one party unity” as growth in membership posed threat to party stability
what was the structure of government?
all Russian congress of soviets elected central executive committee which elected the sovnarkom
what was the structure of the party?
party congress elected the central committee which elected the politburo
what was the role of the sovnarkom
also known as the council of peoples commissars. in theory in charge of making key decisions and passing gov orders. 20 members
what was the role of the central executive committee
coordinated admin and law making process. in practice rubber stamped orders from sovnarkom
what was the role of the all Russian congress of soviets
members were elected by local soviets. supposed to approve laws from sovnarkom. in practice also rubber stamped laws. late 1920s all congress representatives had to be communist party members
what was the role of the politburo
7-9 members met daily. filled in for slower central committee and made all key decisions
what was the role of the central committee
power delegated o politburo. didn’t really do anything
what was the role of the party congress?
discussed general programme of the party but didn’t do much. little discussion
what was democratic centralism and what was the reality
all decisions were made in the interest of the people and those decisions were passed onto regional and local levels and implemented. in reality Bolsheviks rules by decree where soviets were not involved in decision making
what was the nomenklatura system
list of names of approved party members. jobs and promotions allocated via this list. encouraged loyalty
when was the soviet state renamed the union of soviet socialist republics (USSR)
- this confirmed the power of the communist party
where did power lie under stalin
shifted power from party to the state. 1938 politburo most powerful, by 1942 the state defence committee was the most powerful and senior
how did stalin deflect competition away from himself
encouraged rivalry between party and state by placing rivals in similar positions either side.
politburo meeting less frequently numbers
1920s met weekly. mid 1930s met 9 times a year
what was the 1936 soviet constitution
named Russia “the most democratic system in the world”. said as bourgeois class had been removed every citizen now had the right to vote and all civil right were given. it was a fraud.
what kept communists in powerful positions under stalin
only communist party members could stand for elections
removal of left and right sides meant the government was full of stalin supporters.
what did stalin keep from lenins government?
the main party structure and the nomenklatura system
in what year was the politburo renamed the presidium and under which leader
- Khrushchev
what went back to how it used to be in terms of government under Khrushchev?
regular meetings of the presidium and central committee resumed
1/2 those elected to central committee in 1952 were removed
debate in the party was allowed
how did government change that wasn’t a reversing of stalins ways?
the central committee was given more authority over government and party structures
decision making was decentralised and more power was given to regional level organisations
what happened in the twenty-second party congress?
1961 -> Khrushchev
stalins body was removed from lenins mausoleum
the party was divided into agricultural and industrial sectors
the time any person could spend in their post was limited to 3 years (this was resented and led to his downfall)
what did Brezhnev reverse that Khrushchev had done?
division of agriculture and industry dropped
dropped limits of tenure in office
what did the soviet constitution of 1977 give citizens the right to?
the right to criticise ineffective party secretaries
what did article 6 do under brezhnev
gave communist party power over the state
what did Brezhnev emerge as in 1966
the first among equals. however he still discussed important matters with colleagues and the politburo
what happened at the 23rd party congress and what year did it happen ?
- so little discussion nicknamed the congress of silence.
who was chenenko like in terms of government structre?
brezhnev
what did anropov do?
he recognised the need to reform and wanted to get rid of the corruption under Brezhnev
what was lenins ideology?
followed Marxism but recognised a need fro total control to get the country into a position to withstand communism. which is why he allowed terror
Communism through Socialism [Marxist Ideology]
what caused debate in lenins government?
factions
what was stalins idea and how did it contradict trotskys
Trotsky believed in causing a socialist world revolution before industrialising their own country. stalin believed in “socialism in one country” where the country would industrialise first before trying to spread socialism and communism
example of khrushchevs erratic and unpredictable nature
1960 UN debate he banged his shoe on his desk.
when did Khrushchev become prime minister as well as general secretary and what did this mirror
- mirrored stalin-like power
how can Brezhnev’s government be described?
oligarchy (run by small elite)
gerontocracy (run by old people)
stagnant (no longer growing or improving))
corrupt (nepotism and internal promotion was rife)
example of Brezhnev being vain
awarded himself 100+ medals. became the butt of many jokes
chenenko description
in his 70s. dying of emphysema. Brezhnev man. died march 1985
Andropov description
tried to fix corruption but was too ill and lacked charm
Chistka under lenin
1918 and another in the early 1920s. about 1/3 party purged under lenin. non violent usually just handed in membership and were expelled from the party
when did terror start
civil war
what happened to political terror after civil war
turned bureaucratic and had periodic purges of the party. achieved so effectively that party could significantly expand without sacrificing unity or conformity
stalin chistka when was it and why did it happen
1932-35 in response to difficulties with 5 year plan and collectivisation where local officials ignored orders as they were concerned about the speed of implementation. designed to remove such officials
how many purged in stalins chistka
by 1935 22% party removed. essentially non violent. showed mounting opposition to stalin
how were the 1930s purges within the party escalated?
stain set quotas for the percentage of each party branch to be identified as enemies of the people
what were the accusations people faced in stalins political purges?
one victim accused of plotting against the state in a hotel that was not yet built. reflected stalins paranoid nature
examples of mounting criticism against stalin that caused the great purge
- 1932 ryutin issued document accusing stalin of building a personal dictatorship and called for him to be removed from power
- stalins wife raised concerns of brutal enforcement of collectivisation before committing suicide
- party officials criticised unrealistic production targets of 5 year plans
what event led to the murder of kirov
17th party congress, Kirov voiced concerns of production targets and 5 year plan to standing ovation.
when was Kirov murdered and what did this lead to?
- purging large sections of the party
who were first arrested and scentenced for kirovs muder?
Kamenev and zionviev in 1935
what were show trials
trials that were filmed and recorded and relayed to the soviet population via radio and tv. the accused usually confessed often due to torture. death penalty met guilty verdicts
trial of the sixteen
1936 purge of leaders of the left including zionviev, Kamenev. accused of undermining the state with Trotsky. confessed under pressure from NKVD
trial of the seventeen
- purge of party officials accused of working for Trotsky and foreign governments to undermine soviet gov. real rime was criticising the 5 year plans
trial of the twenty-one
1938 purged of the right. Bukharin and rykov accused of forming a ‘Trotskyite rightist block’ both confessed. tomsky committed suicide before trial
Shakhty trial
- managers and technical experts put on trial for holding back the process of industrialisation. used to send threat about if a lack commitment was shown
purge of the red army numbers
1937-1938 3/5 marshals. 14/16 commanders. 35000 officers shot or imprisoned. every naval admiral
why was the army targeted?
they were critical of the demoralising effect of collectivisation
purge of the secret policenumbers.
undedr yezhov 3,000 of his own personnel purged in his first 6 months 1936
when were how Trotsky assassinated?
1940 mexico ice pick
evidence of stains new major purge of what and when?
“Doctors plot” 1953. prelude of campaign against jews. attack on people of beria’s nationality. warning to beria who had a lot of power
how many prisoners did Khrushchev release and why wasn’t it that great
2 million 1953-1960. process was slow even though numbers were significant
what did heavy punishments remain for under krushchev?
corruption and criticism out of the party’s boundaries
how did Brezhnev deal with people within the government who would previously be purged?
people were side ined and given less important jobs within the party
what did the congress of silence 1966 show?
the nature of party was conservative and cautious due to high and sophisticated surveillance
