Lesson 8b - How did Stalin consolidate and maintain his power?
Stalin inherited much of the machinery of totalitarian control from Lenin. The single party control over a new prerogative state was in place from 1919 and informal social control was exercised through censorship and propaganda. But Stalin went further. It can be argued that there were two key stages in Stalin's consolidation of power. The first began in 1928 with the launch of the First Five-Year Plan and his attack on the Right Opposition. The second stage came after the murder of Kirov in 1934 which led to the purges and show trials of the former Bolshevik leaders including Kamenev, Zinoviev and Bukharin..
Coercion - Formal Social Control
a. Coercive Legal Methods - Important during consolidation
New authoritarian laws - There was little new for Stalin to do here. Any constitutional guarantees that might have been expected in a liberal democracy had either never been effectiively introduced after the Tsar was removed in 1917 or had been abolished by Lenin between 1917 and 1924. Stalin's major contribution was his reform of the Soviet constitution in 1936. Stalin had declared 'it would be the most democratic in the world'. A commission was arranged and reviewed constitutions from around the world. In theory the constitution guaranteed free speech, a free press,and freedom of assembly but in reality and at the same moment Stalin launched the Yezhovshchina, the Great Purge. Article 126 defined the role of the Communist Party and was used to justify banning all other parties. The communists were the 'vanguard of the working people in their struggle to strengthen and develop the socialist system and representing the leading core of all organizations of the working people, both public and state' .
a. Coercive Legal Methods - Important during consolidation
New authoritarian laws - There was little new for Stalin to do here. Any constitutional guarantees that might have been expected in a liberal democracy had either never been effectiively introduced after the Tsar was removed in 1917 or had been abolished by Lenin between 1917 and 1924. Stalin's major contribution was his reform of the Soviet constitution in 1936. Stalin had declared 'it would be the most democratic in the world'. A commission was arranged and reviewed constitutions from around the world. In theory the constitution guaranteed free speech, a free press,and freedom of assembly but in reality and at the same moment Stalin launched the Yezhovshchina, the Great Purge. Article 126 defined the role of the Communist Party and was used to justify banning all other parties. The communists were the 'vanguard of the working people in their struggle to strengthen and develop the socialist system and representing the leading core of all organizations of the working people, both public and state' .
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New authoritarian institutions - Replacing of the old ‘normative’ state with the new authoritarian ‘prerogative’ state had largely been completed under Lenin. Legal coercion was important. As you can see in the diagram (source - Oxley, Russia, 2001) there were plenty of elections and the Sovnarkom was a government elected by the people. But in reality power lay in the Communist Party and its most important committee the Politburo. The party was run as it always had been secretively and hierarchically. It had begun as an organisation trying to evade the Tsarist state and then it had developed into a military machine set up to win a civil war.
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The most important positions in the Party were not decided democratically, but rather through hierarchical appointment. Stalin's powerbase was founded on his ability to control the appointment of those looking to make their career in the Party. Those he appointed owed their position to him; those who wanted promotion, needed to prove their loyalty and usefulness to him. After Stalin the most important person in the USSR was always the General Secretary.
