1. What is the significance of Kirov's murder?
Answer: The significance of the Kirov murder what that it gave Stalin an excuse to purge the party, and begin the show trials.
2. According to Stalin, who had Nikolayev been working for when he assassinated Kirov? Why is this significant?
Answer: According to Stalin Nikolayev was working for the Leningrad Opposition Center, this is significant because it gave him a motive to want to eliminate a major party leader, such as Kirov, Stalin etc; as an act of "terrorism" against the communist party.
3. What is a Trotskyite?
Answer: A Trotskyite was someone who was not loyal to the party, and were loyal to Trotsky and the way that he would have run the party, and his side and views. They were often denounced in party meetings or put in show trials.
4. There are three major Show Trials, name and briefly describe them.
Answer: 1. The Trial of the Sixteen- this involved Zinoviev, Kamenev, and 14 others; they were accused of involvement in conspiracy, relating to Trotsky.
2. Trial of the Seventeen- the victims were accused of having links to Trotsky, and creating terrorist actions, and wrecking industry. 3. Trial of the Twenty-One- involved Buhkarin, Rykov, and 19 others; they were accused of helping foregin spies, being Trotsky-Righists, and wrecking industry.
5. During the Great Terror, there were three stages to the purges, staring with members of the Communist party. What were the next two stages and what type of people were purged?
Answer: The next two stages were purges of the armed forces and the general public of the USSR. Neighbours could rat out their neighbours and no one was safe.
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Kirov Murder Mystery
Sorry! This is copied out of a word doc!:)
1. In what circumstances ti the assassin carry out the murder?
He was able to get into the building while Kirov's body guard was downstairs, wait in the hallway all day, and then while his body guard was not with him, shot Kirov. Previously the assassin was caught, questioned but given back his gun. 2. What strange coincidences surround the murder?
Kirov had just gained popularity among the 7th party congress- making him a threat to Stalin, the man who assassinated Mr. Kirov was also seen near his building, and neigborhood right before the murder- he also had NKVD friends, whom he enjoyed shooting his revolver with. 3. Is there any evidence to link Stalin to the murder?
although there is no evidence, there is however a lot of conspiracy that he was eliminating the competition, and that he was aiming to make himself the only person in power; as well as beginning show trials, and the reason to purge.
4. Is there any evidence to suggest that the NKVD was involved in the murder?
Yes, they had earlier questioned the assassin and let HIM go with his revolver, it is also alleged that an NKVD man posed as Nikolayev's friend and shot his revolver with him, as if to teach him how to use his revolver.
5. Who had the best motive for the murder?
Stalin, because he wouldn't want to have anyone who would be competing with him for the power of the party, especially if they were more popular then stalin. Also, i think that he would not have wanted anyone to get in the way of his purging.
6. What theories can you suggest about who was responsible - was it the assassin alone or were others involved?
I think that the assassin was influenced by the NKVD and Stalin because they would have the most reasons to be motivated to kill off Kirov for security of power, and security of the popular vote. They would also be more experienced (NKVD) in the art of assassination.
1. In what circumstances ti the assassin carry out the murder?
He was able to get into the building while Kirov's body guard was downstairs, wait in the hallway all day, and then while his body guard was not with him, shot Kirov. Previously the assassin was caught, questioned but given back his gun. 2. What strange coincidences surround the murder?
Kirov had just gained popularity among the 7th party congress- making him a threat to Stalin, the man who assassinated Mr. Kirov was also seen near his building, and neigborhood right before the murder- he also had NKVD friends, whom he enjoyed shooting his revolver with. 3. Is there any evidence to link Stalin to the murder?
although there is no evidence, there is however a lot of conspiracy that he was eliminating the competition, and that he was aiming to make himself the only person in power; as well as beginning show trials, and the reason to purge.
4. Is there any evidence to suggest that the NKVD was involved in the murder?
Yes, they had earlier questioned the assassin and let HIM go with his revolver, it is also alleged that an NKVD man posed as Nikolayev's friend and shot his revolver with him, as if to teach him how to use his revolver.
