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RUSSIA AND THE SOVIET UNION 1917-1941Bolshevik consolidation of powerBolshevik ideology, November coup 1917, early Soviet governmentBolshevik ideologyBrief period of revolution, keeping the party as a tightly disciplined elite group, enlisting peasant support, and sparking world revolution. (Opposed to the Mensheviks, who believed in eventual introduction of socialism and a broad base of membership).November coup 1917The Bolsheviks overthrew the Provisional Government on 6 November 1917, a coup organized by Trotsky. No shots were fired as the Bolsheviks took over key buildings that night. On 7 Nov, he Bolsheviks fired blanks at the Winter Palace from the battle cruiser Aurora. The PG’s little defence was forced to surrender, and the PG was arrested with little resistance.Early Soviet governmentBolsheviks set up the Council of People’s Commissars (SOVNARCOM) and created the Soviet Constitution in 1918, creating the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic. At first, there was a ‘dictatorship of the proletariat’ where the government took stern measures against counter-revolutionaries. There were less than a quarter of a million Communists, but they were well organized and trained. The Politbureau took most decisions and held most power. The Cheka were the secret police, and caused great terror, executing 50,000 by the end of 1918. The Constituent Assembly was allowed to meet once, but after the Social Revolutionaries refused to recognise the Communists as Russia’s rulers, the doors were shut and guarded by machine gunners, and it was never allowed to meet again.Pipes: ‘The machine gun became for them the principle instrument of political persuasion...’Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Civil War, NEPTreaty of Brest-Litovsk Signed between Russia and Germany on 3 March 1918 to end Russia’s participation in WWI. Caused Soviet to split into 3 factions: Bolsheviks (wanted peace), Left Communists (revolutionary war), and Mensheviks (wanted neither).Russia lost a lot of land, became cut off from the Black Sea, and paid six thousand million marks.Lost 30% of population and agricultural land, 50% of industrial undertakings and 90% of coal mines.Civil WarBegan in early 1918.Trotsky commanded better fed and ruthlessly disciplined (e.g. death penalty, conscription) Red Army.Bolsheviks fought the Whites—liberals, monarchists, foreign powers (British, French, Japanese, Americans, Germans, Poles, etc.), Czech Legion (ex POWs).Whites fought under separate commands and were separated by distance.Britain, France and America fought to keep Germany from capturing supplies sent to Russia, and Japan wanted power in the east.Lenin: ‘The civil war... increased the devastation of the country... bled the proletariat... further retarded the restoration of transport and industry...’New Economic PolicyWar Communism: Due to shortages in the Civil War, industries were nationalised to produce necessary goods. Workers needed a worker’s book to obtain good, clothes, fuel and housing. Starvation and inflation was rampant, soldiers forced peasants to give grain. Lenin: ‘We were forced to resort to ‘War Communism’ by war and ruin... it was a temporary measure...’1921: Kronstadt naval base soldiers mutinied and demanded rights and freedom.After civil war, War Communism was replaced by the NEP which controlled foreign policy, trade, economy and defence.Small businesses were allowed and profits could be made. Grain requisitioning was replaced by tax, and peasants could profit off surplus crops.Maximum 8-hour working day, better working conditionsDiscontent declined; but communist ideals, international revolution, and heavy industry was neglected. By 1924, trade remained costly and inefficient and working conditions were declining.Bolsheviks and power struggle following Lenin’s deathImpact of Bolshevik consolidation of power (creation of the USSR)By early 1920s, the ban on factionalism and the civil war had centralised power. Party leader power increased, and ordinary member influence decreased. Isaac Deutscher: ‘The leading bodies of the party were now top-heavy...’Three new party bodies were created: Politburo (key decisions), Orgburo (overseeing party efficiency), and Secretariat (record-keeping, allocating jobs and membership)The Secretariat was important as it controlled who was in power. David Christian: ‘...the Secretariat’s control of the apparat... gave it control of all key positions in Soviet society.'Trotsky disagreed with the Party’s bureaucratization, believing the Secretariat had too much power. Trotsky: ‘The bureaucratization of the Party... has developed to unheard-of proportions... Party workers... assuming that the secretarial hierarchy... creates Party opinion and Party decisions.’Democratic centralism was replaced by bureaucracy, which was of great benefit to Stalin due to his role in the Secretariat.Power struggle between Stalin, Trotsky and other figures in the 1920sAfter Lenin’s death in 1924, the main Bolshevik leaders were Trotsky, Zinoviev, Kamenev, Bukharin and Stalin.It was believed that Trotsky would take power because he was the best known communist leader (e.g. due to the 1905 Soviet, 1917 revolution, the Civil War).Stalin was described as ‘the Party’s most eminent mediocrity’ by Trotsky and ‘the least prominent figure in the Politburo’ by R. Medvedev.In Lenin’s last will and testament, Trotsky was praised as ‘the most capable man in the present C.C.’ while Stalin was condemned as ‘...too rude... intolerable as a Secretary-General.’ Reasons for the emergence of Stalin as a leader by the late 1920sStalin understood the significance of the Party becoming more hierarchical and bureaucratic, and used this to manoeuvre himself into powerful positions. He also took on tedious but important roles that no one else would. I. Deutscher: ‘[Stalin] was immersed in the party’s daily drudgery... [Stalin] packed the offices with his friends... [The Secretariat] had the power to order members to change their occupation... [Stalin] was also responsible for the appointment of provincial party leaders.’ I. Deutscher: ‘In the offices of the General Secretariat resided the more material power of management and direction.’Powerful positions:Commissar of Nationalities (time spent in regional areas allowed him to build up contacts and support across Russia)Head of the Commissariat of the Workers’ and Peasants’ Inspectorate (oversaw workings of entire government)General-Secretary (in charge of promotions, demotions and party appointments)Zinoviev and Kamenev saw themselves sharing leadership with Stalin, so they defended him, saying he had improved since the testament was written.I. Deutscher: ‘What made for the solidarity of the three men was their determination to prevent Trotsky from succeeding to the leadership of the party.’Trotsky’s reputation was destroyed—his disagreement with the Party’s bureaucratic and dictatorial methods and want for a democratic party/free discussion was interpreted as a threat to party unity, and he was ill and absent from Lenin’s funeral.Trotsky was seen as too powerful to be Lenin’s heir, and his power base lay among ordinary party members outside of the organisation.The Soviet State under StalinNature of the USSR under StalinDictatorship and totalitarianism (crunchy ice equals terrific advantage)Friedrich and Brzezinski’s book ‘Totalitarian dictatorship and autocracy’ has a model for a totalitarian regime with five criteria: Charismatic leader heading a single party, party ideology, state economic control, state use of terror, and party control of armed forces.Charismatic leader heading a single party: Stalin was quiet, reserved and a poor public speaker due to his Georgian accent. R. Medvedev: ‘Closed-mouth and reserved... poor public speaker... spoke in a low voice with a strong Caucasian accent...’His personality cult, however, portrayed him as charming and charismatic through propaganda. He led a single party, as opposition against and within the Party was banned and removed by the purges.Party ideology: Placed value on serving and industrialising the nation, used to justify Stalin’s actions and motivate individuals. Replaced traditional religion (churches were vandalised and priests arrested) and Stalin’s picture was required to be in every home.State economic control: State control over the economy was demonstrated and increased by collectivisation, the five-year plans, and worker’s books (which were needed for food, fuel and lodgings)State use of terror: The purges of the 1930s and the show trials of 1936-38 are examples of terror, as are the 20 million deaths that had occurred by the end of Stalin’s reign. Terror was enforced during collectivisation, with grain requisitioning and executions of resistance.Party control of armed forces: The armed forces were controlled by Stalin and used to enforce control over all of Russia, e.g. soldiers and secret police used to enforce collectivisation. Stalin killed/purged hundreds of armed forces leaders to prevent resistance and increase control.Economic transformation and its impact on Soviet societyCollectivisation Why? To industrialise, increase state control, centralise the economy, increase output.Peasants had to give up their farms and join collectives—village farms run by a committee who organized farming and sold produce.Kulaks: wealthy peasants, later described any peasants opposing collectivisation, as Stalin said: ‘any peasant who does not sell all his grain to the state.’Kulaks resisted collectivisation by burning crops and killing livestock. I. Deutscher: ‘...the peasantry confronted the Government with desperate opposition... kulaks were deported... In desperation they slaughtered their cattle, smashed implements, and burned crops.’I. Grey: ‘In the first months of 1930 alone 14 million head of cattle were killed... some 