How did Stalin Emerge as Leader of Russia?

Question 1

who were the contenders for the power struggle as well as Stalin

Answer 1

on the right:
rykov
tomsky
bukharin

on the left:
Trotsky
kamenev
zinoviev

Question 2

how did Stalin form his own power base

Answer 2

party secretary
positions in the orgburo and secretariat
control of party organisation
control of party membership

Question 3

how did being party secretary benefit Stalin

Answer 3

gave him control over the meetings of the politburo

he could control what was being discussed and what information people could recieve

Question 4

how did his position in the orgburo and politburo benefit Stalin

Answer 4

he could put his supporters in key positions

would help him control how people voted

Question 5

how did Stalins control of party organisation benefit him

Answer 5

could pack congress with his supporters
responsible for the hostile reception Trotsky received
his ability to control votes made him a valuable ally- gave him support from kamenev and zinoviev

Question 6

how did stalins control of party membership help him

Answer 6

could get rid of those likely to support Trotsky, eg. students and soldiers
supervised the “lenin enrolment” which increased the party membership by double to one million
new members were uneducated and likely to do as they were told

Question 7

what were Trotsky’s weaknesses

Answer 7

didnt attend Lenin’s funeral
had only joined the bolshevik party in august 1917 - new member who was not trusted to remain loyal
no good at making allies
ill for most of the power struggle
regarded as arrogant and dismissive of his colleagues
did not go out of his way to build up a support base
allowed Stalin to erode any allies he did have
underestimated Stalin