à Peasants are poor and use primitive methods that don’t produce enough food
à There is a procurement crisis in 1928, so Stalin introduce collectivisation
à The Kulaks oppose collectivisation, so their land is taken and they are sent away
à 1.5 million Kulaks are deported, and a quarter of them dies
à Some peasants hate collectivisation, and destroy crops, tools, and machines
There is a command economy in Russia.
The Gosplan is set up, and sets targets for industry in the next five years
Heavy industry has to triple its output, and light industry has to double it
Capitalist country laugh at this, but the target are almost reached
Workers work an uninterrupted week
People can’t attend church, and they are sacked and evicted if they have time off
Internal passports are introduced, so they need permission to change towns
‘Shock Brigades’ set a good example to workers, and make sure they work hard
‘Stakhanovites’ are exceptional workers seen as role models, but many were killed
There are more workers and overcrowding, but no unemployment
Labour Camps Gulags are set up in 1930 to make slaves work in the worst regions
Zeks are badly treated, and their food is rationed
They work in bad conditions with no machines (e.g. the Kolyma Region)
MODEL ANSWERS
QUESTIONS ON INDUSTRIALISATION AND THE FIVE YEAR PLANS
What was meant by Gosplan? (2)
Gosplan was the government’s economic planning body and set targets for increases in the production of industrial products like iron, steel, heavy machinery and chemicals. It controlled the Five Year Plans and even laid down guidelines for the founding of new towns like Magnitogorsk.
Give one reason to explain why Stalin ended the new economic policy (3)
Stalin ended the new economic policy because it had allowed some free market capitalist ideas in the Soviet economy. Stalin saw this as holding back the establishment of a truly communist society and so wanted to be rid of it. He also believed that a command economy with targets set by Gosplan would be a much swifter way of modernising the Soviet economy.
Why did Stalin introduce the Five Year Plans? (6)
The Five Year Plans were attempts to modernise Soviet industry as quickly as possible. Stalin believed that the Soviet Union was 100 years behind the West and needed to catch up as quickly as possible.
The Five Year Plans would allow the government to control all aspects of industrial production and so make the Soviet Union a truly communist society. As long as the new economic policy had allowed Russians a degree of free market capitalism Russia had not really been communist. The Five Year Plans would rectify this!
If the Soviet Union was not industrialised it was even possible that she might be conquered by the capitalist powers. The need to protect Soviet borders by rapid industrialisation became particularly pressing in after 1933 when Hitler became leader of Germany and it became clear that there might be a eventual clash between communism and Nazism.
Why were new industrial centres built in the Soviet Union in the 1930’s? (5)
Stalin was determined to industrialise the Soviet Union as rapidly as possible, so new industrial cities like Magnitogorsk were often built in order to stimulate the new economy. As part of the new planning by Gosplan, new industrial centres were established in order to spearhead industrialisation, while they would also act as a visible reminder of the greatness of the Soviet Union. By building completely new cities, Stalin could plan them and lay them out in the most effective way.
Many of the new factories were also built beyond the Urals so that they could utilise the forced labour of the gulags. If there was a war with the west they would also be far behind the lines and be safe from destruction, so allowing the Soviet Union to keep levels of production high even during total war.
Describe the key features of the Stakhanovite movement (5)
Alexei Stakhanov was a miner who rather than cut 10 tonnes of coal in one shift ended up in mining 102 tonnes of coal. He was made into a national hero by the government and workers were urged to be like him. Good workers might then hope to become Stakhanovites in return for which they could expect rewards such as medals (Hero of Socialist Labour and the ultimate honour the Order of Lenin), better housing and higher wages than other workers.
In fact Stakhanov’s achievement was nothing more than a publicity stunt and his record was soon broken by a miner who dug more than 300 tonnes. Stakhanovites soon appeared in many other industries. The Soviet people were not told that they were always given the most advanced equipment and ideal conditions in which to work. Eventually the truth was discovered and so-called Stakhanovites were often attacked and beaten up.
What were the key features of the Five Year Plans in the 1930's? (6)
The Five Year Plans were aimed at modernising Soviet industry, because, as Stalin said, it was lagging behind the rest of the world by up to 100 years. Soviet industry would be transformed by a central planning agency (Gosplan) setting targets which Soviet industries would then be expected to reach. Particular emphasis would be place upon increasing production of heavy industry such as iron, coal and steel which would provide the backbone for industrialisation.
Each plan though had its own particular emphasis. For example the first plan concentrated especially on iron, steel and electricity, while the second plan concentrated on transport. During the First Five the targets were generally not reached, partly because the plan was ended almost a year early. Later the targets set were usually achieved because planners learnt more about local areas.
Workers were forced to accept much worse conditions. A seven day week was introduced and absence became a crime. Workers were induced to accept these conditions by a mixture of bribery, praise and propaganda.
