Khrushchev in power, 1956-64

Question 1

What does Martin McCauley say about Khrushchev

Answer 1

he ‘changed only aspects of the system and not the system itself’

Question 2

Where was Khrushchev successful?

Answer 2

1. making the Communist Party more accountable to the people
2. reforming bureaucracy so it was less corrupt
3. Through de-Stalinisation he tried to make relations with the West more cordial

Question 3

What was Khrushchev’s unsuccessful economic policies which seemed to contradict his political policies?

Answer 3

1. He adhered to the centralised planning of the economy

2. He was reluctant to embrace an economic system at least partly based on market forces

Question 4

Westwood on there being little rural unrest during the Khrushchev era:

Answer 4

‘for the first time since Peter the Great there was a genuine interchange between the tsar and the people’

Question 5

What caused Khrushchev’s fall?

Answer 5

1. his failed agricultural policy
2. loss of prestige over the CMC
3. deterioration in relations with China
4. Khrushchev’s decentralisation of the government (threatened key members of the bureaucracy)
5. defence cuts which annoyed the military

Question 6

What does Norman Lowe think caused Khrushchev’s fall?

Answer 6

‘His extrovert personality’ ‘Khrushchev had become increasingly aggressive and arrogant, and at times seemed to have developed the “cult of personality” almost as much ass Stalin’

Question 7

What does Dmitri Volkogonov believe about Khrushchev?

Answer 7

that through de-Stalinisation K ‘achieved virtually the impossible’ as ‘in a fundamental way [he] also changed society’

Question 8

When and where was Khrushchev’s secret speech?

Answer 8

February 25th, 1956. It took place at the twentieth party congress in Moscow in the Great Hall of the Kremlin.

Question 9

What was Khrushchev’s speech called?

Answer 9

‘The Personality Cult and its Consequences’

Question 10

On what grounds did K denounced Stalin?

Answer 10

1. cult of personality
2. his crimes including the execution, torture and imprisonment of loyal party members on false charges
3. foreign policy errors
4. failings of Soviet agriculture
5. mass terror
6. mistakes during WW2

Question 11

Solzhenitsyn on Khrushchev’s secret speech?

Answer 11

he spoke out of ‘a movement of the heart’, a genuine impulse to do good

Question 12

What does Richard Cavendish argue about Khrushchev’s speech?

Answer 12

‘It deflected blame from the party and the system on to Stalin’s shoulders’

Question 13

What measures did the congress call for after the secret speech?

Answer 13

measures ‘for removing wholly and entirely the cult of the individual, foreign to Marxism-Leninism… in every aspect of party, governmental and ideological activity’

Question 14

What does Donald Filtzer call Khrushchev’s reforms?

Answer 14

‘hare-brained’, poorly thought out

Question 15

Why does Filtzer think Khrushchev’s reforms were ‘hare-brained’

Answer 15

1. Reforms were well intended but badly planned, e.g. Virgin Land Schemes
2. Bureaucratic Soviet ‘system’ too cumbersome to allow reforms to be quickly implemented
3. He failed to realise that some members may have felt threatened by the changes he made
4. The reforms weren’t as radical as they needed to be to cope with the challenges left by the Stalinist regime

Question 16

How was the Virgin Lands Schemes well intended but badly planned?

Answer 16

initially grain production increased substantially but this tailed off due to the poor quality of land used and a lack of fertilisers
CHALLENGED BY NORMAN LOWE

Question 17

Why does Norman Lowe think Khrushchev’s reforms were a considerable achievement given the context?

Answer 17

1. the weakness of VL schemes have been exaggerated
2. He made rad changes to the industrial infrastructure by establishing light industries to raise the living standards
3. he had to prioritise political problems which he dealt with effectively

Question 18

Why does Norman Lowe think the weaknesses of the Virgin Lands Scheme has been exaggerated?

Answer 18

It was only in 1963 that a significant fall in grain production was witnessed, mainly due to bad weather, so

Question 19

Fact for raised living standards under Khrushchev?

Answer 19

from 1955-1966, the number of washing machines per thousand of the population increased from 1 to 77

Question 20

How did Khrushchev deal with political problems effectively?

Answer 20

He ended the Stalinist Gulags and placed the NKVD under the control of the Party and the state.

Question 21

What does McCauley argue about Khrushchev’s reforms?

Answer 21

They made him a ‘courageous failure’

Question 22

In what way was the Virgin Lands campaign successful?

Answer 22

• 40 million hectares of new land were brought into production between 1954 and 1963
• grain output rose as a result, ending food shortages in the short term

Question 23

In what ways did Khrushchev successfully deal with the challenges posed by the Cold War?

Answer 23

1. In changing his foreign policy took the initiative in attempting to create a more peaceful and secure world
2. He signed the Austrian State Treaty (May 1955)
3. He ruthlessly suppressed minority opposition e.g. Budapest rising after the thaw which gained him support from the Communist party
4. Construction of the Berlin Wall 1961 was a bold move preventing embarrassment
5. His handling of the CMC 1962 has been praised

Question 24

What did Khrushchev say about Russian foreign policy in his Secret Speech?

