RussiaThe Rise and Fall

of Communism in Eastern Europe

We’re not happy Move for democracy in 1917 was a

failure Russian people were hungry, starving,

poor and upset with the richer classes November 1917: Vladimir Lenin

seizes power with the Bolshevik Party Known as the Bolshevik Revolution Bolsheviks were Communists

Communism Karl Marx’s ideology Place value on all people and jobs in a society Everyone is equal The proletariat (working class) must rise up

against the bourgeoisie (rich ruling class) to eliminate class distinctions

In Russia case, focuses on the industrial working class since their quality of life was so poor

Government owns property and business and everyone is paid the same, fed the same amount, and given government healthcare

Consolidation 1. Creates Communist Party and made it

the only legal political party 2. Created the cheka, forerunner of the

KGB (or secret police) Would force out enemies

3. Politically, Lenin expanded his control of Russia to incorporate neighboring countries 1922: The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

(USSR) was formed Included 15 republics of which Russia is the largest

and most important

4. Economic Policy—at first adopts “war communism” All private property was seized and all economic

decisions were centralized by the new government

Effort to turn Russia into a socialist then communist country and economy as fast as possible

This deviates from EVERYTHING Karl Marx wrote Proves to be a disaster and by 1920-1921, Lenin

gets rid of it

NEP (New Economic Policy) Limited private

enterprise Some private

property (mostly farms)

Began to Succeed

Death and Disaster

Lenin unexpectedly dies in 1924 Struggle for the next 5 years to see who will

replace him

Sinister Stalin 1929 Joseph Stalin takes over

Came from Georgia (the country, not the state); IS NOT RUSSIAN

Is really a minority who rises to power Replaces NEP with his program called

“Socialism in 1 Country” 3 pronged accelerated program to get the USSR

caught up with the West Brutally applied and enforced Thought the West would invade in the next 10 years

and the USSR needed to be ready He was wrong . . . .it was 12 years

1. State Building Massive expansion

of the Soviet government

To administer every element in society

Nothing beyond the control of the state

2. Collectivation Reorganization

of Soviet agriculture into huge state run farms or collectives

3. Industrialization Emphasis on

heavy industry and a new military

Great Purges Begin in 1934 Involved the KGB Creation of gulags (prison camps mostly in

Siberia) Pretend trials of offenders Stalin turns himself into a God on Earth Best estimates are that some 25 million people died

Schizophrenic Stalin Saw the Purges as a revolution from above Reignite the Bolshevik party that was now 20-25 years old Weed out old blood at the top of the party and bring in new

blood/new leadership (like Mao’s Cultural Revolution in China) Also very psychological

Stalin used to ensure 110% loyalty People would randomly disappear or be put on show trials for no

obvious reason—they were randomly selected Only way you could avoid that fate was to give

even more loyalty to Stalin today than you did yesterday and hope that it would be good enough for tomorrow

Killed his own son

Great Patriotic War(or to the rest of us, World War

II) 1940-1945 Germany invades in 1941 Holds Eastern front of war

until 1945 Suffer huge casualties

Fighting in a 2-front war, the US lost 600,000 to battlefield fatalities in WWII

Fighting a single opponent, the USSR suffered about 20 million battlefield deaths

Vowed never again to let the West invade and inflict such casualities

Buffer Zone USSR wants so that the

West cannot invade again Insisted on control over

Eastern Europe as the buffer zone and inaugurates the Cold War between the one time allies

By 1949, the USSR becomes the world’s 2nd nuclear power and the nuclear arms race begins

Krazy Khrushchev Stalin dies in 1953 Nikita Khrushchev

becomes new leader after a brief struggle

1956: “Secret Speech” Says Stalin and the

Great Purges were mistakes

Ushers in a period of relaxation in the Cold War

Nukes

1962 Cuban Missile Crisis humiliated the USSR Not only looked incompetent, but revealed an enormous

Soviet inferiority in the nuclear balance USSR vowed never to be out-gunned again and in less

than 10 years, they caught up to the US as a nuclear equal (important because most of those weapons or components of weapons go “missing” after the collapse of the Soviet Union”)

Return of the Conservatives 1964: Khrushchev forced to resign Reforms under him were stopped and

reversed At first USSR is stable, but then stagnates

and eventually declines Dominant leader during this time is Leonid

Brezhnev (1964-1982) After his death, there is a turbulent period

in Soviet politics

Mikhail Gorbachev Chosen to lead in 1985 Reformer

Knew the Soviet system was crumbling

Has an economic reform plan and political reform plan Perestroika (economic)—

Russian for “rebuilding” Ease state control of the

economy Glasnost (political)—

Russian for “openness” Open up the Soviet

political structure

Tear Down This Wall! November 20th, 1989: Berlin Wall torn down

The beginning of the end of the USSR Boris Yeltsin is elected president of the Russian

Soviet Federated Socialist Republic, followed by elections in other republics

In August 1991, there is a coup again Gorbachev Although it fails (with Yeltsin being the primary defender

of Gorbachev), it discredits the Communist Party One by one each of the Soviet Republic declare their

independence and piece by piece the USSR fell apart until all that was left was Russia

On December 25th, 1991, Gorbachev resigned as president of a country that really no longer existed and the USSR was over

A Collapsed Europe All of the individual republics constitutions were poorly written and

pretty meaningless Lots of political turmoil Economies a mess—money is worthless, tradable goods are needed

Lots of poverty, starvation, and crime Yeltsin attempts to westernize Russia with a democracy and

capitalist market and when he is opposed by the legislature, he dismisses them

While they protest, the army sides with Yeltsin and he creates a new constitution and legislature

Also creates a position of a Prime Minister, the most influential being Vladimir Putin, a former KGB official, put in place by Yeltsin in August 1999

Yeltsin abruptly resigns as President of Russia on New Year’s Eve 1999 Putin becomes president (which was Yeltsin’s way of hand-picking his

predecessor) Today Prime Minister is Dmitriy Medevedev

Current Events Sochi Olympics—money,

infrastructure and Russian pride Unrest in the Ukraine—West vs.

Russia; Cold War part II???? Putin, Putin, Putin

Today Eastern Europe and Russia’s economy is slowing improving: while remnants of a

time of turmoil exist if you look

A region once confused by their identity is still plagued by civil unrest between

ethnic groups, minorities, religions, and languages, affecting all aspects of their

society.