There is no doubt that by the end of the 1930's the Five Year Plans had succeeded in transforming the Soviet economy. Huge new industrial cities like Magnitogorsk had been built, while immense new projects such as the Dnieper dam had been completed. Indeed by 1940 the Soviet Union was second only to the United States in terms of overall industrial production.
What were the effects of the Five Year Plans on Soviet industry in the years 1928 - 1941? (7)
The Five Year Plans were attempts to modernise Soviet industry as quickly as possible. They worked by setting annual production targets for every factory and works in the Soviet Union. While many factories failed to reach their targets because the targets set were much too extravagant, the Five Year Plans really did succeed in transforming the Soviet economy.
The first Five Year Plan doubled iron and steel production and tripled electrical production, while the second Five Year Plan led to the Soviet Union surpassing Germany in terms of industrial production. This made the Soviet Union second only to the United States in terms of overall industrial production. Huge new industrial cities like Magnitogorsk and Sverdlosk were built, while major new industrial centres were established. The massive Dnieper Dam brought hydroelectricity to the Donbas region, while Baku became the world's largest oil producing centre and around both Moscow and Leningrad major new industrial centres were established.
Such was the success of these building projects that the Soviet Union was also becoming increasingly self sufficient in terms of industrial production - an important advantage the Soviet Union had when the Nazis invaded in 1941.
However the Five Year Plans were not perfect. As we have seen targets were not reached, while initially many illiterate peasants did not understand how to use the complicated new machinery effectively due to lack of training. The rush to industrialise also meant that often basic but necessary products like nails and bricks were unobtainable and some products were so poorly made as to be useless! It has even been estimated that 40% of the industrial production of the first two plans was faulty.
In what ways was the Soviet Union and the lives of its people changed by the Five Year Plans in the years 1928 - 1941? (15)
The Five Year Plans were attempts to modernise Soviet industry as quickly as possible. Stalin believed that the Soviet Union was 100 years behind the West and needed to catch up as quickly as possible. Stalin saw the Soviet people as mere cogs in the wheels of industry that he could exploit in any way he liked.
In terms of industrial production there is no doubt that the Five Year Plans transformed the Soviet Union. By 1940 massive increases in electrical production, coal, iron and steel production had made her the second biggest industrial super power in the world. The Soviet Union now boasted some of the world’s most modern and impressive industrial achievements. The Dnieper Dam was the biggest in the world and brought hydroelectricity to the Donbas region, while Magnitogorsk was an immense new city dedicated to steel production. The White Sea canal linked Moscow to the sea while the world’s biggest oil refineries were opened at Baku in the Caucasus.
As a result of the Five Year Plans some parts of the Soviet Union were industrialised which had previously been entirely agrarian. Thus Siberia and Buriat - Mongolia in the Far East all became key industrial centres. Their remoteness, far from the Nazi front line, ensuring that Soviet industrial production did not falter and in fact increased during the war.
The Five Year Plans were also responsible for great prestige projects too such as the Moscow and Leningrad metro systems. Without doubt the most impressive underground achievements of their time and which may well have given Soviet citizens a new faith in their nation. The third Five Year Plan also emphasised the construction of radios. As well as being a prestige modern project this also helped Stalin’s propaganda as it allowed the whole nation to hear his words.
The Five Year Plans also increased the control that the government had on its workers. Absenteeism (which the authorities could define as just being late) could lead to wage cuts, instant dismissal and loss of all benefits and eventually prison. Workers now had no choice where they worked either and had to make the best of the job they were given. A seven day week was introduced and the internal passport that prevented workers from changing jobs. Since the government was so paranoid if machinery broke down you were quite likely to be accused of sabotage! Thus in 1933, half the engineers in the Donbas region of the Ukraine were in prison on such charges.
New cities like Magnitogorsk also grew so quickly that sanitation and housing were often dreadfully poor. For example, by 1935, only one in twenty Moscow families had more than one room to themselves! The eagerness of the government to see the Five Year Plans reach their targets also ensured that more females were now employed in factories a long with men. Such an acceptance that women had a part to play in the building of the communist utopia may well have helped to raise their status in society, although they were, almost invariably, employed in low prestige jobs.
By 1940 the Soviet Union had the second most powerful economy in the world, but also one of the lowest standards of living in Europe. One had been achieved at the cost of the other.
QUESTIONS ON COLLECTIVISATION
Why did Stalin introduce Collectivisation in the Soviet Union? (5)
Collectivisation was the creation of large farms by amalgamating the holdings of thousands of peasants. It was an attempt to solve the permanent food shortages in the Soviet Union and to provide wheat for export to pay for imports of industrial machinery.
Stalin knew that the peasants could hold the cities to ransom by refusing to supply them with food or else by charging extortionate amounts for their grain. The real hate figures were Kulaks, who the government said were peasants who had grown wealthy by charging what they liked for grain in order to make themselves wealthy and did not care at all about the proletariat in the cities
Stalin also believed existing peasant strip farming was inefficient. Huge collective farms would allow necessary economies of scale to be carried out and would so increase production. Labour saving machinery could, for example, therefore be used on a great collective farm and not on a small peasant holding.
