To what extent can the Purges be explained by Stalin’s desire for ‘absolute power’?

Question 1

POWER

Answer 1

Wanted to bring the Party under control.
 Felt threatened by opposition.
 Stalin wanted absolute power and control of all people at all levels.
 Terror prevented criticism of the leadership and therefore made
Stalin more powerful.
 The “top down” view – Stalin intended to kill his opponents to
increase his personal power.
 Use of high profile Show Trials such as Zinoviev and Kamenev and
Bukharin.
 The assassination of Kirov and Stalin’s use of this to instigate the
Show Trials – purging Leningrad party − plotting terrorist attacks discovered – but extends to thousands more and unjustified, thus no- one felt safe as even the party was being purged.
 Debatable who was behind the Kirov murder – the murder provided a good excuse for the Purges – if the Party leadership (Stalin) was behind it, Purges came from above, if not, Party members destroying each other – leadership forced to cover-up inner destruction of the Party and carry out the Purges.
 The elimination of Party members who were not ‘faithful’ − Stalin worried about spies and traitors and the effect of denouncing was to allow old grudges to be settled and extend his control. This even included the Head of the NKVD, Yagoda.
 Stalin wanted to remove anyone who could form an alternative government.

Question 2

PARANOIA

Answer 2

Evidence of paranoia.
 The terror for all … reasons becoming so arbitrary – telling a joke
against Stalin, being the fiend of someone arrested.
 Stalin’s personality – vengeful and paranoid especially after suicide of
his wife in 1932 – as he believed others around him would try to
betray him.

Question 3

eCONOMIC

Answer 3

 Purges provided slave labour in and from the Gulags.
 External threats, reaction to the threat of war. Strong heavy industry
base needed for arms industry.
 The pace of industrialisation had to quicken and more
workers/prisoners needed.
 Mid-1930s, Five-Year Plans falling behind schedule – downturn in the
Soviet economy after 1936 because of technical problems, Stalin’s
management of the economy, and a bad harvest that year.
 Purges used to blame “scapegoats” for economic failures.
 Poor economic progress + conditions were enemy sabotage and
wrecking.
 Purges used to push an unwilling people to work even harder already
suffering from impact of First Five-Year Plan.
 Tension between workers and managers because of Stakhanovite
campaign of 1936 – centre wanted to encourage workers to produce more and to put pressure on managers by demanding tools + materials: if managers did not respond denounced by workers.

Question 4

Role of the Party & NKVD

Answer 4

Stalin replaced Yagoda who was criticised for not finding enemies of the people quickly enough.
 Yezhov instigated period of terror called Yezhovshchina (known by Western historians as the Great Purge) – reached height in mid-1937 and lasted until 1938.
 Purges sustained the importance of the NKVD and they increased the scope of Purges.
 People looked for personal gain from Purges – denounced others.
 Caused by Lower Party (Local Level) – little control from top people
denouncing others for their own advantage.
 Show Trials not from thin air: Trotsky formed “bloc” = threat.
 Wanted party to be always insecure so kept control – especially with
the nomenklatura around the Central Committee: lieutenants not
sure who Stalin would adopt as “his people”.
 Central Party’s lack of control over local party branches.
Page 171
 Local Party often had conflicting interests with the Central Party, eg to find Kulaks, valuable men to community: local party bosses wanted to reach production targets.
 By 1939, less than 20% of the membership at the beginning of 1921 remained – but over 70% of 1939 members had been recruited since 1929.
 Encouraged lower levels of the party to criticise those higher up = rush of accusations which got out of control and developed a momentum of their own.
 Campaign encouraging people to criticise officials = to deflect criticism from government.
 People forced to look after their own interests, so difficult to unite with each other.
 In some ways responsible for the spread of terror to such an extent as people encouraged to denounce others.

Question 5

R Service

Answer 5

Stalin’s personality determined the form the Great Purges took.

Question 6

S Cohen

Answer 6

states that Stalin wanted to rid himself of the Bolshevik Party.

Question 7

S Fitzpatrick

Answer 7

Argues that the Purges came from “below” – the Purges were the result of decisions made by the Communist leadership in reaction to a series of crises in the mid-1930s.