As with many dictators it is often hard with Stalin to distinguish the aims of policy with the pursuit of power. The attempt to modernise Russia through the Five-Year Plans and collectivisation were extraordinarily ambitious economic policies which had enormous social consequences. (See next Lesson) But they also had a political intent. Ending the NEP provided Stalin with an opportunity to consolidate his position. As the historian James William Crowl has argued: 'Stalin With the defeat of Trotsky and the Left Wing in 1927, Stalin apparently began to look for a way to outmaneuver the final power bloc in the Party: the Right Wing led by Bukharin, Rykov and Tomsky. It was not by accident that the economy provided him with the issues he needed to destroy his erstwhile allies.' (Spartacus)
As with many dictators it is often hard with Stalin to distinguish the aims of policy with the pursuit of power. The attempt to modernise Russia through the Five-Year Plans and collectivisation were extraordinarily ambitious economic policies which had enormous social consequences. (See next Lesson) But they also had a political intent. Ending the NEP provided Stalin with an opportunity to consolidate his position. As the historian James William Crowl has argued: 'Stalin With the defeat of Trotsky and the Left Wing in 1927, Stalin apparently began to look for a way to outmaneuver the final power bloc in the Party: the Right Wing led by Bukharin, Rykov and Tomsky. It was not by accident that the economy provided him with the issues he needed to destroy his erstwhile allies.' (Spartacus)
New authoritarian people - Such was the hierarchical nature of the Party's control over the command economy that Stalin was able to appoint loyal supporters to key positions much as he had done to assure his rise to power in the 1920s. Vyacheslav Molotov held various important positions, including Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars (Prime Minister) and Minister of Foreign Affairs. Lazar Kaganovich had a leadership roles in Soviet industrialization. He played a significant role in the construction of the Moscow Metro (See below) and other major infrastructure projects. Andrei Zhdanov was known for promoting Stalinist ideology and enforcing strict cultural and artistic controls through the Zhdanov Doctrine. In 1934 he was promoted to Leningrad party chief following the assassination of Sergei Kirov. Kliment Voroshilov played a role in purging the Red Army of potential rivals. Nikolai Yezhov was head of the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (NKVD) during the height of the Great Purge (1936-1938).
b. Coercive Force.
The First Five-Year Plan was launched in 1928 as a radical shift away from the NEP. It aimed to rapidly industrialize the Soviet Union, with an emphasis on heavy industry (steel, machinery, etc.), collectivisation of agriculture, and centralised planning. The First Five-Year Plan itself came with significant social and economic costs, including forced collectivisation of agriculture, forced labour, mass displacement of peasants, and the consolidation of power under a centralised state apparatus. For example, after 1932 an internal passport was introduced that helped the state control the movement of citizens.
The First Five-Year Plan was launched in 1928 as a radical shift away from the NEP. It aimed to rapidly industrialize the Soviet Union, with an emphasis on heavy industry (steel, machinery, etc.), collectivisation of agriculture, and centralised planning. The First Five-Year Plan itself came with significant social and economic costs, including forced collectivisation of agriculture, forced labour, mass displacement of peasants, and the consolidation of power under a centralised state apparatus. For example, after 1932 an internal passport was introduced that helped the state control the movement of citizens.
1934 - The death of Sergei Kirov
This was Stalin's Reichstag Fire/Night of the Long Knives moment. Sergei Kirov, a very popular local party leader, was assassinated in Leningrad by Leonid Nikolaev, a disgruntled party member. The assassination marked the beginning of a period of intense political repression and purges known as the Great Purge. Stalin used the fear of conspiracies to target and eliminate thousands of individuals, including party members, intellectuals, military officers, and others. Some theories suggest that Stalin may have been involved in ordering the killing (Kirov had become too popular), while others propose that it was carried out by disgruntled party members without Stalin's direct involvement.
This was Stalin's Reichstag Fire/Night of the Long Knives moment. Sergei Kirov, a very popular local party leader, was assassinated in Leningrad by Leonid Nikolaev, a disgruntled party member. The assassination marked the beginning of a period of intense political repression and purges known as the Great Purge. Stalin used the fear of conspiracies to target and eliminate thousands of individuals, including party members, intellectuals, military officers, and others. Some theories suggest that Stalin may have been involved in ordering the killing (Kirov had become too popular), while others propose that it was carried out by disgruntled party members without Stalin's direct involvement.
NKVD
The NKVD, or People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs played a significant role in the Soviet government's efforts to maintain control and suppress dissent. The NKVD was established in 1934, following the merger of the GPU (State Political Directorate) and the OGPU (Unified State Political Directorate). It was responsible for a wide range of functions, including internal security, counterintelligence, border protection, and law enforcement. The NKVD was led by individuals who held high-ranking positions in the Soviet government. Notable leaders included Genrikh Yagoda, Nikolai Yezhov, and Lavrentiy Beria. During the 1930s, the NKVD played a central role in the Great Purge, a campaign initiated by Joseph Stalin to eliminate perceived political enemies and consolidate his power. Thousands of people were arrested, imprisoned, or executed during this period. (See below). The NKVD was also responsible for overseeing the vast network of forced labor camps known as the Gulag.
