USSR Topic 1: The Leadership Struggle Flashcards
(4 cards)
Lenin’s Last Testament
Trotsky - too arrogant
Bukharin - didn’t understand marxism but popular
Z and K - had not supported oct rev
Stalin - abused his position as gen sec
Contenders agreed to hide it, helped stalin present himself as heir as no one knew that lenin had spoken against him, he could remove the other contenders without having criticism on himself
Defeat of Trotsky
1924 Party congress outvoted trotsky on his views for rap industrialisation
1925 - trotsky lost job as commisar for war
He then formed alliance with ZK, factionalism banned, removed from party
Helped Stalin to seize power as less opposition
Stalin Position as Gen Sec
1922 - became gen sec and head of politburo
access to 26k member files
appoint his supporters high roles like party officials
dzherzhinksy would report to him regularly (head of NKVD)
Meant stalin always had majourity at party congress to vote out opposition like Trotskys motion for rap industrialisation
Helped by Lenin enrollment - 1923-25 500k industrial workers joined loyal to Stalin
Defeat of ZK
stalin ruled with them 1924-26
stalin backstabbed them and joined with Bukharin to support continuation of NEP
Had them expelled when the joined with Trotsky - factionalism
Stalin now only had Bukharin to attack on the right, he headed to siberia to order grain to be violently seized to show his betrayal
