The USSR under Lenin
The USSR under Lenin To what extent was the USSR under Lenin an orthodox communist state? From the October Revolution in 1917 until his death in January 1924 Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov, better known as Lenin, ruled Russia via the Communist Party. He justified his rule by a philosophical and political ideology called Marxism-Leninism, an adjusted form of the teachings of Karl Marx. This ideology is usually referred to as Communism. But to what extent was the USSR under Lenin in fact an orthodox communist state? The truth is that Lenin's policies were influenced by his pragmatism almost as much as by his belief in communism. The extent of his adherence to communist doctrine is to be looked into in this essay. An important characteristic of Communism is a strong aversion to religion. Thus already Karl Marx stated that "Religion is the opium of the masses" and was convinced that "The first requisite for the happiness of the people is the abolition of religion." Additionally, the Bolsheviks strongly associated the Orthodox Church with the Tsarist regime and were therefore even more determined to abolish it. The separation of church and state and the ban of the church from owning property in the 'Decree on Freedom of Conscience and on Church and Religious Associations' (1918) was the first step to abolishing the orthodox church in Russia. During the Civil Wars (1918-20) soviets were
The atomic bombs were necessary to end the Second World War. To what extent do you agree with this statement?
At the end of the Second World War, President Truman decided to use the atomic bombs against Japan in an attempt to end the war. While the use of such force was not technically necessary, it brought an almost immediate end to the war and theoretically saved thousands of lives. Without the atomic bombings, the Japanese leaders might have dragged the war out, refusing to surrender. Moreover, the bombings could be seen as falling in line with the concept of "total war," which was being practiced in the Second World War by both the Allies and the Axis powers. However, the opposite could be argued as well. The second bomb, dropped on Nagasaki, could be seen as an unnecessary follow-through after the first bomb on Hiroshima. One could go as far as saying that both atomic attacks were unnecessary and even immoral. Supporters of the bombings argue that an invasion of Japan by the Allies would have resulted in a much higher death toll. One such person, Winston Churchill, claimed that invading Japan, as opposed to dropping the atomic bombs, would have "sacrificed a million American and a quarter of a million British lives." It was also reported by the Air Force Association that the "Japanese cabinet had approved a measure extending the draft to include men from ages fifteen to sixty and women for seventeen to forty-five (an additional 28 million people)." Such an increase of Japan's
The Cultural Revolution
Urvi Mittal History SL Assess the role played by youth and terror in China during the Cultural Revolution (1966-76) The Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) was launched by Chinese Communist Party (CCP) chairman Mao Zedong to stem what he perceived as the country's drift away from socialism, toward the "restoration of capitalism." The origins of the Cultural Revolution can be traced to the mid-1950s when Mao first became seriously concerned about the path that China's socialist transition had taken in the years since the CCP had come to power in 1949. His anxieties about the bureaucratization of the party, ideological degeneration in society as a whole, and the glaring socioeconomic inequalities that had emerged as China modernized escalated through the early 1960s and propelled him to embark on a crusade to expunge the "revisionism" that he believed was contaminating the party and the nation. Mao had also been disturbed by his analysis that the Soviet Union had already abandoned socialism for capitalism which made him insecure and made him want to control the people by terror. Mao was also insecure about his position in the party because of the growing popularity of moderates Lin Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping to whom he had given power to correct the mistakes made by the policies of The Great Leap Forward. The moderates had introduced an element of capitalism in Chinese society.
Islams Golden Age
Islam, the youngest of all the world's religions emerged on the world scene in 622 CE. It all started with the migration of the Prophet Muhammad and his small band of followers from Mecca to Medina in northwest Arabia. This migration was known as the "Hijra". One hundred fifty years later the Muslim government, which claims Allah as the ultimate authority had become the Islamic Empire. "The empire controlled the Mediterranean Sea from Syria and the Tigris and Euphrates Valley, it stretched east to southern China and western India, and was as far south as what had been the Persian Empire and Saudi Arabia, they controlled the west through Egypt and across North Africa, and controlled north through Spain to the Pyrenees."(Doak) Founding the city of Baghdad and putting the Abbasid Caliphate in power, which consisted of Muslim leaders who were the successors of Muhammad set the stage for Islamic Golden Age. By the mid-8th century, Islam's golden age began to emerge. For 400 years, all the way until the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols in the mid-9th century. Muslim culture was comparable to that of Rome which we just finished studying, in its explosion of culture. A number of fortunate circumstances came together to make Islam's golden age possible. Perhaps most significant was the creation of a vast empire without internal political problems, and also largely free from attack by
Women in Nazi Germany
WOMEN IN NAZI GERMANY HISTORY BY: DANIELA SILVA FOR: TOVAH TABACNIK GRADE: 9.5 DATE: 13/10/06 2006-2007 Throughout centuries, women have been subject to unjust and upsetting perceptions, due to the fact that they have never been allowed to express themselves as they wants and due to the view of society, that male have to be the dominant figure. It is through events that have happened in time, that have made them stronger and able to get strength to be now, open minded and able to express in a different and overwhelming manner as they had never done before. The topic to be portrayed on this piece of work is how women in Nazi Germany were treated and how this theme relates to the novel the wave. In Nazi Germany, women were inferior to their male generation. Here the ways there were treated, their works and many other aspects will be analyzed, to see their hope and effort each time they fought for their right and the things they wanted to do. During the Second World War women were expected to fulfill and do a lot of the roles they had done in the First World War. Again they were called to work in industries, farms, as nurses in the forces but not on the fort line. Besides doing the works they were called to do, they had also a very important role which was to care for the family such as the children and the man. They had to be always at the house cleaning, cooking taking