The NKVD, or People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs played a significant role in the Soviet government's efforts to maintain control and suppress dissent. The NKVD was established in 1934, following the merger of the GPU (State Political Directorate) and the OGPU (Unified State Political Directorate). It was responsible for a wide range of functions, including internal security, counterintelligence, border protection, and law enforcement. The NKVD was led by individuals who held high-ranking positions in the Soviet government. Notable leaders included Genrikh Yagoda, Nikolai Yezhov, and Lavrentiy Beria. During the 1930s, the NKVD played a central role in the Great Purge, a campaign initiated by Joseph Stalin to eliminate perceived political enemies and consolidate his power. Thousands of people were arrested, imprisoned, or executed during this period. (See below). The NKVD was also responsible for overseeing the vast network of forced labor camps known as the Gulag.
The Gulag
The Tsarist labour camps in Siberia were closed in 1917 only to be reopened by Joseph Stalin as Glavnoye Upravleniye Lagere (Gulag). It has been estimated that 18 million entered the Gulag and roughly 1.5 to 1.7 million perished and another 6 million were sent into exile in Siberia. (Anne Applebaum, in Gulag: A History) If the size of the secret police is an indication about the degree of totalitarianism, then Stalin's NKVD certainly exercised greater control than Hitler's Gestapo. At the end of the 1930s there was 1 Gestapo man per 2,500 of population. At the same period, 1 NKVD man per 500 of population, five times the saturation level of Nazi Germany. (Sheila Fitzpatrick).
The Tsarist labour camps in Siberia were closed in 1917 only to be reopened by Joseph Stalin as Glavnoye Upravleniye Lagere (Gulag). It has been estimated that 18 million entered the Gulag and roughly 1.5 to 1.7 million perished and another 6 million were sent into exile in Siberia. (Anne Applebaum, in Gulag: A History) If the size of the secret police is an indication about the degree of totalitarianism, then Stalin's NKVD certainly exercised greater control than Hitler's Gestapo. At the end of the 1930s there was 1 Gestapo man per 2,500 of population. At the same period, 1 NKVD man per 500 of population, five times the saturation level of Nazi Germany. (Sheila Fitzpatrick).
The Purges and Show Trials
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The Great Purge, also known as the Great Terror, was a campaign of political repression and mass killings orchestrated by Joseph Stalin and the Soviet government. It aimed to eliminate perceived enemies of the state, including political rivals, intellectuals, military leaders, and others who were deemed a threat to the regime. The purge involved mass arrests, forced labor camps (Gulags), executions, and the widespread use of torture to extract confessions from accused individuals. One of the notable aspects of the Great Purge was the use of show trials. These were highly publicized trials where the accused, often coerced or tortured, would make false confessions to crimes against the state. These trials were meant to serve as propaganda to justify the government's actions and to intimidate the population.
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The Moscow Trials (1936-1938):
These were a series of three show trials held in Moscow during the Great Purge. The most famous of these trials were the Trial of the Sixteen, the Trial of the Seventeen, and the Trial of the Twenty-One. Prominent Bolsheviks and former leaders, including Lev Trotsky and Grigory Zinoviev, were accused of conspiring against Stalin and the Soviet government. In 1937, Bukharin was arrested during the height of the Great Purge and was accused of various anti-Soviet activities and conspiracies. He was subjected to a show trial and was forced to confess to crimes he did not commit. In 1938, Bukharin was executed by firing squad. (See film right) |
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Persuasion - Informal Social Control
My three short films below remind you of the basic generic ideas that will help you make sense of the key features of informal social control.
My three short films below remind you of the basic generic ideas that will help you make sense of the key features of informal social control.
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Censorship
Censorship means that the state suppresses information or opinion which is offensive or contrary to the views of those in authority. It might be considered a negative form of propaganda. Central Censorship Office, more commonly known as Glavlit, was responsible for controlling what could be published in books and newspapers or on radio and in the cinema. The most signficant Bolshevik propaganda vehicle were the newspapers Pravda and Izvestia, but propaganda posters were also impotant in a largely illiterate society. Stalin’s image came to represent Bolshevik values and he was the embodiment and personification of a new revolutionary society.