67 percent of sheep and goats were slaughtered between 1929 and 1933.’This, and Stalin’s need for scapegoats for Russia’s economic issues, led to the destruction of the kulaks. Stalin said they must be ‘annihilated as a class.’In 1929, armed forces were sent to ‘liquidate the kulaks’. Many were killed, sent to labour camps, or worked in poor countryside conditions.A. Koestler: ‘...there was a crowd of peasants in rags... infants pitiful and terrifying with limbs like sticks... these wretched crowds were kulaks.’Deaths and crop/livestock losses led to poor living conditions, famine and reduced agricultural production—by the end of 1927, food production was 2 million tonnes below what was needed to feed the USSR.Five year plansAimed to develop Russia into a modern industrialised country.Stalin’s policy of ‘Socialism in one country’ meant that Russia had to become self-sustaining to prove that socialism worked.1928: NEP was replaced by first five year plan, setting increase for agriculture and industry. Consumer goods industries developed more slowly.Worker’s book system was brought back pressure put on workers. Hours rose as wages dropped. Rapid urbanisation decreased living conditions and rose crime rates.Official at British Embassy on the five-year plans: ‘...at the centre... human misery, starvation, death and disease...’G. Jones: ‘...it is bread that makes the factory wheels go round, and the Five-Year Plan has destroyed the bread-supplier of Russia.’Best workers were publicly honoured and rewarded to encourage others, e.g. in 1935, Stakhanov produced 102 tonnes of coal in 6 hours, creating Stakhanovite movement who received extra pay, etc.The first plan failed and caused a drop in living standards and morale, food, housing and labour shortages. The next two were more successful, resulting in economic, industrial and military growth, though consumer goods remained scarce. Russia became the 2nd largest power in the world within a decade.Political transformationGrowth of the partyThe Communist Party grew from 350,000 members in 1923 to over a million in 1927. Many members were Stalin’s nominees, and were young, inexperienced, and poorly educated.Use of terrorPurges: execution, imprisonment, dismissal, deportation, forced labour.Stalin: ‘The traitors and spies... must be shot like dirty dogs.’The great purges and terror of the 1930s began with the murder of Sergei Kirov, a popular political rival, in December 1934. (In the 17th Party Congress, Kirov was greeted with applause that equalled that of Stalin’s). Purges of Kirov supporters followed.E. Gazur: ‘Kirov was a much younger man and an eloquent speaker... he possessed a charismatic personality. Unlike Stalin... Kirov was also an ethnic Russian...’According to J. Heidenrich:Kulaks/collectivisation: 7 million deathsGulags: 12 millionPurges: 1.2 millionUnder the NKVD chief Yezhov, officers were given arrest quotas with fixed percentages of those to be killed/jailed.NKVD would arrest and torture opposition.Intellectuals, artists and foreign communists were targeted.People’s feeling of helplessness left Stalin’s power unhindered.H. D’Encausse: ‘...the mutual distrust, the fear of being compromised had isolated every individual.’The purges hugely impacted the armed forces, removing all Soviet fleet admirals, 75 out of 80 Supreme Military Council Members, 14 out of 16 high ranking army commanders, etc. This left Russia militarily weak in the face of WWII.By the end of the purges in 1938, the army, industry and political administration was in chaos.Show trialsFrom 1936-38, major figures underwent staged show trials (e.g. Bukharin, Kamenev, ex NKVD chiefs Yagoda and Yezhov)Physical and psychological torture, or loyalty to Stalin/Communist regime led to confessions of impossible crimes.Accusations were usually sabotage, conspiracy, espionage, terrorism, etc.Victims were usually shot and occasionally imprisoned.Show trials strengthened Stalin’s power by eliminating opposition, discouraging resistance by showing no one was safe, and creating a more unified Russia to prepare for war against Germany or Japan.I. Deutscher: ‘[Senior communists] had to die as traitors... only then could Stalin be sure that their execution would provoke no dangerous revulsion, and that... he himself would be looked upon... as the saviour of the country...’GulagsMillions of purged Russians worked forced labour in Gulag labour camps, where about 12 million died.Projects included building rails and canals, e.g. Belomor Canal, killed 100,000 workers over 20 months of work, most of whom were simply buried in the canal.Propaganda and censorshipStalin’s image was widely shown and promoted (had to be in every home) to portray him as powerful, omnipresent, kind, fair, etc.