Life in the USA 1920's
How did life change in the USA in the 1920's? After World War I, the American Congress adopted the isolationist policy. This provoked an economic boom during the 1920's as the American citizens concentrated in producing more goods for their internal market. There were several changes not just in the economic field but also in the political, social and religious aspects. The aim of this essay is to analyse how life changed in the USA in the 1920's. Between 1896 and 1915 the American farmers were doing great in business. "They increased their production but saw a general price increase which maintained their sense of well-being". Furthermore, industries in the 19th century were mostly of coal, iron and steel whereas the economy in the 20's relied on the new industries. These included chemicals, synthetic textiles and electricity. "Prosperity is around the corner", this is a famous slogan that became public when the economy was beginning to flourish. It means that confidence is the basis of the economy. During the 1920's, the American economy boomed. The automobile industry, launched by Henry Ford, brought prices down and made room to a number of well paid jobs on the production line. Moreover, it led to the arrival of new businesses, such as gas stations, road construction, hotels and roadside diners. Other industries developing fast were the electrical power, the
Comparing the Causes of the French and Russian Revolutions
Comparing the Causes of the Russian and French Revolutions Imagine living in a nation where people worked eleven hours a day then went back to their tiny, windowless rooms they called home, gathered around and shared cabbage soup with fifteen other fellow workers from a single bowl (Oxley 48). Or how about a nation where people farmed day and night to produce food for the nation and in return, they were taxed 50% on everything they produced while they watched the wealthy, tax-free nobles have feasts and parties in their mansions and palaces (Beck 218). These were the living conditions that the peasants in Russia and France faced. Peasants in both nations were miserable and decided to end their suffering by starting a revolution. But what exactly were the causes of the peasants' misery that brought these revolutions? The Russian and French revolutions were both caused by economic bankruptcy, inequality of the lower classes and the poor leadership of the leaders of their nations. Russia and France both suffered from economical bankruptcy which brought harsh living conditions to the lower classes. Russia was involved in the Russo-Japanese War and World War I which cost a tremendous amount of money (Beck 434). The country was put under immense pressure to supply their army with food and equipment which led to food shortages, high unemployment rates and inflation in all prices
Definitions of vocabulary in US history.
US History homework Vocabulary: Conquistador: a conqueror, especially one of the 16th-century Spanish soldiers who defeated the Indian civilizations of Mexico, Central America, or Peru. Settler: (pioneer, colonist, colonial) a person who has migrated to a less occupied area and established permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. Settlers are generally people who take up residence on land and cultivate it, as opposed to nomads. Plantation: a colonial settlement. Triangular trade: a trade between three ports or regions -> Africa sent slaves to the Americas The Americas sent sugar, tobacco and cotton to Europe. Europe sent textile, rum and manufactured goods to Africa. Pocahontas: Pocahontas is a Native American woman who saved the life of Captain John Smith, a colonial leader, who had been captured by Powhatan's warriors; she was twelve at that time. She helped try to maintain peace between the two belligerents but was later captured, baptized, named Rebecca, and then married to John Rolfe. John Rolfe: John Rolfe was one of the early English settlers of North America. He is credited with the first successful cultivation of tobacco as an export crop in the Colony of Virginia and is known as the husband of Pocahontas. John Smith: John Smith was an English colonial governor who was elected president of the council and governor of the Virginia colony
How far was Stalin Responsible for Purges of 1930s
How far was Stalin responsible for the purges of the 1930s? Stalin was responsible for the great purges of the 1930s to a certain extent. The great purges can be divided into three components: The purge of the party, the purge of the armed forces, and The purge of the people. Of these three segments of the purges, the purge of the party and the armed forces can be attributed to Stalin while the last one, the purge of the people, can instead be attributed to the head of the NKVD, Yezhov. Thus, we can say that Stalin was only partly responsible for the great purges. The great purges can be defined as a cleansing of perceived threats to Stalin's rule, executed on a large scale, through the use of terror. The purge of the party began when Sergei Kirov, secretary of the Leningrad Soviet, was assassinated in 1934. His murder led to a major purge of all accused of being involved in the crime. Many of the old Bolsheviks were accused of having a role to play and Stalin claimed that it had been organised by a circle of "Trotskyites and Leftists" and proceeded to arrest many party members, among them Zinoviev and Kamenev. Soon after, in 1936, the first major show trial took place, which resulted in both Zinoviev and Kamenev's confession and execution. This can be seen as a purging of the left. Thereafter a purging of the right took place, and the last two major show trials occurred.
Gulf of Tonkin History IA
In what ways did the United States government manipulate the Gulf of Tonkin Incident to gain public support for intervention in Vietnam? Jorge Hernandez 002320-061 John A. Ferguson High School May 2009 Word Count: 1,714 Table of Contents A. Plan of Investigation............................................................................2 B. Summary of Evidence...........................................................................2 C. Evaluation of Sources...........................................................................4 D. Analysis............................................................................................5 E. Conclusion.........................................................................................7 F. List of Sources.....................................................................................8 A. Plan of Investigation In what ways did the United States government manipulate the Gulf of Tonkin Incident to gain public support for intervention in Vietnam? All of the information used on this paper will come from two books: The Vietnam War: A History in Documents and Our Vietnam: The War 1954-1975. The Vietnam War: A History in Documents is my only primary source since it contains a plethora amount of documents and articles written during and some time after the war. Our Vietnam: The War 1954-1975 is a secondary source;