Censorship means that the state suppresses information or opinion which is offensive or contrary to the views of those in authority. It might be considered a negative form of propaganda. Central Censorship Office, more commonly known as Glavlit, was responsible for controlling what could be published in books and newspapers or on radio and in the cinema. The most signficant Bolshevik propaganda vehicle were the newspapers Pravda and Izvestia, but propaganda posters were also impotant in a largely illiterate society. Stalin’s image came to represent Bolshevik values and he was the embodiment and personification of a new revolutionary society.
Propaganda
Propaganda is a conscious attempt to influence the opinions of an audience (and indirectly their actions) in a way that is designed to serve the interests of those who create and spread the propaganda. Although propaganda is a cultural phenomenon - it concerned with thoughts, ideas and beliefs expressed through newspapers and radio, posters and film - propaganda is also designed to impact on political and social life, albeit indirectly. Agitprop was the abbreviated name of the Communist Party’s Department of Agitation and Propaganda. It referred to the production of propaganda materials designed to agitate a positive response from the public. The more ambitious the regime is in its desire to control the individual, the more important the mobilisation of the public in support of the regime. This is propaganda as totalitarian mobilisation. At the other extreme is propaganda that is less ambitious and simply meant to depoliticise and entertain. In ancient Rome this was summed up by the expression 'give them bread and circuses and they will never rebel'. Propaganda and censorship in the USSR were centrally organised. The distinction between the arts and propaganda, education and indoctrination began to break down. Mobilisation of the public in support of the regime was crucial because the Five-Year Plan required enormous effort and sacrifice and eveyone was expected to play their part in building socialism.
Agit-trains, agit-streetcars and agit-boats. Brightly painted agit-trains carried leaflets, books and other materials to the peasants to promote Soviet policies and programmes. Printing presses and radios on the trains were used to communicate with Moscow enabling those on board to tailor their propaganda to address local concerns. The most successful of the agit-boats was a steamer called the Red Star, which spent months travelling up and down the Volga River during the summers of 1919 and 1920, showing films more than 400 times. Many leading Party luminaries, including Molotov and Krupskaya (Lenin’s wife), joined these trips.
Film and radio
The earliest Soviet film production and distribution organisation until 1924 was Goskino. Lenin, in particular, had always felt that film was the best way to reach the illiterate peasants. As in Germany with Leni Riefenstahl, the USSR also exploited state control and investiment to produce some of the most influential films of the 20th century.
Propaganda is a conscious attempt to influence the opinions of an audience (and indirectly their actions) in a way that is designed to serve the interests of those who create and spread the propaganda. Although propaganda is a cultural phenomenon - it concerned with thoughts, ideas and beliefs expressed through newspapers and radio, posters and film - propaganda is also designed to impact on political and social life, albeit indirectly. Agitprop was the abbreviated name of the Communist Party’s Department of Agitation and Propaganda. It referred to the production of propaganda materials designed to agitate a positive response from the public. The more ambitious the regime is in its desire to control the individual, the more important the mobilisation of the public in support of the regime. This is propaganda as totalitarian mobilisation. At the other extreme is propaganda that is less ambitious and simply meant to depoliticise and entertain. In ancient Rome this was summed up by the expression 'give them bread and circuses and they will never rebel'. Propaganda and censorship in the USSR were centrally organised. The distinction between the arts and propaganda, education and indoctrination began to break down. Mobilisation of the public in support of the regime was crucial because the Five-Year Plan required enormous effort and sacrifice and eveyone was expected to play their part in building socialism.
Agit-trains, agit-streetcars and agit-boats. Brightly painted agit-trains carried leaflets, books and other materials to the peasants to promote Soviet policies and programmes. Printing presses and radios on the trains were used to communicate with Moscow enabling those on board to tailor their propaganda to address local concerns. The most successful of the agit-boats was a steamer called the Red Star, which spent months travelling up and down the Volga River during the summers of 1919 and 1920, showing films more than 400 times. Many leading Party luminaries, including Molotov and Krupskaya (Lenin’s wife), joined these trips.
