USSR(Soviet Union) Chapter Test

Explain how the USSR was run? How many republics were there?

15 were part of the USSR, and all had a "soviet" council and run by the communist party. The entire country was led by a premier(the leader of the communist party).

What is a satellite?

A country that depends on a more powerful country.

What was Red Terror?

A process designed to intimidate and destroy enemies of the regime.

What was the New Economic Policy(NEP)?

Adopted in 1921, this new policy allowed the government to retain control of finance, industry and transportation, but allowed the rest of the economy to return to private enterprise. The peasants were allowed to sell their crops in the open market and traders could buy and sell goods.

Explain in detail, Stalin's first five year plan.

After declaring an end to the NEP, Stalin introduced this plan which brought all industrial and agricultural production under government control. It also provided housing and healthcare. This plan concentrated on the building heavy industry including railroads, power plants, steel mills, and military hardware. This plan was a success in spurring industrial growth.

What happened at the Congress of Soviets?

After the provisional government fell, the Bolsheviks held 300 out of the 670 seats possible. The Mensheviks and SRs were angry about the armed insurrection and literally walked out of the congress.

Describe the Second Five Year Plan?

Again heavy industry was given the top priority and eventually Soviet Russia became one of the major steel producers in the world. This plan was unsuccessful, failure to reach production levels in coal and oil. However, the country did improve its railway systems and communication.

What was the Warsaw Pact?

Agreement between Russia and Poland, Romania, Hungary, East Germany, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, and Albania(satellites of USSR). This agreement was created to align against the US during the Cold War.

What was the North Atlantic Treaty Organization?

Agreement between the US and some European countries to stop the spread of Communism in Europe. Also none as NATO.

What is a coup?

An attempt to overthrow the government.

Who were the Red Guards?

Armed groups of workers set up to protect their factories from any threat and were heavily influenced by the Bolsheviks. There were about 20,000 of them in Petrograd.

What were the results of the Civil War?

As many as 13 million died, and the Red army(bolsheviks) prevailed. War communism did not work. Widespread famine killed 5 million more and Lenin introduced the NEP to fix the devastated economy. Political parties were outlawed by the Bolsheviks and thus started 70 years of authoritarian rule.

What was the preferred religion in the USSR?

Atheism or no religion. The Communists banned the power of the Orthodox Church and believed communism was better of without religion. The government was hostile towards other religions, shutting down churches and executing priests.

How is a totalitarian party similar to a religion?

Because it creates true believers who feel that they are participating in a great cause. Also convinces its followers that there the heroes fighting against evil forces and gives them a sense of belonging and a feeling of camaraderie. The serfs in Russia now felt that they finally belonged to something and saw a Utopian society in their future

How would communism eventually take place according to Marx?

Before it can take place, the working class(Proletariat) in the capitalist nation, must rise up and overthrow the minority who control the means of production(Bourgeoisie). Marx referred to this as the "dictatorship of the proletariat." After the rebellion communism would gradually emerge and the need for a government would no longer exist and finally there would be no separate classes in society.

What are the basic characteristics of communism according to Marx?

Collective ownership of land and means of production Classless society(everyone is equal) Everyone would work according to their abilities and receive according to their needs.

What was the Cheka?

Commanded by Lenin, it was a ruthless security force who set up forced labor camps, and engaged in extreme terror against enemies of the regime. This force operated outside the law, making arrests, torturing, and executing thousands. Responsible for the death of the Czar and his family.

What were some negative aspects of life under communism?

Consumer goods were always in a shortage, had to share basic things(kitchens/bathrooms), and had to spend years on waiting lists in order to buy certain things.

What is the policy of detente?

Countries who get along with one another even if they disagree, peaceful co-existence.

What was the Cuban Missile Crisis?

Cuba agreed to let the USSR bring nuclear weapons into the country so that they could point them at the US and potentially launch one. After a very tense time however JFK and Khrushchev agreed to stop.

What does a one party dictatorship control/determine/do?

Determines what their people should believe, more specifically what values they should hold, for example what religion to follow. Promotes loyalty, dedication, obedience and limits rational thinking. Strives to control the thoughts, feelings, and attitude of every individual. Uses fear to encourage cooperation and obedience.

How is a totalitarian dictatorship an unintended consequence of liberal democracy?

During the French and Industrial revolutions mass producing became very popular and soon to be dictators saw that mass support could be used in gaining power and overthrowing the previous government like Hitler did in Germany. By gaining large amounts of supporters Hitler was able to exploit the electoral process and overthrow the government

What was nationalism under communism?

Even though Russia was a multinational country(many ethnic backgrounds), Russians held important positions, minorities held little power, Russian was the official language and schools emphasized communist beliefs over local beliefs.

What was the theory behind the Soviet Communist Command System?

Everyone was promised a job.

Who was Yuri Gagarin?

First man to orbit the earth successfully.

