Lenin to Stalin

Stalin: Background Returned to Russia after 1917 February Revolution from Siberia Became editor of Pravada Played little part in the October Revolution (his role was later exaggarated by Propaganda) After the revolution he was appointed Commissar for Nationalities Served in Civil War as a Commander Came into conflict with Trotsky 1922 Appointed General Secretary of Communist Party-Used this position to build his power Appointed his supporters in important positions

v. When Lenin died there was a power struggle between Stalin and Trotsky Trotsky had advantages: - he had commanded the Red Guards in the October Revolution of 1917 - he had led the Red Army in the Civil War - He was a good organiser and good speak But he was arrogant

Stalin was under-estimated - he was General Secretary of the Communist Party. He used this position to place loyal followers in important positions in the Party - he was Commissar of Nationalities, which linked him to various nationalities of Russia - he used clever political tactics-he joined with two of the Communist leaders, Zinoviev and Kamenev, in opposition to Trotsky. - Zinoviev and Kamenev agreed not to publish Lenin’s Testament which spoke out against Stalin

Russia after Lenin’s death Russia at this time needed to restore and develop its rural economy If this development was achieved, the large working class would support Communist regime This would also support a military that could defend against its enemies

4. Trotsky and Stalin had different policies Trotsky favoured the policy of permanent revolution, in which workers in other countries would be encouraged to revolt and spread communism. However many believed that change needed to be slow Stalin believed in ‘Socialism in One Country’-that the Soviet Union should be built into a modern, industrial state Stalin’s policy was more popular and was accepted by party members in 1925 because Russia had suffered enough

Stalin v. Trotsky Stalin turned against Zinoviev and Kamenev. Trotsky was stripped of party membership and fled into exile in 1929 He was later murdered in Mexico by an agent working for Stalin Stalin was now in complete control of the Communist Party and ready to transform USSR

Stalin becomes Dictator Stalin was cold, hard and impersonal After forcing Trotsky out Stalin focused on Russia’s development His first steps was to build the USSR’s coal and iron industries and to develop public works like roads and canals

Stalin’s Totalitarian State Stalin transformed Russia into a Totalitarian state Totalitarianism described a government that takes total control over every aspect of public and private life Stalin proposed to end NEP introduced by Lenin

Stalin’s Economic Reforms Lenin’s NEP was a mixture of free enterprise and state control Stalin’s economic policy called for total state control He called for a command economy, which is a system where the government makes all economic decisions

USSR’s Industrial Revolution In 1928, Stalin outlined the 1st of many five-year plans for development of the USSR’s economy The five-year plans set unrealistic quotas to increase the output of steel, coal, oil, and electricity

USSR’s Industrial Revolution cont… The government set unrealistic quotas on consumer production People faced shortages of housing, food, clothing and other goods The gov’t controlled every aspect of the worker’s life, which took a toll on peoples personal lives From 1928-1937, industrial production increased by 25%

Agricultural Revolution In 1925, the gov’t seized 25 million privately owned farms The gov’t combined them into collective farms Peasants resisted the gov’t and Stalin used terror and violence to force the peasants to work

Agricultural Revolution The kulaks, a wealthy class of peasants, resisted heavily and the gov’t executed them or sent them into exile By 1938, more then 90% of peasants lived on collective farms and agricultural production was twice what it had been in 1928

Weapons of Totalitarianism Police Terror Dictators of totalitarian states uses terror and violence to force obedience Monitored telephone lines, read mail, planted informers Lavrent Beria (right): head of secret police

Weapons of Totalitarianism In 1934, Stalin launched the Great Purge, a campaign of terror that was directed at eliminating anyone who threatened his power When the Great Purge ended in 1939, Stalin gained total control of both the Soviet government and the Communist Party

Weapons of Totalitarianism 2) Indoctrination and Propaganda Totalitarian states rely on indoctrination or instruction on the govt’s set of beliefs, to mold people’s minds Party leaders lectured workers and peasants on the ideals of communism The State supported youth groups and used them as training grounds for future party members

Weapons of Totalitarianism Soviet newspapers and radio broadcasts glorified the achievements of Communism and Stalin

Weapons of Totalitarianism 3) Censorship Stalin would not tolerate any individual that threatened his regime Gov’t controlled all newspapers, motion pictures, radio and other sources of information

Weapons of Totalitarianism 4) Religious Persecution Communists aimed to replace religious teachings with the ideals of Communism The Russian Orthodox Church was the main target of persecution Roman Catholics and Jews were also persecuted

Daily Life for Women Under Stalin With the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, women won equal rights Women had new educational opportunities, but were still responsible for their household duties Women were supposed to provide the state with future generations of obedient citizens

Education The government controlled all education from nursery school to the university School children learned the virtues of the Communist Party The party also set up youth programs called Komsomols

Agricultural Rev cont. The kulaks, a wealthy class of peasants, resisted heavily and the gov’t executed them or sent them into exile By 1938, more then 90% of peasants lived on collective farms and agricultural production was twice what it had been in 1928

Collectivisation Stalin believed peasants were hoarding grain and reducing production to push prices up. He also wanted 25 million workers for industry Collective farms (kolkhoz) Kulaks preferred to destroy their farms than give them up. Over 5 million were executed or deported. Agricultural production dropped as farmers did little on the collectives. 1932-33 about 10 million died of famine as a result of this and bad harvests. Eventually things improved but never reached targets

Second Plan 1933-38 Focus on heavy industry and agricultural equipment continued. Extra pay, holidays and prizes for great workers. Stakhanov (15 times his quota-mined 102 tons of coal during a six hour shift) became a national hero Huge hours, accidents common, dreadful conditions. Unemployment not tolerated. Scale of projects (Magnitogorsk-a new industrial city that employed 45,000 by 1939) was enormous The Third Plan started to produce radios, bicycles and other household goods but war put an end to that.

Assessment Great success economically. Human cost huge. Full employment did mean a better standard of living. Figures were often exaggerated. Quality of goods often poor. Big emphasis on education