5. Who had the best motive for the murder?
Stalin, because he wouldn't want to have anyone who would be competing with him for the power of the party, especially if they were more popular then stalin. Also, i think that he would not have wanted anyone to get in the way of his purging.
6. What theories can you suggest about who was responsible - was it the assassin alone or were others involved?
I think that the assassin was influenced by the NKVD and Stalin because they would have the most reasons to be motivated to kill off Kirov for security of power, and security of the popular vote. They would also be more experienced (NKVD) in the art of assassination.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Gulags and the Purges
1. What type of construction projects were built using the Gulag System?
The most notable construction projects to come out of the Gulag would be the Canal from the White Sea to the Baltic Sea ( which was too shallow, and was deemed a failure), as well as the Moscow Metrosystem and other large scale but expensive projects such as the electrical facility in the Ukraine.
2.What were the conditions in the camps?
Many of the camps exposed its prisoners to cold and brutal conditions due to the location of the camp, in some camps temperatures were reported dipping under -60 in the winter, to make the prisoners work harder the Zek rationed food, some of the worst camps were in Kolyma this is where the winter conditions were brutal, and the workers were forced to prospect gold by hand.
3. Why do you think slave labor was used in the projects instead of paid labor?
I think that they chose to use slave labor because the projects were so large in scale and expensive as it is that they could not afford to also pay workers, another problem was relating to the purges, many of the skilled workers and more skilled people were in Gulags or dead, because they were considered to be enemies of the state. Also, by using slave labor they were able to achieve much more, because the conditions could be lower in standard.
4. What were the issues surrounding Kirov's murder?, Why do you think he had been murdered?
Surrounding Kirov's murder there were the issues of the assassins plan, he was originally caught and arrested, however the police later released him, and returned his gun to him, another strange thing about the murder of Kirov is that Kirov's bodyguard was no where to be found, when normally they were always together, the next day he too was killed. I think that he was murdered because he was too popular for Stalin's good; he was more handsome, from russia ( not georgia) popular, and a moderate member of Politburo at the time, stalin would not want anyone to appear better for the job then him.
5. What was the great purge? what specific group did it target?
The great purge was a purge of the party where those who were deemed unrealiable were purged from the party, they mostly targeted people who had been supporters of trotsky or zinoviev.
6.What was the purpose of the Show Trials?
The show trials were put on in order to parade around those who Stalin wished to purge from the party, who had places of power. They were eventually pushed into false-confessions and killed, they were put on for show, and were given the maximum publicity to humiliate and make example of the men accused.
7.What was the Great Terror?
The great terror was the spread of the purges outside of the party, those in the military went first, admirals were shot, then anyone could accuse anyone within the USSR, citizens ratted out other citizens, where they would be taken away in the night and killed.
The most notable construction projects to come out of the Gulag would be the Canal from the White Sea to the Baltic Sea ( which was too shallow, and was deemed a failure), as well as the Moscow Metrosystem and other large scale but expensive projects such as the electrical facility in the Ukraine.
2.What were the conditions in the camps?
Many of the camps exposed its prisoners to cold and brutal conditions due to the location of the camp, in some camps temperatures were reported dipping under -60 in the winter, to make the prisoners work harder the Zek rationed food, some of the worst camps were in Kolyma this is where the winter conditions were brutal, and the workers were forced to prospect gold by hand.
3. Why do you think slave labor was used in the projects instead of paid labor?
I think that they chose to use slave labor because the projects were so large in scale and expensive as it is that they could not afford to also pay workers, another problem was relating to the purges, many of the skilled workers and more skilled people were in Gulags or dead, because they were considered to be enemies of the state. Also, by using slave labor they were able to achieve much more, because the conditions could be lower in standard.
4. What were the issues surrounding Kirov's murder?, Why do you think he had been murdered?
Surrounding Kirov's murder there were the issues of the assassins plan, he was originally caught and arrested, however the police later released him, and returned his gun to him, another strange thing about the murder of Kirov is that Kirov's bodyguard was no where to be found, when normally they were always together, the next day he too was killed. I think that he was murdered because he was too popular for Stalin's good; he was more handsome, from russia ( not georgia) popular, and a moderate member of Politburo at the time, stalin would not want anyone to appear better for the job then him.
