Totalitarianism In the Soviet Union and Germany

Seeds of Totalitarianism In Russia  During the Russian Revolution of 1917, The Bolsheviks Claimed They Would Hold a Vote to legitimate their rule They did badly in this vote and just ignored it  Remember, Lenin believed that he knew the way forward for Russia

The Russian Civil War  Bolsheviks aka ‘the Red Army’  The Whites (Tsarists, aristocrats, conservatives)  Lenin’s Reds Fought Effectively Dropped out of World War I  Treaty of Brest-Litovsk Used Harsh Military tactics  Trotsky Elimination of the Romanov family

 During the civil war, Lenin’s forces executed the tsar and his family. Why would they do this? No rallying point for the whites.  Rumors existed for a long time after that one of the tsar’s daughters survived. Anybody know her name? Anastasia  Lenin’s forces won the civil war. They renamed Russia the U.S.S.R. or Union of Soviet Socialist Republics or Soviet Union  Lenin had engineered the first successful Marxist revolution in history. The problem is that he had little time to enjoy his victory because… He died of a stroke in 1922, only 5 years after the Revolution started  Instead, the task of running the Russian Revolution fell to… Joseph Stalin…

 Flags of Communist Nations

The Treaty Of Brest-Litovsk

Communist Soviet Union/ U.S.S.R. (name change) Was Isolated as a Pariah  U.S. even sent troops to help the Whites Some historians have argued that this actually helped the Reds…huh?  Communism was seen as a terrible threat Preached international revolution No private property  U.S.S.R. was not invited to the treaty negotiation at the end of the war (Treaty of Versailles)

Reds Won the Civil War  What now? Economy in Soviet Union was in shambles  4% of 1913 production  This is related to Lenin’s ‘War Communism’ (know from the book!)  Lenin instituted NEP New Economic Policy Allowed limited capitalism to rebuild Soviet economy Was a success Lenin knew he wasn’t ready to nationalize peasant land… he had to wait until he was stronger

Post Civil War Leadership Why didn’t Lenin run the Soviet Union? Death of a stroke Who did Lenin say should replace him? Trotsky not Stalin Why Trotsky? Stalin was too ruthless

 “A single death is tragic. A million deaths is a statistic.” Joseph Stalin  “The outstanding characteristic of Stalin’s personality was total ruthlessness.” historian. Stalin is Ruthless!!!

 Stalin’s son Yakov shot himself because of Stalin's harshness toward him, but survived. After this, Stalin said “He can't even shoot straight".  Yakov served in the Red Army during World War II and was captured by the Germans. They offered to exchange him for captured German Fieldmarshal Paulus Stalin turned the offer down, allegedly saying "A lieutenant is not worth a general"; others credit him with saying "I have no son," to this offer, and Yakov is said to have committed suicide, running into an electric fence in Sachsenhausen concentration camp, where he was being held.” Examples of Stalin’s Ruthlessness

Stalin’s Coup  He used his position as Communist Party General Secretary to make deals and apply pressure Also, his support of ‘one-country Communism helped’ (make sure you know it from the book!)  He eventually united enough people against Trotsky that Trotsky, afraid for his life, fled the country

 Just for the record- Trotsky spent the rest of his life traveling the world criticizing Stalin as a tyrant, until Stalin had him murdered by an assassin with an ice pick

Stalin Seized Total Power and Abandoned the N.E.P. It might be helpful to think of Stalin as a modern day … =

Before Collectivization many Soviet peasants had gotten land in the years before WWI and especially during the Russian Revolution large landholders were known as Kulaks Stalin’s plan was to seize all land and have peasant farmers work on their farms collectively Agricultural produce would be ‘shared’

After Collectivization Stalin eliminated Kulaks Killed or sent to prison Collectivization Everyone shared the work and produce of the farm together … where does any extra food actually go? To Stalin, which brings us to…

The Five Year Plans Stalin planned to use the extra food from Collectivization to pay hundreds of thousands of factory workers to literally build new factories from scratch. He demanded a certain increase in productivity in a set 5 Year period 1 st plan demanded a __________ increase in heavy industry Do we know what heavy industry is? If you are in charge of a factory and you don’t meet the demands?

“It is sometimes asked whether it is not possible to slow down the tempo somewhat, to put a check on the movement [the Five- Year Plans]. No, comrades, it is not possible! One feature of the history of old Russia was the continual beatings she suffered because of her backwardness. She was beaten by the Mongol khans. She was beaten by the Turkish beys. She was beaten by the Swedish feudal lords. She was beaten by the Polish and Lithuanian gentry. She was beaten by the British and French capitalists. She was beaten by the Japanese barons. All beat her because of her backwardness, military backwardness, political backwardness, industrial backwardness, agricultural backwardness. Such is the law of the exploiters-to beat the backward and the weak. It is the jungle law of capitalism. You are backward, you are weak-therefore you are wrong; hence, you can be beaten and enslaved. If you do not want this you must put an end to its [Russia’s] backwardness in the shortest possible time… There is no other way.." We are fifty or a hundred years behind the advanced countries. We must make good this distance in ten years. Either we do it, or we shall be crushed.”

