Another example of Stalin’s rise to power was how he played his opponents off eachother. Trotsky, being the most popular possible leader, was cast off by Stalin, who got in close with two other possible leaders, Zinoviev and Kamenev. The three party members became known as the ‘troika’, and with the three of them working against Trotsky, they destroyed his rank as commissar of war, pretty much eliminating him from the race for leadership. Then, when Stalin had sufficient strength, he broke with Zinoviev and Kamenev. Realising Stalin’s great advantage over them, they retaliated by joining forces with their former opponent, Trotsky, but Stalin was ready for this. He introduced his theory of ‘socialism in one country’, saying that they should build a socialist country in the USSR, regardless of their poor international position. This forced Trotsky into exile, and ended Zinoviez’s and Kamenev’s campaign. Soon, the party was experiencing a lot less free debate, as Stalin continued to eliminate his opponents.
In conclusion, Stalin used many different stages in his rise to power, the most significant probably being playing his opponents off of eachother. When he did that, he eliminated any opposition he might encounter when battling for power, so he would become the leader by default, whereas the other stages simply increased his positive public profile. Destroying his opponents would also help when he launched the purges, because with nobody in an important enough position to stop him, he would have a clear road to complete power.
2: Explain the part played by the purges in Stalin’s control of the Soviet Union.
The part played by the purges in Stalin’s control of the Soviet Union was important, but it was not the only one. Other aspects of Stalin’s control over the USSR include; Informers, prison camps, show trials, and the Cult of Personality.
Informers were used by Stalin to hunt down people who might be a possible threat to his campaign, using members of the general public. He encouraged them to tell the police if they suspected anyone of hindering the revolution, and normally these people were then either killed or sent to prison camps.
These prison camps were both a scare tactic and a way for Stalin to help economy. One major project worked on by prison camp labourers was The White Sea canal. Workers were forced to work throughout the year, and millions froze to death.
Show trials were a way for Stalin to get rid of important party members publicly. They were basically an excuse for Stalin to get rid of them without seeming to the public that he was slaughtering people for no real reason. He would accuse the members of crimes, and out of the court, tell them that if they confessed, their families would be spared. The people confessed, they were out of Stalins way, and Stalin was seen as a hero, getting rid of traitors.
The Cult of Personality was a form of propaganda used by Stalin to make him out to be better than he was. False stories about him were circulated, huge statues were erected, and basically his public profile was being elevated.
So the purges, while being important, was definitely not the only part played in Stalin’s control of the USSR. However, the fact remains that the purges were still the most important aspect of Stalins control, because all these things were really just aspects of the purges. The purges were just a way of getting Stalins opponents out of the way, and all these things were the methods he used for doing so.
Stalin targeted specific groups with the purges, including senior party leaders, the army, and anybody with foreign connections.
Senior party leaders were purged because they were a direct threat to Stalin. If they got wind of what he was doing, they would have the power to stop him.
The army was targeted because if somebody tried to stop Stalin, the army would be the way to go. Most of the high-up officers were killed with the excuse of treason, but really it was because they alone really knew what they were doing when it came to stopping Stalin.
People with foreign connections were targeted because they could tell a lot of people outside the USSR what was going on, and those people could use their armies to stop Stalin.
So in conclusion, the purges did play a very important part in Stalins control of the USSR, because it got rid of all of Stalins rivals and opposers, and without anyone to oppose him, Stalin could get a tighter grip on the Soviet Union.
3: How significant was Stalins contribution to the modernisation of the USSR?
Stalin had a very significant contribution to the modernisation of the USSR. His two main contributions were collectivisation and industrialisation, which were extremely important both for Stalin to gain power and to help modernisation.
Industrialisation was dominated by Stalin’s Five Year Plans.