2.2 Stalin’s Economy

Question 1

‘Great Turn’ 1927-28

Answer 1

Command Economy: communist radicalisation of the economy after NEP - move to central planning
economic punishment leading to faulty reporting

Question 2

‘Industrialisation Congress’

Answer 2

14th Party Congress 1925
Called for transformation of the agrarian system
Maintains NEP but concerns grew

Question 3

Why did Stalin support the NEP?

Answer 3

1925-27 he needed Bukharin’s support in power struggle
Strengthen links with Lenin

Question 4

Collectivisation of Agriculture 1928

Answer 4

destruction of private farms development of an industrial mode on the countryside

Question 5

Massive Industrialisation

Answer 5

production increased immensely
5 year plans ended the NEP men’s power

Question 6

15th Party Congress 1927

Answer 6

End of NEP, beginning of 5 year plans and ‘Great Turn’
Stalin promised to catch up to Europe in 10 years

Question 7

GT: reasons

Answer 7

Stalin’s leadership style
move to ‘true socialism’ from blue collar workers
need for military strength and self-sufficiency

Question 8

1st 5 Year Plan: AIMS

Answer 8

‘Superindustrialisation’ HI
Build up industrial infrastructure & factories
(Neglect consumer goods)
1928-32

Question 9

1st 5 Year Plans: SUCCESSES

Answer 9

Magnitogorsk population increased 25 -> 250,000 in 3 years)
Output increase 250%, HI output 330%, coal production 200% and electrical production 400%
‘Shock brigades’ and reward system to encourage workers: submission

Question 10

1st 5 Year Plan: FAILURES

Answer 10

Plants no significant impact until 1934
Only 17% of Moscow workers were skilled (relied on revolutionary spirit)
White Sea Canal: useless for large boats, 10.000 gulag prisoners died building it in Siberia
Shoddy products
Increase in corruption

Question 11

2nd 5 Year Plan: AIMS

Answer 11

1933-37
Increase consumer goods, but due to 1930s rearmament focus shifted to heavy industry

Question 12

2nd 5 Year Plan: SUCCESSES

Answer 12

coal production up and chemical developments
Centres built in less-developed areas (e.g Kazakhstan); regional development
Small consumer good progress (e.g food processing, footwear production) improved living standards slightly

Question 13

2nd 5 Year Plan: FAILURES

Answer 13

shortage of consumer goods
living standards more continuity

Question 14

3rd 5 Year Plan: AIMS

Answer 14

1938-42
arms production due to war

Question 15

3rd 5 Year Plan: SUCCESSES

Answer 15

1928-41 saw 17% growth rate, steel x4, coal x6

Question 16

3rd 5 Year Plan: FAILURES

Answer 16

Consumer industries failed
Slowdown due to purge of party experts 1937

Question 17

5YPs: Impacts

Answer 17

Increased control: internal passports, voluntary absence= housing removal
Unions for higher production
farmers -> workers
piece rates replaced fixed salaries
internal passports, workers forced to go where officials sent them 1932

Question 18

Collectivisation: REASONS

Answer 18

broaden econ base, free workers, food surpluses feed town and pay for machinery
economies of scale
removal of kulaks and NEP men
establish control over peasants
increase state procurements (1926 declining)

Question 19

Key developments of Collectivisation 1926-29

Answer 19

1926: requisitioning only produces 50% goal = grain procurement crisis 1927
Dec 1927 15th Party Congress: voluntary collectivisation
promise of MTS & party officials to villages
1928 forced requisitioning increases (Ural-Siberian) in cities, violent opposition in Ukraine&caucasus
1929: NEP ends, December forced collectivisation launched

Question 20

De-Kulakisation

Answer 20

OGPU & ‘Twenty-Five Thousanders’ (party officials) exiled refusers of collect. to labour camps (300,000 kulaks exiled 1931-32)
Red Army to calm unrest
5-10 million kulak deaths, genocide of Holodomor

Question 21

COLLECTIVISATION CONSEQUENCES: econ damage

Answer 21

1928-33: nº of cattle halved, did not recover until 1953
Meat&milk shortage: from 73.3M tonnes in 1928 to 67.6M tonnes 1934
October 1931 drought = worst famine in russian history
due to deportation of most productive class

Question 22

COLLECTIVISATION CONSEQUENCES: poor organisation

Answer 22

only profited private plots (produced 70% meat and 50% vegetables)
lack of haulage power & horses, peasants pulled ploughs themselves
party orders did not consider local conditions
slow supply of machinery = reduced yield

Question 23

COLLECTIVISATION CONSEQUENCES: Human cost

Answer 23

‘Second sefdom’: internal passports, 10 y sentences for stealing crops
1932-33 famine: 4 million deaths
Typhus epidemic: Kazakh population down by 40%

Question 24

COLLECTIVISATION CONSEQUENCES: party control

Answer 24

idea of communism spread to countryside
nationalist movements controlled

Question 25

Collectivisation: SUCCESSES

Answer 25

Aim of transforming economy to protect USSR from capitalist countries achieved Industrialisation effective: USSR able to defend itself in WW2

Question 26

Collectivisation: FAILURES

Answer 26

Unbalanced progress (city/countryside) Chaotic planning Human cost (slave labour) Decline in social conditions Decrease in agricultural production

Question 27

Wartime: Industry

Answer 27

initial collapse but overall increase ‘Lend-lease’ scheme (payment deferred) -> military hardware focus 1943-45: 73,000 tanks and 94,000 aircraft produced

Question 28

Wartime: Central Planning

Answer 28

effective mobilisation, Local level Defence Committees to organise war production Factories transformed for production of war supplies & evacuated to safer areas (East)

Question 29

Wartime: Agriculture

Answer 29

Farm machinery, able-bodied men & draft animals lost Grain output from 95M tonnes 1940 to 30M tonnes 1942, nº of cattle halved Restrictions on private plots lifted

Question 30

Wartime: Nazi dammage

Answer 30

25 million homeless, 1,700 towns and 70,000 villages destroyed, 20M soldiers died steel down by 6M tonnes, oil 2/3 of pre-war figure, wool 1/2

Question 31

4th 5YP: Aims & Methods

Answer 31

1946-50 pay 'Lend-Lease' & reinforce econ. control machinery from East Ger as reparations one-sided agreements with new soviet-dominated govs

Question 32

4th 5YP: SUCCESSES

Answer 32

Plan overfulfilled!!! 2M gulag slaves = impressive industrual recovery strong planning, punishment for slackers, labour redirected to construction

Question 33

4th 5YP: FAILURES

Answer 33

Ignored consumer goods Did not adopt new technologies (e.g plastics & chemicals)

Question 34

5th 5YP: Aims & Methods

Answer 34

growth at a "realistic" rate Military budget increased each year (Cold War threat)

Question 35

5th 5YP: SUCCESSES

Answer 35

Living conditions improved: price reductions wages back to 1928 level in 1952

Question 36

5th 5YP: FAILURES

Answer 36

High-Stalinism: projects with little econ value Volga-Don Canal: useless but had statues of Stalin large gov buildings in Moscow despite housing shortage Countryside saw slower recovery

Question 37

Agriculture in WW2

Answer 37

concessions to sustain food production ‘Link’ system: smaller groups of peasants had responsibility for areas within collective & could sell surpluses for private profit

Question 38

Agriculture POST WW2

Answer 38

taxes on private plots raised post-war MTS supervision: higher control of Party in countryside low production: able-bodied men left/died., shortage of livestock & machinery Khrushchev: larger collectives for more efficient use of machinery; by 1952 over 10,000 created (unpopular with peasants)