5. What was the great purge? what specific group did it target?
The great purge was a purge of the party where those who were deemed unrealiable were purged from the party, they mostly targeted people who had been supporters of trotsky or zinoviev.
6.What was the purpose of the Show Trials?
The show trials were put on in order to parade around those who Stalin wished to purge from the party, who had places of power. They were eventually pushed into false-confessions and killed, they were put on for show, and were given the maximum publicity to humiliate and make example of the men accused.
7.What was the Great Terror?
The great terror was the spread of the purges outside of the party, those in the military went first, admirals were shot, then anyone could accuse anyone within the USSR, citizens ratted out other citizens, where they would be taken away in the night and killed.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Collectivization of Agriculture
1. Why was collectivization necessary?
- Collectivization was necessary in order to grow more corps and farm land more efficiently, and free up the amount of workers who could go from being rural workers, to become city workers. Collectivization also made it easier for the government to collect their crops and distribute them to cities for export. This was also necessary because they were able to find a 'socialist' solution to the agriculture problems of the USSR.
2. What is kolkhoz?
- A kolkhoz is a collective farm where the Russian people would be forced to work and live. On the kolkhoz's everyone lived, worked, and harvested together. This is the same word as collective. These farms were acreage of land where they were farmed as a collective effort.
3.Who is a kulak?
- A kulak was a 'better-off' peasant, one who during the times of the NEP did well for themselves, the may own more than one horse, and during good times they might even hire out help of their own. They were typically the more enterprising of the farmers, and the ones with more animals, and better skills.
4.How were the kulaks dealt with by the government?
- The kulaks were essentially eliminated by the government, they were killed off if they would not go quietly, or they were sent far away from their wealth to different collectives. They were the class enemy and in 1929 Stalin called for the liquidation of the kulaks.
5.How did the peasants resist collectivization? What happened as a result?
- The peasants burned crops, slaughtered their animals, and ate gluttonous amounts of food in order to keep it from going to the government. This eventually lead to famine, the people on the collectives ended up starving and the people of Russia inevitably starved as well, they did all of this to insure that they would not have to give up their grain to the government.
6.What is a MTS station?
- A MTS station was a machine and tractor station. These were used to supply and maintain the machinery used on the collectives, and in the cities.
7.What were the dual purposes of the MTS's?
-One purpose of the MTS was to give the USSR the giant leap it needed into the 20th century, having mechanized labor, they would be able to keep more laborers in the cities, also this was a way for the government to keep tabs up on their farmers and collectives.
8.How did a kolkhoz work and what was its relationship with the nearby town and its MTS?
- A kolkhoz worked with everyone farming the largest portion of the land together, with an acre for themselves to do with it as they pleased. All the food that was farmed in the collective portion of the land had to be given up to the government. The relationship with the nearby town was that this is where the food would be sold off, the MTS would monitor the amount of food produced as well as the use of the machinery.
- Collectivization was necessary in order to grow more corps and farm land more efficiently, and free up the amount of workers who could go from being rural workers, to become city workers. Collectivization also made it easier for the government to collect their crops and distribute them to cities for export. This was also necessary because they were able to find a 'socialist' solution to the agriculture problems of the USSR.
2. What is kolkhoz?
- A kolkhoz is a collective farm where the Russian people would be forced to work and live. On the kolkhoz's everyone lived, worked, and harvested together. This is the same word as collective. These farms were acreage of land where they were farmed as a collective effort.
3.Who is a kulak?
- A kulak was a 'better-off' peasant, one who during the times of the NEP did well for themselves, the may own more than one horse, and during good times they might even hire out help of their own. They were typically the more enterprising of the farmers, and the ones with more animals, and better skills.
4.How were the kulaks dealt with by the government?
- The kulaks were essentially eliminated by the government, they were killed off if they would not go quietly, or they were sent far away from their wealth to different collectives. They were the class enemy and in 1929 Stalin called for the liquidation of the kulaks.
5.How did the peasants resist collectivization? What happened as a result?
