Joseph Stalin
Leader of Soviet Union in mid-1920's
Background
- Born December 18, 1878, in the country Georgia.
- Stalin is Russian for "man of steel".
- He was an only child while his father was an shoemaker and an alcoholic, who often beat him, and his mother was a laundress.
- He got small pox as a kid and later got arrested several times.
- He was a part of the Bolshevik party.
Stalin's path to dictator
- He was a part of the first Central Committee of Bolshevik party.
- Stalin later served as the secretary general of the Communist party. This allowed him to gain political support by allowing his friends to have government jobs.
- Once Lenin died, he took control of the Communist Party and became the dictator of the Soviet Union.
5 year plans
- Stalin issued policies of industrialization and collectivization known as the 5 years plans.
- His plans focused on complete government control of economy and agriculture.
- Stalin ruled by force and fear with secret police (NKVD), murders, and slave labor.
- He later issued the Great Purge which was a series of military actions intended to banish the Communist Party.
- There were a total of 13 plans all lasting for about 5 years.
- They all focus around power, agriculture, and capital goods.
- These dramatic changes brought suffering and struggle with the Soviet workers and people. They also increased the output of product goods and helped increase industrialization within Russia.
Stalin during and after WWI
- Stalin and Hitler originally signed an agreement at the start of WWI.
- Stalin captured Poland, Romania, and Finland.
- Hitler and Germany later attempted to invade the USSR but was driven out by the Red Army and the scorched earth policy.
- After WWI, Stalin continued his fearful rule and formed several communist governments throughout Europe.
- Stalin grew very paranoid and at the age of 74, he died of a stroke on March 5, 1953.