agricultural and social developments in the countryside Flashcards
what was the great turn?
a policy shift where Stalin defeated the bukharinists + consolidated dictatorial power over the party, enforcing revolution changes to the soviet economy
what was voluntary after 1929?
collectivisation
how were peasants forced into collective farms after 1929?
campaign of intimidation -> kulaks targeted as Stalin announced they would be annihilated as a class
what methods were used to enforce collectivisation?
- expansion of the urals-siberian method: enforced in may 1929 across almost all grain producing regions of the ussr
- help from poorest peasants: local party officials called on them to help identify kulaks, poorest peasants had the most to gain from collective farm they would be able to use richer peasants land, livestock etc
- help from party activists: nov 1929, 25,000 activity were sent into the country side to help dekulakisation, officially sent to promote benefits of collective farms but in reality they searched households for hidden grain + tried to round up kulaks
- a mixture of propaganda + fear: people who resisted joining collective farms were likely to be classed as kulaks too
process of collectivisation 1929
only 5% of farms were voluntarily collectivised
during the year 15% of peasant households identified as kulaks, those who weren’t shot by OGPU for ‘terrorism’ were forced into exile in Siberia. in 1929, 150,000 kulak families were deported to Siberia.
process of collectivisation 1930
march - Stalin announced 50% of peasant farms had bee collectivised, he also criticised local party officials for their overzealousness + allowed brief return to voluntary membership of collective farms
oct - return to this meant no.s had dropped + only 20% were still collectivised
process of collectivisation 1931
once spring crop had been sown in 1931, collectivisation was enforced again
when were all farms collectivised?
1941
what was the ideal type of farm for a communist purist?
sovkhoz, a state owned farm where they were paid a fixed wage
what are kolkhozes
created by combining small, individual farms together
from farms that already existed
consisted of around 75 families living in one village
paid by dividing any farm earnings by the no. of labour days they contributed to
communal fields in which everyone worked but members also allowed small private plots to farm
what are sovkozes
created on land confiscated from tsarist era, large seats + owned + run by the state
members recruited from landless rural labourers, often housed in barracks
members classified as workers not peasants + paid a wage for their work
organised for large scale production on industrial lines
viewed as ideal for of socialist farming
what are the similarities between kolkhozes + sovkozes?
- both required to meet high quotas set by the state
- price set for quotas was low, meant industrial workers fed cheaply + state could make profits on exporting grain in order to finance industrialisation
- after 1932 both were restricted by internal passports to stop them leaving
what were machine tractor stations?
set up from 1931, these hired out tractors + machinery to collective + state farms
advantages of MTS?
- provided mechanisation + expertise to modernise farming
- tractors were the main focus, by 1933 there were 75,000 Mts tractors
- mechanisation reduced peasant labour, they could go become industrial workers
disadvantages of MTS?
- far more farms than MTS by 1940 one MTS foe every 40 farms
- tractor hire price were high bc state was squeezing farm for money
- efficiency only improved in some places bc machines often only completed part of the process
