Theme 2 Stalin Flashcards
Why did Stalin change his mind regarding NEP after 1926 in Foreign issues?
There was a strong chance of foreign invasion from 1927.
-British government raided Soviet trade mission in London.
-Chinese communists in Shanghai were ready to attack the USSR.
In response, many hoarded food.
Why did Stalin change his mind regarding NEP after 1926 in Soviet production?
Soviet figures were below western economies in Europe. Stalin wanted to push with the 1st 5 year plan.
State control = government could direct economy to create adequate production and distribution.
Why did Stalin change his mind regarding NEP after 1926 in Political issues ?
Nepmen and kulaks that had benefitted from the NEP would have to replaced as they were not ideologically communist.
Allowed Stalin to reinforce his own power as leadership by arguing NEP was holding back industrialisation of USSR.
Why did Stalin change his mind regarding NEP after 1926 in A change in perception about the role of workers?
Clear that workers control over the economy was inefficient and less productive.
Showed that Lenin’s declaration was naïve and unrealistic.
Did the policies of War Communism and NEP serve their purpose?
War communism successfully allowed the Bolsheviks to secure control from the Civil war at the dispense of extreme loss of life.
the NEP successfully recovered the economy.
Both fulfilled their aims.
What were the Five-Year Plans designed to do?
To industrialise the country as they remained underdeveloped and old-fashioned from Lenin’s leadership.
To break away from the NEP and remove its capitalist elements
How would the FYPs be carried out?
Used mass mobilisation of people and resources to modernise.
Placed under direction of Gosplan (state planning agency) that would set targets for industries to help modernise.
What happened to the Nepmen and ‘bourgeois experts’ under the FYPs?
Five- Year Plans went against NEPMEN. Many forced into joining co-operatives.
Bourgeois experts used in State Capitalism were removed to open up job opportunities for loyal communists.
1928 - Bourgeois experts purged in show trial. Accused of “wrecking” and sabotaging.
What were the aims of the First, Second and Third FYPs?
First (1928-32): Growth in heavy industry (coal, steel, iron). Consumer goods neglected due to need to industrialize.
Second (1933-37): continued from 1st but added a higher focus on military goods.
Third (1938 - 41 (Germany attack)): geared entirely for production of military against Germany.
What evidence can be found of success of the First Plan?
Magnetogorsk = Large industrial cities were built entirely from manpower. Provided new jobs and helped economy. In 3 years, Magnetogorgsk grew to 250,000 inhabitants.
Alexei Stakhanov used as role model for coal production to motivate other workers. Rewards for hard work such as new flat/rations.
What evidence of failure can be found of the First Plan?
-Large building projects failed. White Sea Canal built using slave labour between 1931-32. 10,000 prisoners died. Canal was useless anyway. Propaganda triumph.
-Unrealistic targets set by Gosplan meant that workers and factory managers used bribery and corruption to “fulfill” targets.
-Most produce made in plans were unsatisfactory condition. Quantity over quality. Many tractors made broke down within three days.
What evidence of success can be seen in the Second and Third Plans?
- Coal production and chemical industry greatly increased
- Industry was moved around the country or better distribution in case of attack. e.g. in Ural Mountains.
- Machinery production greatly over fulfilled quota.
- Growth in the transport and engineering industry.
- 4x increase in steel production and 6x in coal production between 1928-41.
- Dnieper Dam successfully built. Provided power to the people.
- Footwear production increased
What evidence of failure can be seen in the Second and Third Plans?
- Oil production remained low
- Low consumer goods
- Despite large increase in machinery, little metal produced. (faked statistics)
Overall, how successful were the Five Year Plans between 1928 and 1941?
Showed the foreign superpowers that the USSR could fend for themselves.
Made an undoubtedly large step in fixing the economy by sacrificing the people. Slave labour heavily used and many were purged or send into slave labour.
Why was collectivisation needed with reference to development of industry?
A modern economic base was needed to help defend the USSR against foreign powers. Industry could not develop without the development of agriculture to create sufficient food and resources. Food could also be exported for money or machines for industry.
Why was collectivisation carried out in reference to ‘the economic case’?
Small individual farms were very inefficient compared to Europe. The groupings of farms through collectives meant they could share livestock and machinery and therefore make it more cost effective.
Why was collectivisation carried out in reference to politics?
Helped extend the communist ideology to the countryside to reinforce the control of the party.
Gave the opportunity to remove the richer peasants “Kulaks” which were less ideologically communist as they benefitted from the NEP.
How was collectivisation carried out?
Stages:
-15th party congress decided on voluntary collectivisation but was ended in 1928 due to food shortages. Forced to seize grain to feed people.
- “Liquidating the kulaks” Stalin removed any of the richer peasants as a class.
- Party officials sent to villages to influence people into signing up for collectives.
-MTS Stations
What are MTS?
Machine and Tractor Stations
They were governmentally run establishments that supplied the farming machinery (such as tractors) to collective farms. They gave advice on farming and political lectures to teach the benefits of socialism and collectivisation.
Peasant resistance to the collective farms?
-dekulakisation squads were used to remove those who did not join
- peasants set fire to their farms and killed their own livestock so as to not hand it into the state.
- “Kulaks” later began to be anyone who did not agree to join a collective.
- The OGPU deported some of those who did not join to remote locations and labour camps.
What evidence is there of success in collectivisation?
- Not the greatest decline in food but not good due to grain seizure from the government.
- Achieved the ideological aim for collectives through working together on collective farms.
What evidence is there of failure in collectivisation?
- Removal of Kulaks mean the removal of the more experienced and productive farmers.
- The burning of crops and murder of livestock impacted the supplies for the collectives.
- Number of Cattle halved between 1928 - 1933.
- Grain production fell from 73 million tonnes in 1928 to 67.6 million in 1934. Not enough to feed army and people.
- The people of rural USSR had severe famines.
- Holodomor (literally meaning murder by starvation) in Ukraine between 1932-33 had 3.9 million deaths. Resorted to cannibalism and eating own children.
Economic successes during WW2?
-73,000 Tanks and 94,000 aircraft made during 1943-45 to aid the war.
-Some tinned meat was imported from Britain under Lend-Lease scheme.
- “Link System” in place for peasants to receive some of their excess profit from the collectives.
Economic failures during WW2?
-Virtually no production of consumer goods.
-Steel production fell to only 12 tonnes in 1945 compared to 19 million in 1940.
-Agriculture struggled as able bodied men went coscript in the army.
-Grain fell from 95 million to 30 million between 1940 and 1942.
-25 million people homeless
-70,000 villages destroyed.