Film and radio
The earliest Soviet film production and distribution organisation until 1924 was Goskino. Lenin, in particular, had always felt that film was the best way to reach the illiterate peasants. As in Germany with Leni Riefenstahl, the USSR also exploited state control and investiment to produce some of the most influential films of the 20th century.
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The People’s Commissariat for Posts and Telegraphs controlled radio resources in Russia in the immediate aftermath of the October Revolution. Lenin had recognised its early days that radio had great potential. Lenin and the Bolsheviks established the first All-Union radio station in November 1924, and radio was seen over the following decades as a key outlet for bringing their ideas to the masses.
Alexei Stakhanov and Pavlik Morozov.
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The propaganda machine and its Five Year plans also created heroes as ‘cultural icons,’ for example Alexei Stakhanov. Stakhanov was a coal miner from the Donbass region, who extracted his quota 14 times over (102 tons in six hours) in September 1935 during the Second Five Year Plan. As a result of his achievement, Stakhanov made the cover of Time magazine in December 1935, and following the creation of the title in 1938 was made a Hero of Socialist Labour, the highest civilian distinction for exceptional contribution to the fields of the economy and culture. |
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Pavlik Morozov was also mythic figure . He was a 14-year-old boy from a Siberian village who turned his own father in for treason and was subsequently murdered along with his brother. Morozov was considered to be an the ideal Soviet youth, a dutiful citizen who showed that that the communist state is thicker than blood. This myth probably inspired the what happened to the character Parsons in Orwell's 1984. (See right) |
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Charismatic leadership
As we have seen, on his rise to power Stalin was notoriously dismissed as a 'grey blur' and certainly in comparison to Lenin or Trotsky he seems to have lacked the sort of qualities that we normally associate with a charismatic personality. Unlike Mussolini he lacked a cinematic personal presence and unlike Hitler, Stalin was not renowned for his powerful oratory. But a cult of leadership can be built on other important qualities, especially if like Stalin you directly control how those qualities are disseminated. Stalin was sold as both an ordinary man of the people and a simple, loyal disciple of Lenin. (see propaganda poster below).
As we have seen, on his rise to power Stalin was notoriously dismissed as a 'grey blur' and certainly in comparison to Lenin or Trotsky he seems to have lacked the sort of qualities that we normally associate with a charismatic personality. Unlike Mussolini he lacked a cinematic personal presence and unlike Hitler, Stalin was not renowned for his powerful oratory. But a cult of leadership can be built on other important qualities, especially if like Stalin you directly control how those qualities are disseminated. Stalin was sold as both an ordinary man of the people and a simple, loyal disciple of Lenin. (see propaganda poster below).
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His lack of any obviously extraordinary abilities had helped him avoid the accusations of Bonapartism which had enabled him to outmanoever his more talented rivals on the road to power. Now this ordinary working-class background provided a solid trustworthy visage which many citizens found reassuring. And as a loyal Leninist without an apparent agenda of his own, he could be presented as the leader to be trusted with the future of the revolution. From day one Stalin presented himself as Lenin's natural heir. He lectured on 'The Foundation of Leninism' at the Moscow Communist University and published the official textbook on Marxist-Leninism. Stalinism was never on the agenda.
Activity
The activity for this lesson will be a class based lecture. Make sure to put your notes - supplemented from here if necessary - in your OneNote.
The activity for this lesson will be a class based lecture. Make sure to put your notes - supplemented from here if necessary - in your OneNote.
Extension (essential for IB students.)
As IB students you need to start looking out for similarities and differences between the different examples of authoritarian states. The films below provide you with a generic, conceptual overview of how power can be consolidated. My pages on the IB section of the site also provide you with more details.
As IB students you need to start looking out for similarities and differences between the different examples of authoritarian states. The films below provide you with a generic, conceptual overview of how power can be consolidated. My pages on the IB section of the site also provide you with more details.
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