To What Extent are Stalin's Methods Effective Than Other Leaders?

Dealing with oppositionists (counter-revolutionaries) in both tsarist and communists regimes have resulted in labour camps, trails, executions and exiles. This form of torture applied with terror in Stalin’s regime completely removed opposition to the extent that fear resulted power Stalin equalling survival of his regime. For instance, during the summer of 1936 there was administrative ruin and resentment in Russia because of counter-revolutionary issues therefore, by staling implementing the idea of retaliating with extreme use of violence towards enemies using executions was one way of removing opposition to a great extent. Arresting was another indicating that this form of torture was a more than normal procedure as it had originated from the soviet regime establishing unprecedented continuity. This is evident as Stalin’s labour camps had 72,950 victims, 28% should be shot rest in the labour camps for 8-10 years which demonstrated that ruthless methods exhibit stability. However, compared to Dostoevsky’s forced labour camps in the 1840s, he prioritised freedom rather than detaining which meant that his methods had the intention of suppressing rather than removing opposition , although some counter-revolutionaries were punished by death it is evident that possibly a small number were only killed.

Although, the increase of political crimes had increased in 1880 demonstrating fundamental change. For instance, there were 1,200 people who were exiled for their political crimes, 230 of those were sent to Siberia and the rest in European Russia whereas 60 of these served hard labour. However, by 1901 there was more change and little continuity as political exiles increased to 4,113 of which the 3,838 were watched by the police an...

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...anti-terrorist measures that often made Stalin extremely paranoid [imprisoning Kamenev and Zinoviev in 1935] because of counter-revolutionaries. Conquest argues that ‘there were other methods to suppress which would not kill people.’ However, Stalin had removed opposition, not suppressed, which suggests that if Stalin had not been ruthless and only suppressed opposition is regime would have been eliminated without a doubt and although his reconstructed society and his methods were the severest test, they had effectively persevered in removing opposition compared to previous tsars and communists.

Works Cited

Russia and its Rulers, 1855-1964, Holland

Stalin and Stalinism, Alan Wood

Rethinking the Russian Revolution, Action

Russia Under The Old Regime, Pipes

A People's Tragedy, Orlando Figes

The Modernization of Russia, Service

The Great Terror, Robert Conquest