Gorbachev's Timeline(1985-1991)

Glasnost and Perestroika brought major changes to the USSR and the world. Glasnost meant openness and for the first time in the history of the USSR citizens were treated honestly and made aware of events going on. Perestroika is known as economic restructuring, this plan was for fixing how business were run and owned. 1.Also he was responsible for the tearing down of the Berlin Wall 2.Warsaw Pact comes to an end 3. Attempt to end Communism, but it was already ending 4. He resigned to allow changes to come to Russia like the switch from communism to democracy

Lenin's timeline(1917-1924)

Had been forced from Russia for supporting his brother's attempt to assassinate Czar Nicholas father, Alexander III Returned to Russia in March 1917 and was the leader of the Bolsheviks Successfully led the Russian Revolution which made communism the official government. Came up with the NEP and war communism.

What did Stalin do in Ukraine with collectivization?

He took their grain crop during the terrible winter of 1932, which led to millions of Ukrainian peasants deaths from famine.

Khrushchev's Timeline(1953-1964)

He was the first soviet leader to visit the US. Responsible for the space program in the USSR known as Sputnik Sputnik 1 was the first spacecraft to orbit the earth and 5 years later Yuri Gagarin becomes the first man in space to orbit the earth successfully. Communism spread to Korea and the USSR backed the North while the US backed the South(not-communist) In 1961 the Berlin Wall was built to divide West Berlin and East Berlin. West Berlin was democratic while East Berlin was communist.

Who was Alexander Kerensky? What costly decision did he make during WWI?

He was the provisional government's new ministry of war and pressured the army to go on the offensive against the Germany. The results were disastrous with over 200,000 Russian causalities.

Brezhnev's Timeline(1964-1982)

In 1968 the Warsaw Pact countries invaded Czechoslovakia to silence anti-communist protesters. In 1980 the USSR invades Afghanistan and during the Vietnam War, the USSR supports North Vietnam. Died in 1982

What was War communism?

Introduced in 1918 to deal with plummeting agriculture, economic production, rampant inflation and desperate hunger, this new policy allowed the state to take over means of production, greatly limited private ownership of companies, and stole grain from the peasants in order to feed the workers in the cities. This new policy devastated the economy and led to factories mismanaged, workers performing poorly, and open rebellions.

How does the state or government regard individual rights?

It believes that there are no individual rights and that they determine what people should believe, what values they should hold and believe there is no room for individual thinking, private judgement, individual conscience and sees humans as individual building blocks to establish social order

What was the Third International Comintern?

It helped organize small communist parties in Western Europe. Influenced what we now call third world countries to adopt communism, and finally was used as a tool for Lenin making the USSR appear strong when in fact the country was exhausted. Soviet Russia now stood out as the alternative to the Capitalist West.

What was education like under communism?

It was required for all people, pushed math and science, students studied welfare and took military training courses, taught about the evil west.

Who is known as "the father of communism"?

Karl Marx, German philosopher who supported the establishment of communism. Wrote the Communist Manifesto and was unhappy with capitalism and its poor treatment towards the working class.

What was Perestroika?(In detail)

Known as economic restructuring, it allowed people to go into business for themselves and let individuals own farms or small businesses. Although it was a simple concept to the West, Russians had small initiatives and often came to work drunk. Although this policy pushed for a democratic type of government, many were unsatisfied because food lines became longer, unemployment increased, and protests erupted.

What was the One-party dictatorship?

Led by the Bolsheviks, it was a Democratic Party on the outside in which elected delegates then elected members to a central committee which originally held power, but then it shifted to a smaller group called the "politburo" or political bureau. The bureau's key leaders, Trotsky, Lenin, and Stalin determined policy, assigned tasks, and appointed important officials. The party dominated all public agencies, no other parties were allows, and never before had the people of Russia dependent on their government so much. The party often used force and stark terror to achieve obedience throughout Russia.

What was "looting the looters"?

Lenin encouraged the lower classes in Russia to take revenge against the higher privileged classes as a means of enforcing social justice. This policy increased violence and lawlessness.

Who was the one person who tried to change the Soviet economic system? In what way?

Mikhail Gorbachev, he experimented with a market economy.

What was the capital of the USSR?

Moscow

Describe the Civil War. What happened in WWII that involved Russia?

Moscow and Petrograd suffered greatly, there were shortages of food and disease ran rampant. Many people moved from cities to the countryside, currency lost its values, trade became the primary source o exchange. Lenin freed Russia from the war by the Brest-Litovsk treaty. This treaty gave Germany vast areas of the Russian Empire including Poland, Ukraine, Finland, and the Baltic States in exchange for freedom from the war. The results of the treaty were...Russia lost 34% of its population, 32% of agricultural land, 54% of its industry, and 89% of its coal mines.

What were some social changes under communism?

Nobles lost their titles ad people who were once wealthy under the Czar lost everything.

What was the Comintern?

Organization founded by Lenin to guide the international movement towards communism.

Who were dissidents?

People who spoke out against communism or the way of life under communism.

What was economic life under Communism?