Answer 24

‘There are only two ways - either peaceful co-existence [with the West] or the most destructive war in history. There is no third way’

Question 25

What did Khrushchev’s signing the Austrian State Treaty in May 1955 mean?

Answer 25

it showed he was willing to co-operate with the West over dealing with Austria’s claims for independence

Question 26

Why has Khrushchev’s handling of the CMC 1962 been praised?

Answer 26

• he tested Kennedy’s diplomatic skills before agreeing to a relaxation of tensions
• he forced Kennedy to compromise (preferable to Kennedy invading Cuba and overthrowing Castro)
• ‘hot line’ telephone link strengthened the Russian ‘peaceful co-existence’ stance

Question 27

In what ways did Khrushchev’s Cold War policy lead to heightened tensions?

Answer 27

1. Peaceful co-existence betrayed communist ideals of spreading communism internationally
2. He alienated the Chinese who accused him of being ‘too soft on the imperialists’
3. McCauley argues that the Hungarian crisis of 1965 was a ‘disaster’ that can be blamed on de-Stalinisation; it was a ‘poor advertisement’ for communism
4. Berlin Wall - oppressive measure worsened relations with the West
5. CMC - near provocation of a nuclear war, perceived as weak bc he withdrew missiles from Cuba

Question 28

Why did Martin McCauley say the Hungarian crisis was a ‘disaster’ and ‘poor advertisement’ for communism?

Answer 28

‘it put back the cause of de-Stalinisation, and hence reform, in Eastern Europe and also weakened the Soviet cause abroad. Communist parties in Western Europe lost many members and declined in influence.’

Question 29

In what ways were Khrushchev’s policy towards minorities a failure?

Answer 29

1. Appeasing Tito led to instability in the Soviet bloc
2. Hungarian crisis
3. Berlin Wall
4. Sino-Soviet split

Question 30

why was appeasing Tito a failure?

Answer 30

by allowing Tito a certain amount of autonomy, other EE states were encouraged to follow the Yugoslavian model, creating instability in the Soviet bloc which contributed to the final collapse of communism in 1991

Question 31

why was the Hungarian crisis a failure?

Answer 31

a) Khrushchev resorted to Stalinist tactics to deal with opposition so De-Stalinisation suffered a major setback.
b) communist parties in the West lost support, denting the prospect of the spread of communism outside the USSR
c) when combined with the Berlin Wall 1961 K seemed too willing to resort to repression when his liberal policies failed

Question 32

Why did his policies towards China fail?

Answer 32

Khruschev couldn’t deal with criticism from Mao, and by the 1960s Mao claimed they were the real upholders of Marxism-Leninism (not K’s USSR), dividing the communist movement.

Question 33

What did Martin McCauley say about Mao and Khruschev

Answer 33

as early as 1954 ‘the wily Mao bamboozled Khrushchev’

Question 34

In what way did Khrushchev’s policies towards minorities succeed?

Answer 34

1. handling of Hungarian Uprising gained support
2. Stance on Germany prevented Western control
3. Khrushchev held his own against China

Question 35

What successes did Khrushchev’s suppression of the Hungarian Uprising have?

Answer 35

1. Gained Tito’s support
2. Gained backing of Poland, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Bulgaria and China
3. The West failed to intervene - propaganda victory

Question 36

example of Khrushchev holding his own against China

Answer 36

in 1958 the Soviet Union declined to provide China with military support in its conflict with Taiwan and the USA

Question 37

According to Lorenz M. Luthi, what were the three key points of the ideological Sino-Soviet split?

Answer 37

1. disagreements in 1955 over the Stalinist socioeconomic development model
2. De-Stalinisation: Mao and K took up opposite positions
3. Disputes over the correct method of dealing with imperialism

Question 38

What disagreement arose between China and the USSR because of ideological arguments?

Answer 38

1. security disputes e.g. the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis 1958
2. economic disagreements like the withdrawal of the Soviet specialists from China in 1960

Question 39

What was the 100 Flowers Campaign?

Answer 39

The Maoist policy established by 1957 of allowing Chinese leadership to be discussed, out of fear of being compared with Stalin

Question 40

What happened on the 24th November 1956?

Answer 40

K sent Soviet tanks into Budapest to crush the Hungarian uprising. By mid-afternoon twenty-five protestors killed and more than 200 injured.

Question 41

what did General Zhukov say about the crushing of the Hungarian uprising?

Answer 41

‘we should withdraw our troops fro Budapest and from all of Hungary if that’s what is demanded’

Question 42

What did Khruschev say on the 31st October when he reversed his stance on Hungary?

Answer 42

‘we must.. not pull troops out of the Budapest. We must take the initiative and restore order in Hungary. If we leave Hungary, that will encourage the Americans, English and French, the imperialists. They will perceive it as a weakness and go on the offensive’.