- The peasants burned crops, slaughtered their animals, and ate gluttonous amounts of food in order to keep it from going to the government. This eventually lead to famine, the people on the collectives ended up starving and the people of Russia inevitably starved as well, they did all of this to insure that they would not have to give up their grain to the government.
6.What is a MTS station?
- A MTS station was a machine and tractor station. These were used to supply and maintain the machinery used on the collectives, and in the cities.
7.What were the dual purposes of the MTS's?
-One purpose of the MTS was to give the USSR the giant leap it needed into the 20th century, having mechanized labor, they would be able to keep more laborers in the cities, also this was a way for the government to keep tabs up on their farmers and collectives.
8.How did a kolkhoz work and what was its relationship with the nearby town and its MTS?
- A kolkhoz worked with everyone farming the largest portion of the land together, with an acre for themselves to do with it as they pleased. All the food that was farmed in the collective portion of the land had to be given up to the government. The relationship with the nearby town was that this is where the food would be sold off, the MTS would monitor the amount of food produced as well as the use of the machinery.
Friday, October 29, 2010
In Class: Lenin Between the Revolutions
1. According to Documents C, D and E Lenin and Stalin worked to secure the supremacy of the party by- in Document C dispersing of all groups within the party, they wanted a completely unified party and the division would cause potential criticism of the party that could be viewed as negative. In Document D Stalin speaks about absorbing all the best elements of the working class, their experience, spirit to revolutionize, and their devotion to the cause of the proletariat, however Stalin makes it clear that he will need to keep the dictator ship of the Proletariat, essentially Stalin and Lenin were enabling the party to gain supremacy by destroying any other parties, keeping itself unified, and keeping all of the criticism about the party out, Lenin also made it clear that he would be eliminating anyone who " free spoke" poorly about the party. Basically, it was not allowed, to speak poorly about the party; and the entire party must remained unified. As for Document E, ( cartoon ) the strength of the party is clearly shown through the larger man, with some sort of weapon; although this party is a minority- this is an instigation-propaganda, showing that the bolsheviks are a "power" in the revolution, and that the presumed mensheviks who are trying to hold the Bolsheviks back, are smaller and cannot stand in their way.
2. According to documents A,B, and C; the assertion that Lenin wanted power, and that his opponents did not want power is supported through the one thing Lenin seemed to have a real handle on, which was giving/telling the people exactly what they wanted. The Provisional Government, Duma, and Tsar- were all weaker examples, they never much thought into what the people really wanted, the provisional government was, like it clearly says simply provisional- they were not expecting to gain/maintain much power, so they never strove for any expansion; the duma is directly correlated because the men chosen by the Tsar to be in the Duma were the same who then made up the provisional government. In document B this is described, and also it is described that even after the unfavorable vote for the bolsheviks they merely decided that they would set themselves up as a one party state, anything to keep socialist revolutionaries from being the government. Document A talks about completely eliminating the need for party, class, estate and national difference, which on the surface seems mildly pro Lenin and the Bolsheviks, this would be true, however it says that the Duma had " forgotten party differences" which is essentially untrue- they would then set up the Provisional Government, which would essentially fail to break down party/class lines, and would itself ONLY be run by higher wealthier Russians. Lastly document C, as discussed above; talks about the party rules, * given by lenin * that would eliminate anyones freedom of speech to speak badly about the party anyway.
( JUST KIDDING! I wrote this on the ENTIRELY WRONG DOCUMENTS) sorry- i'll go back and fix it later. TIME: 1:03pm-- i was wondering why it made NO SENSE.
3. What can be inferred from Document D? About A) why the soldiers wanted to go home, and B)Why the soldiers supported the Bolsheviks.
A) The soldiers wanted to go home simply for the purpose of land, they knew that the peasants back at home were already going forth in taking the land from their former Squires. They wanted to make sure that they wouldn't miss out on their chances to have land for their own.
B) The soldiers would support the Bolsheviks because one of their main platforms was to bring the Russian troops back from the home front, and stop the war with Germany; and since the people fighting the war wanted to go home in order to get their land, they more than welcomed this, they would be getting two of the 3 platform gains; Peace and Land.
