Stalin

Иосиф Виссарионович Сталин

Joseph Stalin

The First Five-Year Plans (1928-1933)IndustrialisationAgricultural Reform - Small farms into

collective and state agriculture.Elimination of private enterpriseEducation and TransportThe Second and Third Five-Year Plan (1933-

1938)Assessing the five-year plans

Policies introduced by Stalin

First Five- Year PlanObjectives of this plan were:

The rapid industrialisation of Russia.

The introduction of socialised farming.

Elimination of private enterprise.

Development of education and transport.

Target to keep Soviet Union on track

Stalin believed that attention to education was necessary in order to have a skilled industrial labour force. Improvements in transport would help move raw materials, manufactured products and agricultural produce. In order to reach the required targets, new railway lines were built and the old ones upgraded.

Five-Year Plans

The First Five-Year Plans was used to speed up the industrialisation of the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union had 3 Five-Year Plans from the 1920s to the end of the 1930s.

First Five-Year Plan (1928-1932) focus on heavy industries especially iron and steel.

Output was to be doubled in 5 years for iron and steel production and in electricity, chemicals and engineering.

After some early successes, targets were increased. It was then ordered to be completed in 4 years instead of 5.1932, Stalin announced that the plan was a great success.

But this was not completely true as some targets were not met despite the early successes.

Gave more attention to industries that produced goods such as clothing.

However, from 1934 onwards, the Soviet Union thought than another war might occur, thus, priority was give to industries related to military production.

This emphasis continued under the 3rd Five Year-Plan. Factories were built to the East of the Ural Mountains, where they would be beyond the reach of Western invaders.

Third Five-Year Plan (1938-1942) was disrupted when Germany invaded Soviet Union in 1941. All the country’s resources were focused on defeating the Germans.

Second Five-Year Plan

Great increase in the amount of coal, iron, steel and oil produced. More than 1500 factories and more than 100 new cities were built.

Transport and communication networks were also improved greatly.

Poor work conditions.Labour unrest, as workers protested against their

conditions. Government responded by taking strict disciplinary action again workers who were underperforming/who engaged in sabotage.

System of rewards and training for workers were introduced by the government to meet their targets.

Government started a big campaign to teach the Russian workers new skills. New colleges, schools and universities were built. Primary education made compulsory.

Impact of the Five-Year Plans

Impact of the Five-Year PlansChanging living conditions. Initially industries that produced basic goods were

neglected. The Russians suffered in the bitterly cold winters because they could not buy suitable clothing and their houses were poorly heated. Basic goods were in short supply.

These items had to be rationed. Between 1928-1933, the actual value of the workers’ salaries fell by 50%.

After 1935, situation began to improve. Rationing ended in 1936.

Workers received cheap meals and free uniforms.Free education, subsidised health care and the provision of

extensive leisure facilities, such as cinemas, public parks.Life of Russians were improved.

Collectivise Farms in Russia.Stalin’s Reason:1. If farming methods were improved, fewer people would

be needed to work the land. This meant that some of the people in the countryside would be able to move to the cities to work in the new factories.

2. The farmers would also be able to grow more crops. The Soviet Union would be able to sell the extra crops to other countries. The profit it earned could be used to pay for the building of new factories.

Stalin thought that farms would be more productive if they had bigger plots of land and used modern farming machinery such as tractors and harvesters.

Agriculture Reform

Agriculture Reform

Forced CollectivisationFarmers did not want to change their traditional

way of life. Collectivisation during the civil war years had led to food shortages.

Stalin ordered communist officials to force farmers to hand over their crops.

Farmers assassinate officials.Fewer crops harvested.Stalin blamed the richer land-owning farmers,

kulaks and ordered their elimination. Resistance from land-owners.

Riots & ResistanceFarmers rioted and engaged in armed resistance.Stalin ordered 17million horses be killed so that farmers would

be forced to use tractors. However, there’s not enough tractors to replace the horses that had been killed.

Villagers who did not co-operate were sent to gulags (labour camps).

Severe food shortages occurred Farmers burnt crops and grew less food rather sending them to communist officials. + Natural disasters such as droughts and floods.

Severe famines. Worst Ukraine 1931 (affected whole soviet union)

USA offered food but Stalin rejected. He suppressed info about famine, ordered officials and secret police to take whatever crops left. Stalin even sold some crops to raise money to buy machines from other countries. Estimated more than 10million peasants and their families died.

Impact of collectivisation

Stalin’s power grew stronger in the 1930s. He managed to exercise such tight control over the people that most were afraid of opposing him.

Ruling with terror PurgesSergei Kirov’s murder marked the beginning of Stalin’s

purges.Stalin used his death as excuse to attack his opponents in

the communist party. Arrested followers of Zinoviev. NKVD was given a quota, which meant that they had to

arrest a minimum number of ‘enemies of the people’. Arrested people were usually intellectuals because they were seen as a threat to Stalin’s rule. They were forced to sign confessions and implicate others, who were also arrested.

Stalin’s rule

Fear and Suspicion.People were encouraged to inform on their fellow

workers, neighbours and family members if they made any comments against Stalin or Soviet Union.

No evidence was needed for an arrrest, anyone who had a grudge could get rid of another person by denouncing him to the NKVD.

More than 20million Russians were victims of purges.

No religion practice allowed.Tight control over culture.

Impact of ruling with terror

During the 1930s, paintings shows the leaders of the October Revolution. Stalin is not there, as he did not play an active role in the Revolution. But in many of the paintings, Stalin was portraited as one of the leaders of the October Revolution.

Impact of ruling with terror

Stalin used education as a way to control what people were taught.

History lesson was changed to focus on the importance of Lenin and Stalin.Stalin was shown as having played a key and heroic role during the October Revolution.

Trotsky was presented unfairly or ignored.Strict discipline in schools- teachers and pupils.Many teachers became victims of Stalin’s purges as it

was felt that they had taught the pupils to be anti-Stalin.Arts, Only writer, artists and musicians who made art

praising Stalin and his programs could remain in their jobs.

Education & The arts

Stalin forced authors and artists to depict him in a good light. Paintings were also expected to act as propaganda.

As a result of these restrictions, there was a lack of a variety in the arts in Communist Russia.

Impact of Stalin’s control over culture

Yes, to a certain extend. Soviet Union had been fighting wars and people were tired. Stalin was the one who stood up and wanted ‘Socialism in one country’. His 5-Year Plan Policies were extremely harsh, but nonetheless, they were effective. The people under his rule had high discipline and fought hard for their own country, thus, Soviet Union was able to achieve such great success and become one of the World Super Power in such a short time. I think some of the sacrifices are necessary in order for communist Russia to rise up. After the period of suffering, the standard of living did improve. People who obeyed Stalin, their needs were met. And it was Stalin’s harsh policies and anticipation of war that saved Russia from German invaders.

However, Stalin also did much harm to the citizens of Soviet Union. His 5 Year Plans were unrealistic and the people really suffered greatly. They had little food but was tasked to do work that are beyond their limits. The Policy of collectivisation farms also had many negative impacts. They were widespread famines which caused so many people to die. Those who did not die had also suffered badly to survive. Stalin’s purges also made the russian citizens to live in terror everyday. The society was not fair actually, not like Karl Marx’s ideology of communism. Stalin was power hungry and killed so many intellectuals. The people had little freedom of speech and was in constant fear.

If I really have to choose one, I’ll choose yes. Because I think Stalin was a great leader afterall. He was a visionary leader. Many people did benefitted from his rule..

Thank you :D

Was Stalin a saviour of the USSR?