Public transportation was cheap, health care was free, government kept prices low/price of rent low, and everyone was supposedly guaranteed a job.

What type of economy did the USSR have?

Socialist, the government controlled the factories and the workers.

What were purges? The famous ones?

Stalin removed or killed anyone he saw fit including in 1936 many of the founders of the Communist party were accused of conspiring with Trotsky to terrorize the party and were all sentenced to death. In 1937, prominent communists of Lenin's day were charged with cooperating with foreign intelligence agencies and wrecking socialist reconstruction and they too were executed. Shorty after a secret purge wiped out the high military command. The last big purge included accusations of sabotage and espionage and those involved were often forced to confess because of threats to their families, and they too were all executed. Stalin was also responsible for secretly killing off the old bolsheviks and the finally tally of the deaths from these purges ranged into the many millions. Even Trotsky was murdered in Mexico in 1940.

What were show trials?

Stalin staged these trials in public, and murdered thousands of people for disagreeing with Stalin.

What were some of the things Stalin did to achieve total control over Soviet Russia?

Stalin took control of all literature, arts, music, and novels and introduced the idea of social realism in which Stalin used novels to promote the good of the state. Huge posters showed men and woman hard at work to promote working skills. Still many were against Stalin and this new government so he unleashed raw terror to break these stubborn wills.

Why was Stalin able to succeed power after Lenin's death and not Trotsky?

Stalin was given the task of general secretary while Lenin was still in power and he built of a strong party cadre and after Lenin's death nobody was able to compete or gain a majority over Stalin's party or weren't able to compete with his party fighting skills.

What was collectivization?

System in which the government owned all farmland and used the peasants to farm it. Stalin thought that this would be an efficient way to feed the soviet people and to export it.

What was Red October?

The Bolsheviks took over key government buildings, railroad stations, and set up road-blocks around Petrograd. They surrounded the Winter Palace where the provisional government was meeting and it fell.

Who was Boris Yeltsin?

The first president of the democratic republic of Russia.

What treaty did Soviet Russia and Germany sign in 1939?

The non-aggression treaty. After Hitler seized power of Germany in 1933 he began annexing Austria, Czech region, and Poland. Russia feared that they were next so they signed this. However Germany broke this agreement a year later an invaded Russia.

Why did the Provisional government fail under Kerensky?

The socialists and the liberal democrats didn't respect or trust him and the attempted coup to restore stability and order in Petrograd had failed.

How does a totalitarian dictator view power?

These individuals want more than just power of its own territory but also wants to transform the world and have all countries follow a totalitarian government. They want to control all aspects of their citizens lives. They believe that they should get all the power, and no power is enough for them

What was family like under communism?

They were small because of a lack of living space, all occupations were open to woman, 85% of woman worked outside the home in many professional positions, and the woman were very busy at home and at work(70 hours a week working).

Who were the Kulaks and what did they have to do with collectivization?

They were the most prosperous peasants and were strongly against collectivization because they had prospered under the NEP and didn't want to give up their land, livestock, and machinery. They fought back and slaughtered their livestock. This ended up in thousands of peasants dying.

What was Glasnost?

This new policy known as openness allowed open criticism of the government which before was brutally punished. Although this policy pushed for a democratic type of government, many were unsatisfied because food lines became longer, unemployment increased, and protests erupted. Millions of Russians were able to gain access to BBC network and with English being the second language in the USSR were able to understand more about the communist party and debated whether the communist party was capable of correcting the nations' economic problems and many started to support a capitalist economy. Glasnost now also allowed newspapers to report things that normally would have been covered up including the expulsion of nuclear power plant at Chernobyl.

Define Bourgeoisie

Those who owned the means of production and were considered the wealthy class in a capitalist society.

Stalin's timeline(1924-1953)

Tough and inflexible(Man of Steel) He wanted to promote industry in the USSR and he used purges to get rid of anyone opposed to communism or himself. During WWII the USSR became allies with the US, England, and France. Signed the non-aggression pact with Germany, but a year later Germany invaded Russia anyway. From 1945-1980 was the Cold War between the US and the USSR After WWII the USSR refused to give up control of the Eastern European countries it had occupied during the war which started the war. These countries included Poland, Romania, Hungary, East Germany, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, and Albania. These countries became satellites of the USSR and they formed an alliance called the Warsaw Pact. The US responded by forming the North Atlantic Treaty Organization(NATO) to secure Europe from the spread of communism. Stalin then suddenly died in 1953.

What were the effects of the First Five Year Plan?

Transformed the Soviet Union into an industrial power, but the human cost was enormous. Industrial workers received low wages, or none at all, and food was often limited. Millions of people died and collective farms were often unable to feed the entire Soviet Russian population. The country's cattle herd declined by 1/2 and the # of horses fell by 1/3.

Define Proletariat

Working class or lower class in capitalist society.

What was the party elite?

leaders of the communist party, they became a privileged class; with special goods from foreign countries, medical care, vacation homes, and their children attended top schools.

What were the two classes in the USSR?

the communist party and everyone else