CORRECT NUMBER 2 BELOW::>>>>
2) According to the REAL documents A, B, and C the assertion that Lenin wanted power, and the other parties did not rests with the fact that Lenin, would essentially just take the power from the Socialist Revolutionaries when it came down to it. According to document A was that Lenin forbid any support to other parties, he made sure that he shed light on the "lies" of that party, and made himself the only " legitimate" party leader to be listening to. Document B, it was neccesary for the Soviet to overtake the political influence of the Provisional Government and "democratically" decide to stop the support and protection of the provisional government. Document C lastly, talks about the different parties and their willingness to simply let the Provisional government govern, but still while slandering and criticising the way it was done, the only party that would do more than criticize was the Bolsheviks, who- essentially challenged the Provisional government * and win*, while everyone else sat by and let it happen, only verbally criticizing.
2. According to documents A,B, and C; the assertion that Lenin wanted power, and that his opponents did not want power is supported through the one thing Lenin seemed to have a real handle on, which was giving/telling the people exactly what they wanted. The Provisional Government, Duma, and Tsar- were all weaker examples, they never much thought into what the people really wanted, the provisional government was, like it clearly says simply provisional- they were not expecting to gain/maintain much power, so they never strove for any expansion; the duma is directly correlated because the men chosen by the Tsar to be in the Duma were the same who then made up the provisional government. In document B this is described, and also it is described that even after the unfavorable vote for the bolsheviks they merely decided that they would set themselves up as a one party state, anything to keep socialist revolutionaries from being the government. Document A talks about completely eliminating the need for party, class, estate and national difference, which on the surface seems mildly pro Lenin and the Bolsheviks, this would be true, however it says that the Duma had " forgotten party differences" which is essentially untrue- they would then set up the Provisional Government, which would essentially fail to break down party/class lines, and would itself ONLY be run by higher wealthier Russians. Lastly document C, as discussed above; talks about the party rules, * given by lenin * that would eliminate anyones freedom of speech to speak badly about the party anyway.
( JUST KIDDING! I wrote this on the ENTIRELY WRONG DOCUMENTS) sorry- i'll go back and fix it later. TIME: 1:03pm-- i was wondering why it made NO SENSE.
3. What can be inferred from Document D? About A) why the soldiers wanted to go home, and B)Why the soldiers supported the Bolsheviks.
A) The soldiers wanted to go home simply for the purpose of land, they knew that the peasants back at home were already going forth in taking the land from their former Squires. They wanted to make sure that they wouldn't miss out on their chances to have land for their own.
B) The soldiers would support the Bolsheviks because one of their main platforms was to bring the Russian troops back from the home front, and stop the war with Germany; and since the people fighting the war wanted to go home in order to get their land, they more than welcomed this, they would be getting two of the 3 platform gains; Peace and Land.
CORRECT NUMBER 2 BELOW::>>>>
2) According to the REAL documents A, B, and C the assertion that Lenin wanted power, and the other parties did not rests with the fact that Lenin, would essentially just take the power from the Socialist Revolutionaries when it came down to it. According to document A was that Lenin forbid any support to other parties, he made sure that he shed light on the "lies" of that party, and made himself the only " legitimate" party leader to be listening to. Document B, it was neccesary for the Soviet to overtake the political influence of the Provisional Government and "democratically" decide to stop the support and protection of the provisional government. Document C lastly, talks about the different parties and their willingness to simply let the Provisional government govern, but still while slandering and criticising the way it was done, the only party that would do more than criticize was the Bolsheviks, who- essentially challenged the Provisional government * and win*, while everyone else sat by and let it happen, only verbally criticizing.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Lenin in Power (2)
1.They are the most angry that the things that they were promised, were not being given to them, the workers were not free they were more like slaves. The peasants however, i would not expect to feel the same way because they were not workers, they had not fought as strongly for the revolution.
2. Source 23 is in support of NEP calling it a overall success, per- the chart, however the other sources are mixed reviews, one says that they are in agreement of the NEP's success, however the other says that nothing had really improved since the New Economic Plan was implemented.