‘The Short Course on the History of the All-Union Communist Party’ rewrote history to show Stalin’s correctness and central role in the revolution.Workers such as Stakhanov were used to motivate others.Glaulit (Central Censorship Bureau) was created in 1922, allowing total party control of publishing.Richard Pipes said this was reinstituting the ‘preventative censorship’ of tsarism.Social and cultural change Education: Educational disarray economic transformation increased need for technical workers; leading to a stricter, more conservative method of education. An official view of Soviet history was enforced, playing up Stalin’s important role. Students were forced into the Komsomol (Communist Youth League).Women: During the revolution, women’s rights and opportunities were increased. However, easy divorces created broken homes, leaving children homeless and increasing juvenile crime rates. The birth rate was also declining. Due to this, Stalin enforced conservative measures, known as ‘the great retreat’. Abortion was basically outlawed, child support benefits were increased), divorce became more difficult, and NKVD fined parents for unruly children. Culture and the arts: In 1930s, Stalin demanded that the arts (music, paintings, literature, etc.) support the nation, socialism, and goals of the party. This became known as Socialist Realism, announced as the USSR’s official cultural style in 1934. Art was to be optimistic and heroic, teaching people the correct way to think and live. Many even tried to copy Stalin’s writing style. Socialist Realism presented Stalin as wise, powerful and selfless—as the nation’s father.The new elites: The expanding of technical education and party members lost during purges of 1930s allowed young men (mostly of peasant/proletariat background) to step up and rise through the ranks.Soviet Foreign Policy (1917 – 1941)Nature of Soviet foreign policy Soviet need for trade led to Russia forming links with other foreign powers.Britain: In the 1920s, a trade agreement and diplomatic recognition was achieved from Britain. The ‘Zinoviev letter’ (urging for strikes) turned public opinion against Russia and lost the Labour government the upcoming election. This led to the British Arcos Raid of the Soviet trade HQ, and the end of diplomatic relations due to information found.Germany: In the 1920s, the following occurred: trade agreement, diplomatic recognition, cancelling of financial claims, secret military cooperation (German factories and training in Russia, Red Army trained by Germans), Treaty of Berlin (neutrality if other is attacked).German entry into the League of Nations in 1924, the 1936 Anti-Comintern pact (between Germany and Japan) and Western distrust of Russia led to further isolation.W. Churchill: ‘I must confess to the most profound distrust of Russia.’ Russia joined the League of Nations in 1934, which Stalin called ‘the organisational centre for imperialist pacifism’.Stalin sought a British alliance against Germany. Britain refused at first, and later were very slow to negotiate. The Munich conference (Western powers allowed Germany to annex parts of Czechoslovakia) and appeasement policy (Britain and France tried to avoid war by giving Hitler land) convinced Stalin that the West would not stand up to Germany.August 1939: Nazi-Soviet non-aggression pact. If one nation was attacked, other would not support third power. Secret protocols allowed Russia to take over land to the east.Hitler signed to avoid a war on two fronts and take Poland, Stalin signed to create a buffer between him and Germany and to allow Russia to avoid war and consolidate its power.Relations were strained. A Russian attack on Finland interrupted timber supplied to Germany, and Russia claims clashed with German interests in oil fields.By the end of 1940, Hitler ordered an invasion of Russia (Operation Barbarossa).Role of ideology in Soviet foreign policyIdeology gradually became less important as the need for economic recovery and diplomatic relations became more important. National interest was almost always prioritised.W. Churchill: ‘...the key... is Russian national interest.’1910s: Calls for world revolution, Comintern is established to promote this, though it can be argued that the Comintern defended national interest as well. M. Carley: ‘The propaganda was dangerous... The Comintern... was also an instrument of self-defence.’1920s: NEP contradicts socialist ideology for country recovery. ‘Socialism in one country’ replaces world revolution, need for stability leads to Russia gaining diplomatic recognition from all major powers except the US.1930-40s: The Great Depression fans the flame of the revolution, though economic development is still prioritised. Socialist goals are lost in the need for security against Nazism (In 1937, 26.4% of national income was spent on defence).Stalin initially ordered communists in the West to seek revolution and not cooperate against fascism -> Nazi threat -> sought Western alliances -> West was slow, distrustful, and very ideologically different -> sought Nazi alliance. ................
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