Another advantage of the collective farm was that its members could be efficiently supervised by communist officials so it would be more difficult for peasants to hide their grain or criticise the government. Stalin would thus be able to exert control over the Soviet Union more efficiently.
By increasing the food supply Collectivisation would also allow the government to export grain abroad. This would provide Stalin with precious foreign capital that would be of crucial importance in pay for the Five Year Plans and the industrialisation of the Soviet Union.
Collectivisation was also a final nail in the coffin of the new economic policy. By putting the government in charge of food production and stopping the peasants selling grain to the cities Stalin would succeed in destroying any lingering capitalism in the Soviet economy and in the process further increase his own total hold on power.
Describe the key features of Collectivisation. (6)
Collectivisation began during 1929 - 1930. Stalin decreed that 25 million peasant farms should be collectivised in order to form 240 000 collective farms. The aim of Collectivisation was to guarantee the food supply and make necessary economies of scale on immense collective farms. In theory each collective farm would have a motor tractor station attached to it which would provide it with the latest in modern labour saving technology.
However the peasants did not want to lose their independence and so become servants of the state. Therefore peasants hid their grain and slaughtered their animals rather than give it to the state. This resulted in terrible famine. However Stalin carried on with Collectivisation in particular persecuting the Kulaks (or richer peasants). These were made out to be the enemies of the state and less well off peasants were encouraged to denounce them. They were transported to Siberia, sent to the gulags or shot on the spot. Millions died because of the brutality of Collectivisation and the resulting famine however Stalin was relentless.
What were the effects of Collectivisation on Soviet agriculture in the years 1928 - 1941? (7)
Peasants preferred to destroy their crops and slaughter their animals rather than see the state steal them from them. As a result there was an immediate collapse in agricultural production and a subsequent famine. This was made worse by the destruction of the Kulaks. By transporting or shooting the richer peasants Stalin was merely getting rid of the most efficient peasants and without their skills agriculture naturally suffered appallingly. In the Ukraine between 1932 - 1933 as many as 5 million peasants died,, while the numbers who died throughout the Soviet Union have been estimated at between 10 million and 20 million.
However by 1932 62% of farms had been collectivised. Agricultural production did eventually increase, but it was a very slow process. In 1928 the Soviet Union produced 73 million tonnes of grain. By 1933 it had dipped to 69 million tonnes and it was not until 1940 that production reached 95 million tonnes. The number of pigs increased from 19 million in 1928 to 27 million in 1940. However the number of cattle in the Soviet Union in 1928 had been 29 million. By 1933 it had fallen to 19 million and by 1940 was still only 28 million. As a result of this increase in production Stalin was also able to export grain and so receive the foreign capital which would be of crucial importance in financing industrialisation.
Once collective farms were established useful economies of scale could also be made too. In the end 400 000 collective farms were established providing guaranteed food supplies for the cities. Also machine tractor stations could be established to service them so helping to modernise agricultural production.
In terms of political security Stalin had certainly been successful. The Kulak class had been destroyed and the last vestiges of the NEP had been eradicated. Once the collective farm had been established it would also be a great deal easier to control the peasant farmers. All this naturally increased his hold on power, especially as it cut the ground from under the feet of potential right wing opponents of his, such as Bukharin.
To a certain extent agricultural productivity had been increased by Collectivisation and the food supply had been guaranteed, so safeguarding the revolution and yet it had been achieved at a truly dreadful cost in terms of human suffering.
Why was there so much opposition to Collectivisation in the 1930s? (10)
Collectivisation was the creation of large farms by amalgamating the holdings of thousands of peasants. It was an attempt to solve the permanent food shortages in the Soviet Union and to provide wheat for export to pay for imports of industrial machinery.
Collectivisation was naturally very unpopular amongst the peasantry. Until the Revolution in 1917 most peasants had rented land from landlords. But for the last dozen years they had owned their own land and had been able to farm as they wanted. They were bitterly opposed to Collectivisation because it meant that they would lose their land, their independence and would have to work for the state.
Peasants wanted to sell their own produce and make a profit for themselves and so they utterly resented the concept of the collective farm. The horrors of famine, especially in the Ukraine, made Collectivisation yet more unpopular, while in some areas there was cannibalism. The peasants particularly disliked the introduction of internal passports, which Collectivisation required. This meant that they could not leave their collective farm and try to find new opportunities in the city. Opposition to Collectivisation was met with brutality and mass murder. As many as 10,000,000 Kulaks were killed and this policy only served to increase opposition
Some members of the communist party like, Bukharin, also disliked Collectivisation. It was at odds with the small scale free market ideals of Lenin’s new economic policy and might be seen as another way of Stalin trying to achieve total power in the Soviet Union.
Collectivisation was simply a way of enforcing Stalin’s ideas upon the rural population. His methods were always unpopular, but in the long run there was little that the Soviet people could do about it.
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