3.Yes, i agree that Lenin was able to pull Russia out of the unrest that was left after the Tsar's abdication. He was able to create more jobs, create more political and social peace, and give the people of russia more hope that they would be able to obtain food, peace, an the things that they would need to contain more of a stable economical life.
2. Source 23 is in support of NEP calling it a overall success, per- the chart, however the other sources are mixed reviews, one says that they are in agreement of the NEP's success, however the other says that nothing had really improved since the New Economic Plan was implemented.
3.Yes, i agree that Lenin was able to pull Russia out of the unrest that was left after the Tsar's abdication. He was able to create more jobs, create more political and social peace, and give the people of russia more hope that they would be able to obtain food, peace, an the things that they would need to contain more of a stable economical life.
Lenin in Power
1. What was the Sovnarkom?
Answer: The Sovnarkom was the Bolshevik appointed Council of People's Commissioners, they're first decree was to end the war with Germany which was followed by more decrees by the Council.
2. Why was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk bad for Russia?
Answer: The treaty was bad for Russia because huge, and very important land was lost to Germany. It was also damaging to the country because it looses industry, coal mines, population, railways, and agricultural land.
3. Who were the Whites?
Answer: The whites were anti-bolsheviks, it was a combination of Russian and Non-Russian Bolshevik opposition, they were called the Whites in contrast to the Bolshevik Reds.
4.Lenin's--> Political Skill, Ruthlessness.
a) As a political leader, he is able to rile people up, in order to gain their support and get them to support him. He also, never names names in the blame for the troubles of Russia, he simply states that he will fix them, and he will lead to the revolution.
b) His ruthlessness however, could be dangerous he was not afraid to blatantly state the problems that are in front of him, he is also not afraid to fight for what he needs, and is not afraid to push a little in order to get there, and get people to support the revolution.
5.Sources 5&6 to describe the experience for the ordinary people.
Answer: The common people, are not able to enjoy their lives either although they are not struggling for work and food in the city, there is much violence occurring in their front yards as well. They were constantly being beaten, or killed over food, and overwhelmed by the armies, who concerned for their own lives, would not stray far from what they were ordered to do, because they too would be killed.
6. Although the abdication of the Tsar and the rise of the Bolshevik's was a decent thing for the people of russia, with the creation of Jobs, and better conditions, the violence greatly increased for the people living in Russia, regardless of your status there was violence among the individual groups, that then; ensued with inter-status group violence.
Answer: The Sovnarkom was the Bolshevik appointed Council of People's Commissioners, they're first decree was to end the war with Germany which was followed by more decrees by the Council.
2. Why was the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk bad for Russia?
Answer: The treaty was bad for Russia because huge, and very important land was lost to Germany. It was also damaging to the country because it looses industry, coal mines, population, railways, and agricultural land.
3. Who were the Whites?
Answer: The whites were anti-bolsheviks, it was a combination of Russian and Non-Russian Bolshevik opposition, they were called the Whites in contrast to the Bolshevik Reds.
4.Lenin's--> Political Skill, Ruthlessness.
a) As a political leader, he is able to rile people up, in order to gain their support and get them to support him. He also, never names names in the blame for the troubles of Russia, he simply states that he will fix them, and he will lead to the revolution.
b) His ruthlessness however, could be dangerous he was not afraid to blatantly state the problems that are in front of him, he is also not afraid to fight for what he needs, and is not afraid to push a little in order to get there, and get people to support the revolution.
5.Sources 5&6 to describe the experience for the ordinary people.
Answer: The common people, are not able to enjoy their lives either although they are not struggling for work and food in the city, there is much violence occurring in their front yards as well. They were constantly being beaten, or killed over food, and overwhelmed by the armies, who concerned for their own lives, would not stray far from what they were ordered to do, because they too would be killed.
6. Although the abdication of the Tsar and the rise of the Bolshevik's was a decent thing for the people of russia, with the creation of Jobs, and better conditions, the violence greatly increased for the people living in Russia, regardless of your status there was violence among the individual groups, that then; ensued with inter-status group violence.
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