January 21, 1924 Vladimir Lenin, who started Russia’s Communism, dies January 21, 1924 – March 5, 1953 Joseph Stalin begins to influence the way other countries think of the USSR 1939 The Cold War and WW2 begin with Stalin still in charge September 14, 1953 Nikita Khrushchev and others take the wheel in a collective leadership after Stalin dies SOURCES

Vladimir Lenin Dies November 8, 1917 – January 21, 1924 Lenin was the first Soviet leader He worked to create a socialist economic system which would turn into Communism A civil war broke out during his rule between the Mensheviks (Whites) and Bolsheviks (Reds) U.S.A. and Great Britain supported the Mensheviks with money and troops but they eventually lost to communism Fun Fact: Some American companies like Arm & Hammer and Rockefellers Oil sent money to the Bolsheviks

Stalin Takes The Lead April 3, 1922 – March 5, 1953 Upon taking office Stalin launched “The Great Purge” It aimed to purge the communist party of people accused of sabotage, terrorism, or treachery Foreign response to this was not good, with America opting to send even more money to the Mensheviks

The Cold War & WW2 Begin The Cold War began in 1939 during WW2 Russia concluded the non-aggression pact with Germany and together they proceeded to invade Poland, Finland, the Baltics, Bessarabia, and northern Bukovina In 1941 Germany violated a pact they had with Germany and the USSR joined the Allies side After defeating the Germans there were only 2 world superpowers left, the USSR and USA, because every other country was devastated A 5 part video series on the Cold War after Stalin can be found herehere

Khrushchev and others Take Over He was the party’s First Secretary during the 50’s in a collective leadership, taking over in 1953(55) after Stalin’s death and reigning until 1964 While he was not at the lead directly after Stalin’s death, he certainly had the most impact during this time In 1955 Khrushchev took over after ousting Malenkov At a conference in 1956, he launched an attack on Stalin’s rule, condemning the Great Purge and other atrocities

Khrushchev and others Take Over His speech led to a process called de-Stalinization What de-Stalinization comprised of can be found herehere He sought to end the division of Germany, but nothing of this happened. In my opinion this may have stopped the Cold War if it worked out He improved US relations between by reducing the Soviet army by 1/3. What the US did not know was that the USSR was building a lot of missiles in their place Relations were looking good, with each leader visiting each others country. But this ended with the U-2 incident Khrushchev was forced into retirement by his colleagues in 1964

Sources "Vladmir Lenin." ESSORTMENT. Pagewise, Web. 24 Feb Wikipedia contributors. "Vladimir Lenin." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 22 Feb Web. 24 Feb Wikipedia contributors. "Nikita Khrushchev." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 27 Feb Web. 28 Feb Wikipedia contributors. "Joseph Stalin." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 26 Feb Web. 28 Feb Siegel, Bill. Personal Interview. 24 February 2010.