Emergence of Josef Stalin

1. Emergence of Josef Stalin By Mr. Baker

2. Upbringing • Stalin was born the son of a poor shoe repairer and a washer-woman • He learned Russian while attending a church school and attended Tiflis Theological Seminary to become a priest • It was there when he first read Karl Marx • He was expelled for revolutionary activity

3. Stalin Rises In Leadership • Between 1901 and 1913, he was arrested, imprisoned, and exiled 7 times! • His revolutionary activity caught the attention of Lenin, who named him to the board of Pravda, the party newspaper • Within two weeks he was given a seat on the Executive Committee of the Soviet, but was exiled to Siberia until 1917

4. Stalin Rises In Leadership • When he learned that the Tsar abdicated, Stalin returned in March 1917 • He briefly led the Bolsheviks in July 1917, when Lenin’s failed uprising caused him to go into hiding • Stalin played little part in the October Revolution that placed the Bolsheviks in power

5. Stalin Rises In Leadership • During the civil war, Stalin was sent to Tsaritsyn (the future Stalingrad) as Director General of food supplies • Stalin also reorganized branches of the Cheka and suppressed many plots by simply arresting the accused and having them executed

6. Stalin Rises In Leadership • In 1922, he came General Secretary of the Central Committee. He was also member of the Politburo and of many other committees • The same year, Lenin suffered a series of strokes which left him nearly incapacitated

7. Lenin’s Potential Successors • Leon Trotsky • Trotsky was an intellectual and formerly a member of the Mensheviks (he recently had joined the Bolsheviks) • He had led the Red Army and was probably the most able successor, but he was very arrogant and did not have political allies • He was prepared to criticize the party for the growth of bureaucraticatization

8. Lenin’s Potential Successors • Kamenev and Zinoviev • These candidates lost credibility by allying themselves with Trotsky

9. Lenin’s Potential Successors • Bukharin • Was the editor of Pravda and Secretary of the Comintern • He supported Lenin’s NEP • He was not a viable candidate to succeed Lenin because his belief system was not sufficiently Marxist

10. Lenin’s Potential Successors • Josef Stalin • Was underestimated and was careful never to criticize the party • As General Secretary of the Cabinet, Stalin controlled promotions and ranks in the Soviet Union. He filled the party with those who were personally loyal to him • He used the image of Lenin and the “Cult of Lenin” to present himself as the rightful heir. Stalin presented himself as the only true Leninist • The Cheka was used to find information which could be used to discredit his opponents

11. Lenin’s Death • Lenin learned of Stalin’s actions and began preparing letters and speeches in order “to crush Stalin politically” • However, on March 7, 1923, he suffered his last stroke and lost the power of speech • He died on January 21, 1924

12. Stalin Rises to Power • Stalin did not allow Trotsky to attend his funeral, which discredited Trotsky • Stalin discredited Lenin’s warnings to others of himself because Lenin was “a sick man surrounded by womenfolk” at the time of his death • Stalin ruthlessly discredited or shot his comrades

13. Rapid Industrialization • Stalin wanted rapid industrialization to: • Free Russia from dependence on capitalist states for goods • Put all national resources under government control, including workers • Make Russia economically strong so that she would be able to produce more powerful weapons • Prove that the socialist system was more successful than capitalism

14. Rapid Industrialization • Was rapid in the cities due to coercion and strict enforcement of worker discipline • Stalin encouraged enthusiasm and that people were part of something new and good • Educational programs would replace the bourgeoisie intellectuals with a new Soviet educated class

15. Five Year Plans • Were plans to industrialize Russia with emphasis on heavy industries such as coal, iron, oil, steel, and electricity • Capitalist models were used for nearly every project • Targets were set which industries had to meet • Exaggerated figures were often submitted to demonstrate that a particular factory had exceeded expectations

16. Gosplan • This was a group responsible for administering the Five Year Plans • They decided: • The amount of every article the country should produce • How much of the national effort should go into the formation of capital and how much for consumption • The wages all classes of workers should receive • The price of all goods exchanged

17. First Five Year Plan (1928-1932) • Aimed to create an industrial base for further development through the rapid expansion of coal and steel production, electrical power, and transport • It called for a 20% increase per year, but it was not realistic since peasants had little skill and central planners were inexperienced • It met with some success as a result of enthusiastic workers puffed up by propaganda

18. Second Five Year Plan (1933-1937) • The aim was diversification • The focus shifted to communication systems such as railways and new industries such as the chemical industry • The skilled workforce meant excellent growth in certain areas such as engineering and metal working • The rise to power of Hitler demanded that more and more resources be allocated to weapon production

19. Third Five Year Plan (1938-1941) • The aim was weapons production • Its goal for growth was 12% • It was not successful because: • There were labor shortages due to the purges and famines caused by collectivization • Stalin’s purges led to disorganization in the party

20. Assessment of the Five Year Plans • Russia was transformed into a major industrial power second only to the U.S. • The Five Year Plans allowed the USSR to resist the German invasion • Living standards declined at first, then improved slowly • Russians suffered a lack of consumer goods and daily necessities • Communist principles were compromised – good workers were rewarded with higher pay and competition between factories was encouraged

21. Collectivization of Agriculture • Industrial development could not occur without sufficient food production • Collectivization was pursued as a means of giving the government the food supply needed to support industrial areas

22. Collectivization of Agriculture • Peasants were forced to work on collective farms • All their belongings were confiscated and those peasants who resisted were killed or faced starvation • The main goal of the revolution from the peasants’ point of view was land ownership • The kulaks resisted strongly by smashing farm tools, burning farm buildings, slaughtering livestock, and setting crops on fire

23. Collectivization of Agriculture • In 1932, a crop failure came which resulted in a famine that killed 5 million • By 1939, 95% of Russian farms had been collectivized, but some concessions were made to peasants: • Were allowed too keep small plots for their own use • Were able to keep their own cattle • Were able to sell their extra crops on the open market for profit

24. Collectivization of Agriculture • Results: • The workers were guaranteed a supply of cheap food • The produce of collectives was sold in overseas markets for big profit – the money could be used in industries • The government gained greater control over the production and allocation of food, which helped during German’s invasion • Kulaks were virtually eliminated • Had an enormous human cost