Stalin's USSR: Collectivization, Repression, and the Great Purges

The Stalinist Period: Succession and the Rise of Stalin

In 1923, Lenin was removed from power due to illness and died in 1924. Both Trotsky and Stalin had the potential to succeed him. Trotsky was a brilliant personality who often directly challenged Lenin. Stalin was a darker character, but very cunning.

Initially, many within the party preferred Stalin over Trotsky, thinking that a less lustrous figure like Stalin would prevent unqualified leadership and allow power to be shared. However, Stalin's power base strengthened, and with cunning secrecy, he isolated and destroyed his rivals. Trotsky was exiled to Mexico, where he was assassinated by an agent of Stalin in 1939.

Economic Transformation: Abandoning the NEP

In 1929, the New Economic Policy (NEP) was abandoned. Stalin established his own economic policy based on rapid economic growth driven by government guidelines. This was achieved through strict control of industrial production and the collectivization of land. It was decided that the private sector must be removed. The system was designed to mobilize the population in an almost military fashion.

Collectivization and the Kulaks

In the countryside, peasants were forced to leave their properties to join collective farms. These farms were known as kolkhozes (collective farms) and sovkhozes (state farms). Farmers initially opposed being collectivized, but Stalin was determined to break the middle classes that had emerged after the NEP. Consequently, hundreds of thousands of peasants were deported to Siberia, accused of being kulaks (wealthy peasants), and perished.

The result was that agricultural production never grew significantly, and Russia eventually had to import wheat. Nevertheless, it appears that the living conditions of the population improved, but this progress was interrupted when Russia entered World War II (WWII) in 1942.

Cultural Control: Socialist Realism

In the world of culture, the so-called tenets of Socialist Realism were imposed. This cultural imposition determined the development of strict censorship.

The Great Purges and Political Repression

Moreover, Stalin managed to remove all opposition to his person, using brutal methods, particularly within the Communist Party. Major waves of Stalinist repression began in 1933, with significant purges occurring in 1936 and 1938.

During this period of terror:

• In the famous Moscow Trials, old Bolshevik leaders were convicted of the most absurd crimes.
• Hundreds of thousands of anonymous people were convicted alongside the leadership.
• The military leadership was also purged.