Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
(1924-1939)
Rise of Stalin
Before 1917 Revolution Stalin helped Lenin
in revolutionary activities
After the October Revolution, he was made
Commissar of Nationalities
During the Civil War, he was successful in
defending Petrograd against the Whites’
attack
At the end of 1923, Lenin was dying. Stalin
allied himself with other prominent figure to
seize power
Lenin died in January, 1924 at the age of
54. It opened the way for Stalin and Trotsky
to struggle for power.
Both Stalin and Trotsky were important
assistants of Lenin
Although Trotsky regarded as ‘ an eminent
mediocrity’, Stalin was in a strong position
since he was the General Secretary of the
party
The Power Struggle
Besides the position in the Party, there were also
ideological conflicts:
Trotsky advocated “Permanent World-wide
Revolution”
He believed that Socialism in Russia could never be
successful until capitalism was overthrown in
surrounding countries
Trotsky’s doctrine conflicted with Stalin’s “Socialism
in one country”
After a three-stages power struggle, Stalin had
established his unchangeable dictatorship
The Five-Year Plans
In order to achieve “Socialism in one
country” and transform Russia into a
modern industrial state, Stalin carried out
the Five –Year Plans
After economic recovery under the NEP, He
abandoned it and embarked on his first
Five-Year Plan in 1928
The First Five Year Plan(1928-
32)
Aim:
1. To develop heavy industry; and
2. establishing collective farms
Priority was given to develop mining,
machinery manufacturing, tractor
production and electricity generating
(Heavy industries)
Collective Farms
In the agricultural field, the small farm
owners allowed to exist under the NEP were
now ordered to surrender all their land and
live-stocks to form collective farms
Peasants were to own and work on these
farms under state directions
Peasants who opposed collectivization were
imprisoned, exiled or even executed
Famine appeared in 1930 since peasant
destroyed their crops and live-stocks
The Second Five-years Plan
(1933-37)
The process of industrialization and collectivization
continued
At first it still stressed heavy industries, but later
turned to light industries, consumer goods and
transportation
The rise of Nazi Germany, Stalin laid greater
emphasis on defense industries
Stalin made some concession to collectivization
since there were strong opposition. Stalin allow
peasants to keep a small piece of land to grow
their own crops
Agricultural production thus increased
The Third Five-year Plan
(1938-1942)
At first it concentrated on the production of
consumer goods
The threat of Nazi Germany and the
outbreak of WWII, the plan shifted to the
production of armaments and defense
Overall Effects
The Five-year Plans had successfully converted
Russia from a backward agricultural country to a
world industrial power
By 1941 industrial production was 9 times that of
1913, the area of cultivation increased by more
than 25% since 1913
The establishment of a planned economy enabled
Russia to prevent unemployment and to get rid of
the disastrous effects of the Great Depression
However, human labour was mercilessly
exploited and personal freedom and even
lives sacrificed
Since the plans emphasized on heavy
industries, the living quality of Russian did
not improve
Quantitatively and qualitatively, by western
criteria, standards of Production were still
low
The Great Purge (1936-38)
Stalin was confident that the elimination of
the “Old Bolsheviks” in the party and army
was the precondition for the establishment
of his personal dictatorship
8 million people were arrested, tried,
sentenced to concentration camps or
executed. Near all those who had worked
with Lenin to make the revolution a success,
with the exception of Stalin, fell victims in
the Great Purge
The Constitution of 1936
Stalin introduced a constitution in 1936 to justify
his personal rule and to give the appearance of
democracy to Western countries
The Supreme Soviet was composed of two
Houses: the Soviets of the union and the Soviet of
Nationalities
Candidates were nominated and voted by citizens
over 18, but the candidates were all from the
Communist Party
The Supreme Soviet had a Presidium. The
Chairman of Presidium was the head of
USSR
The Supreme Soviet also elected a Council
of People’s Commissars
The power held in the hand of the
Communist Party, headed by the
Secretary-General, thus he was the real
ruler of the country
Stalinist Russia - a totalitarian state
State control over economy:
Five-years Plans and Collectivization
State control over society
All decision were made by the Communist
Party
Intellectuals were subject to strict
supervision
Secret police were employed to spy upon
the people
State control over education
All student, teacher and textbooks were
controlled by the Communist Party
Students were taught to loyal to the Party
Foreign policy
Since Stalin’s idea of “Socialism in one state”,
he supported of the Comintern was a low
profile
The rise of Hitler alarmed Stalin, he then
sought a closer relations with the non-Fascist
states
He joined the League of Nations in 1934
He also signed military pacts and non-
aggressive pacts with countries such as
France, Czechoslovakia and Poland