Joseph Stalin

1979 Words4 Pages

Joseph Stalin came to power in 1924 after the death of Lenin even though Lenin himself had discouraged him as his successor. Stalin’s regime was latent with economic stagnation, political repression, human rights violations, and competing nationalities. Regardless of these various problems Stalin was able to sustain the Soviet Union and develop it into a dominant world power. His ability to maintain power and stability was a result of the promotion of social, economic, cultural, and political systems that increase Russian patriotism and unified the various nationalities. Lenin’s death in 1924 left uncertainty about who should become the next leader. Lenin had discussed within his inner circle and mentioned Stalin and Trotsky as possible candidates but stated that Stalin should not succeed him because he was rude. Only Lenin’s inner circle knew about these sentiments. From the beginning Stalin was placed in opposition to Trotsky. After Stalin came to power in 1924 an opposition mounted involving Trotsky, Zinoviev, and Kamenev, this united opposition called for local control and autonomy as well as opening up debate within the party.The opposition had a centrist position in politics that aligned itself with the previous position of Lenin. Bukharin was another of Stalin’s opposition he represented the right and called for a continuation of NEP policy.Stalin opposed his stance by calling for rapid industrialization. In 1926, Zinoviev, Trotsky, and Kamenev were removed from the Politburo because Stalin saw them as a threat. On July 11th, 1928 there was an exchange between Kamenev and Bukharin in this communication they express a need for Stalin to be overthrown because he is manipulating ideology to support his positions.(Suny 2003)... ... middle of paper ... ...ecting the homeland. Throughout Stalin’s regime was able to maintain power because of social realism, this made it acceptable to be living in dire economic conditions for many years because it was part of a path to a better life and a better Soviet Union. Works Cited Fitzpatrick, Sheila, and Yuri Slezkine. "N.I. Slavnikova Et Al. "Speeches by Stakhanovites"" In the Shadow of Revolution: Life Stories of Russian Women from 1917 to the Second World War. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 2000. 331-41. Print. "From Autocracy to Oligarchy." The Structure of Soviet History: Essays and Documents. Ed. Ronald Grigor. Suny. New York: Oxford UP, 2003. 340-50. Print. "International Seminar 'Stalin Today'" Revolutionary Democracy Journal. N.p., 1994. Web. 12 Dec. 2013. . A. Solzhenitsyn, excerpt from Gulag Archipelago. 1973

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