Russian Economy under Stalin

FIVE YEAR PLANS (STALIN)
1. The Five Year Plans were a command economy
  1. Means that supply and price are regulated by the government
2. GOSPLAN
  1. The state planning committee established in February 1921. They were responsible for economic planning in the USSR
3. First Five Year Plan (October 1938-December 1932)
  1. Stalin's priorities for the FFYP. 1) All industries needed raw materials like coal, steel, oil and iron to develop for future industrial development. 2) The majority of industrial labour force were unskilled peasants. Stalin believed that working in heavy industry would allow the peasants to gain the necessary skills. 3) Heavy industry would lay the foundations for rearmament in case of war, Stalin believed that Russia should be ready to defend itself in case of war.
    1. The urban population trebeled as peasants moved to cities. Many retrained as engineers or administrators. Education reformed to serve the needs of the FYP. Universities were made accessible to people with minimal qualifications.
  2. Production increased by 14% per year. An impressive feat compared to Tsarist and NEP achievements
    1. Tsarist Production (1913): IRON- 4.2. STEEL- 4.0. COAL- 29.1. OIL- 9.2.
    2. NEP Production (1928): IRON: 3.3. STEEL: 4.0. COAL: 35.4. OIL: 11.7.
    3. FYP Production (1932): IRON- 6.2. STEEL- 5.9. COAL- 64.3. OIL- 21.4.
  3. Target meeting was a failure as many official targets were not met. Officials who failed to meet their targets were sacked or executed. Local administrators then lied about the amount of materials produced. Focused on production not quality of work.
    1. FFYP Targets: Iron- 8.0. Steel- 8.3. Coal- 68.0. Oil- 19.0
    2. FFYP Actual Production: Iron- 6.2. Steel- 5.9. Coal- 64.3. Oil- 21.4.
  4. Living and Working Conditions
    1. Improvement of living standards was never an objective of the plan. Workers were sustained by rations which were a poorer diet than NEP. A seven-day working day was introduced. Miners were allowed to work in unsafe conditions. Lateness was criminalised.
      1. Piece-work was introduced where payment was based on how much was produced rather than the hours worked. The Seven day working week was introduced, absenteeism, lateness and idleness were considered crimes.
  5. Free Market
    1. Was a market economy based on supply and demand with little or no government control.
      1. A number of problems were established through the abolishing the free market. 1) It encouraged the formation of the black market. 2) There was a shortage of consumer goods which then increased their value. 3) It was impossible to police the black market effectively. 4) "Speculators" were the subject of show trials.
  6. Magnitogorsk
    1. "Magnet-Mountain City" Aimed to create Russia's largest steel factory. Was to be an urban city with clean and modern accommodation. Thousands of shock workers volunteered to take part.
      1. Realistically few houses were built and the majority of workers lived in mud huts and tents with no heating or sanitation. On average workers left Magnitogorsk after 82 days.
      2. Gigantomania
        A definition of the First FYP- the worship of size for its own sake.
  7. Successes
    1. 1) Electricity production trebled. 2) Coal and Iron output doubled
4. Second Five Year Plan (January 1933-December 1937)
5. Third Five Year Plan (January 1938-June 1941)
6. Fourth Five Year Plan (January 1946-December 1950)
7. Fifth Five Year Plan (January 1951-December 1955)
COLLECTIVISATION (STALIN)
1. What was collectivisation?
  1. The reformation of Soviet agriculture. Stalin planned to merge smaller farms into one "collective farm" to operate more efficiently.
2. Reasons for collectivisation
  1. Additional Reasons
    1. Political
      1. An attempt to revolutionise the agraian system
    2. Social
      1. Any peasants who refused to cooperate with the state were shown no mercy and were essentially terrorists.
      2. Stalin used the "Kulak Grain Strike" (where Kulaks withheld grain) as an excuse to bring back grain requisitioning. This showed the power of the peasants.
    3. Economic
      1. Grain output rose in 1926 but fell until 1929. 77 million tonnes were produced in 1926 and 72 million in 1929
      2. Harvests of 1927, 1928, 1929 were poor and increased agricultural products. Large farms could increase efficiency and mean less people would have to work there freeing up manpower for industry
    4. Ideological
      1. Peasants were still using traditional farming techniques and had a lack of revolutionary spirit due to farming for themselves and for their own profit rather than for the rest of the country.
  2. Six Factors Now To Collectivise Kolkoz
    1. Soviet agriculture was backwards, old fashioned and inefficient
    2. Food was needed for workers in the towns if the Five Year Plans were going to work
    3. NEP was not working. By 1928 the USSR was 20 million tonnes of grain short to feed the towns
    4. Town-workers were needed if the USSR was to become modern and industrialised peasants needed to migrate to towns.
    5. Cash Crops were needed if the USSR was to industrialise, peasants needed to grow cash crops (e.g. grain) which could be exported to raise money to buy foreign machinery and expertise.
    6. Kulaks oppsed communism, they liked private wealth. They hid food from cash collectors and were influential and led peasant opinion.
3. The Grain Procurement Crisis 1927-1929
  1. Under NEP, the government bought grain from the peasants. Poor harvests from 1927 onwards forced the price of grain to rise. The kulaks then started to withhold grain from the market to increase the price
    1. The crisis showed to Stalin that the peasant could hold the government to ransom and slow the process of industrialisation. Demonstrated that peasant ideology was essentially capitalist and in conflict with the government. The crisis was used as evidence against NEP and undermined Bukharin.
      1. Stalin's response
        Winter 1928-29: Reintroduced rationing End of 1928: State resumed grain requisitioning under Article 107 of the Soviet Criminal Code, grain handling could be punished. Poorer peasants rewarded for informing the authorities about kulaks. Spring 1929: Started to requisition meat and revised Article 61 of the Criminal Code: police powers to send kulaks to labour camps for up to two years for failure to "carry out general state instructions."
  2. Liquidation of the Kulaks
    1. A kulak is a wealthy peasant
      1. Three stages of liquidation: i) Dukulakisation (marked the end of capitalism and independent farming in the countryside) ii) Vastly increased the speed of collectivisation. iii) The call to liquidate the kulaks entailed immediate collectivisation of all farming in Russia.
        Effects of liquidation: Stalin appealed to the poorest peasants to lead the way. Collective farms meant that poorer peasants would be able to use the kulak's resources and share a much greater harvest.
        The 25 thousanders were Communist industrial workers who went into the countryside to offer techinical help to the peasants. In reality they were used to enforce dekulakisation and find secret stores of grain.
4. Why did Stalin stop collectivisation?
  1. "Dizzy with success" Stalin defended his policy and argued that his target for collectivisation had been met so it would be suspended.
    1. Stalin admitted collectivisation caused problems (let alone that so many had been killed) but the article hinted that the party thought it had gone too far.
      1. CONSEQUENCES
        Famine
        Between 9,500,000-10,000,000 people exiled as part of dekulkisation 1929: 150,000 kulak families sent to SIberia. 1930: 240,000. 1931: 285,000. In some cases, 10% of peasants in a single village were exiled.
        Industrialisation and urbanisation
        Political consequences

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Russian Economy under Stalin

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