Was Stalin successful? Yes and No.  THE GROWTH OF HEAVY INDUSTRY IN THE USSR  INDUSTRY UNIT  Coal millions of ton  Oil millions of tons  Pig Ironmillions of tons  Steel millions of tons 6 18  Automobiles thousands  Tractors thousand  Machinery billions of rubles  Chemicals billions of rubles 2 6

T-28 T-34 By WWII, Russia had the best tanks in the world.

Collectivization Failed  No increase in agricultural production  Peasants had almost no incentive to work hard

Ukrainian Peasants Challenged Collectivization By Refusing to Work - remember… no matter how hard they work…

Stalin Sent the Red Army Into Ukraine  They took every scrap of food they could find  Then they pulled out and blocked all roads in and out  6-9 million starved to death…

Why didn’t anyone complain about this to Stalin? One person did… Stalin’s wife. One night at dinner, Stalin got in a public argument with her over Ukraine The next morning she was found shot to death Doctor’s ruled it a suicide

A Culture of Fear Purges Stalin killed 70% of the officers in the Soviet Army because he felt they were not loyal enough to him He killed millions of other Soviets who were a threat or not loyal enough

Soviet Totalitarian Culture  Positives Women’s rights increase U.S.S.R. started to catch up with European nations Urban standard of living slowly rose Socialist benefits  Free medical care  Full employment  Negatives Culture of fear No access to the truth (propaganda and censorship) Rural life was harsh Gulags- political prisons Purges Unions were crushed Inability to cope with rapid urbanization No political or religious freedom (atheism) Secret police Constant fear

The Rise of Hitler

 Stab-in-the-back Theory  Failed attempt to seize power Mein Kampf  Great Depression Nazi Vote Share Rises  Hitler is elected in 1933 He has promised to rebuild Germany’s military and to defy the Treaty of Versailles  Somewhat paradoxically, fear of the spread of Communism is one of the reasons that Germans support Hitler and Italians support Mussolini Mussolini and Hitler promise NOT to collectivize land and nationalize businesses They support capitalism and so win the support of the leading industrialists

The End of WWI- Germany in Shambles Kaiser Fled at the End Of WWI Interesting anecdote about the Kaiser and WWII Several fringe parties challenge the Weimar gov’t- most importantly the Nazis and the Communists… these groups blame the Weimar Republic for the shame that Germany is in… the ‘Stab in the Back’ theory begins to gain popularity… Weimar Republic established…it is weak Too many parties No military to command respect In debt because of Treaty of Versailles and blamed for this treaty too… Even fringe parties

 Helped stab in the back theory supported by Hitler and other German nationalists Germany was not fully invaded at the end of WWI…

Radicalization Hitler’s first military assignment after the war was to spy on a small extremist party But Hitler found that he liked the parties’ views He ended up joining, and because he was a great speaker, he eventually rose to be its leader He changed its name to… National Socialist Party or the Nazi Party Swastika

Beer Hall Putsch  Attempted to seize power by force  Failed- Hitler is jailed  In the trial that followed, Hitler’s speeches were covered in the media… he became a celebrity (his powerful speaking style!)  Wrote Mein Kampf in prison (‘my struggle’)  Bestseller… Hitler became famous

Great Depression Helped the Nazis Hitler Promised… To put Germans back to work To crush the Treaty of Versailles (especially to re- arm) To regain German Honor =

Great Depression Helped Nazis (cont.) Don’t forget, Totalitarians can get things done! Also, Hitler knew how to tap into German emotion. He promises to build a Third Reich that will last for 1000 years. Reichs

Nazi’s Won a Enough Votes to Choose the Prime Minister of the Weimar Republic in 1933  There is much more to this story in the text  Chose Hitler  Hitler Used a fire in the Reichstag Fire to Eliminate German’s Natural Rights

Hitler Set Up a Totalitarian State Hitler Youth Purges eliminated your own followers who are a threat Propaganda and Censorship SS and Gestapo Women are ‘Baby Machines’ (10 kids story) Began to Rearm Germany… This helped Unemployment. Can be done quickly because… ______________)? (might remind you of Stalin’s ______________)?

HansenName ________________ AP Euro Totalitarianism in the Soviet Union and Germany Part I. Seeds of Totalitarianism In Russia During the Russian Revolution of 1917, The Bolsheviks Claimed They Would Hold a ___________________________________ –They did badly in this vote and _________________ Remember, Lenin believed that _________________________ __________________________________ The Russian Civil War Bolsheviks aka ____________________________ The Whites (Tsarists, aristocrats, conservatives) Lenin’s Reds Fought Effectively –Dropped out of World War I Treaty of ___________________________ –Used Harsh Military tactics ______________________ –Elimination of the Romanov family Communist Soviet Union/ U.S.S.R. (name change) Was Isolated as a Pariah U.S. even sent troops to help the Whites –Some historians have argued that this actually helped the Reds…huh? Communism was seen as a terrible threat –Preached _________________________________ –No private property U.S.S.R. was _________________ to the treaty negotiation at the end of the war (Treaty of Versailles) Reds Won the Civil War What now? –Economy in Soviet Union was ___________________ _______________________________ This is related to Lenin’s ‘War Communism’ (know from the book!) Lenin instituted NEP –__________________________________ –Allowed ______________________________ Soviet economy –Was a _____________________ –Lenin knew he wasn’t ready to ____________________… he had to wait until he was stronger Post Civil War Leadership Why didn’t Lenin run the Soviet Union? –_____________________________ Who did Lenin say should replace him? –_____________________________ Why Trotsky? –_____________________________ Examples of Stalin’s Ruthlessness Stalin’s son Yakov shot himself because of Stalin's harshness toward him, but survived. After this, Stalin said “_________________________________________". Yakov served in the Red Army during World War II and was captured by the Germans. They offered to exchange him for captured German Fieldmarshal Paulus –Stalin turned the offer down, allegedly saying “______ ______________________"; others credit him with saying "I have no son," to this offer, and Yakov is said to have committed suicide, ____________________ _____________________in Sachsenhausen concentration camp, where he was being held.” Stalin’s Coup He used his position as Communist Party ___________________ to make deals and apply pressure –Also, his support of ‘__________________’ helped (make sure you know it from the book!) He eventually united enough people against Trotsky that Trotsky, afraid for his life, ___________________________ Before Collectivization many Soviet peasants had gotten land in the years before WWI and especially during the Russian Revolution large landholders were known __________________ Stalin’s plan was to seize all land and have peasant farmers work on their __________________________ –Agricultural produce ______________________ After Collectivization Stalin eliminated Kulaks –_________________________ Collectivization –Everyone shared the work and produce of the farm together –… where does any extra food actually go? –_______________________________________

The Five Year Plans Stalin planned to use the extra food from Collectivization to pay hundreds of thousands of _____________________ to literally build __________________________________. He demanded a certain increase in productivity in a set 5 Year period –1st plan demanded a __________ increase in heavy industry Do we know what heavy industry is? _______________ _____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ If you are in charge of a factory and you don’t meet the demands? –_____________________________________ Collectivization Failed ________________________________________________________ Peasants had almost no incentive to ____________________ Stalin Sent the Red Army Into _________________ they took every scrap of food they could find Then they pulled out and _________________________________ _______ million starved to death… A Culture of Fear Purges Stalin killed _______________________________________ because he felt they were not loyal enough to him He killed millions of other Soviets who were a threat or not loyal enough Soviet Totalitarian Culture Positives –_________________ rights increased –U.S.S.R. started to __________________________________ –Urban standard of living slowly ______________ –Socialist benefits _______________________ Negatives –Culture of _______________ –No access to ________________ (propaganda and censorship) –________________life was harsh –Gulags- ____________________ –Purges –Unions were crushed –Inability to cope with rapid urbanization –No political or religious freedom (_______________!) –______________________ –Constant fear Part II. The Rise of Hitler Stab-in-the-back Theory - ________________________________ Failed attempt to seize power –Mein Kampf Great Depression –Nazi Vote Share Rises Hitler is elected in 1933 –He has promised to rebuild Germany’s military and to defy the Treaty of Versailles Somewhat paradoxically, __________________________________ is one of the reasons that Germans support Hitler and ___________ ______________________________________ –Mussolini and Hitler promise NOT to ___________________ ________________________________________________ –They support ________________ and so win the support of the leading industrialists The end of WWI – Germany in Shambles –Kaiser Fled. Problems? ______________________ Germany was not fully invaded at the end of WWI –Helped ___________________________________________ Hitler’s Radicalization –Hitler’s first military assignment after the war was to spy on a _____________________________ –But Hitler found that he __________________views –He ended up joining, and because he was a ______________, he eventually rose to be its leader –He changed its name to… ___________________Party or the Nazi Party _______________ Beer Hall Putsch story (retold- no more notes here) Great Depression Helped Nazis (ditto) –Don’t forget, Totalitarians can ____________________! –Also, Hitler knew how to tap into German ________. He promises to build a _______that will last for __________. Nazi’s Won a Enough Votes to Choose the Prime Minister of the Weimar Republic in 1933 –Chose Hitler –Hitler Used a fire in the _______________ to Eliminate German’s _______________ Hitler’s Totalitarian State –Hitler Youth –SS and Gestapo –Baby machines?