The Purges of the 1930s (Edexcel A-Level History): Revision Notes
The Purges of the 1930s
Stalin's position by 1928
By 1928, Stalin had become the undisputed leader of the Communist Party and the Soviet Union. However, despite his apparent dominance, Stalin's power remained insecure in several important ways. He feared losing power in the same way that Trotsky, Zinoviev and Bukharin had been defeated during the political struggles of the 1920s.
Stalin's main concerns were:
- His own supporters within the Party might challenge his authority
- His old political rivals could plot against him and attempt to overthrow him
These fears, whether real or imagined, drove Stalin to launch what became known as the Great Terror or Great Purge—a massive campaign involving arrests, torture, mass imprisonments and executions. This brutal campaign reached its peak between 1935 and 1938, resulting in approximately 10 million deaths, roughly ten per cent of the Soviet population.
Understanding Stalin's insecurity is crucial to understanding the purges. Despite being the undisputed leader, Stalin's paranoia about potential rivals drove him to implement one of the most brutal campaigns of political repression in modern history.
Causes of the purges
The Great Terror had multiple causes, all connected to Stalin's determination to protect and strengthen his own position as leader.
Opposition from the Politburo
By 1932, a group of moderates had emerged within the Politburo, led by Sergei Kirov, who headed the Communist Party in Leningrad. These moderates managed to force through some policy changes that challenged Stalin's authority:
The Ryutin affair (1932): Martemyan Ryutin circulated a document highly critical of Stalin's policies and formed the Union of Marxist Leninists, an opposition group that included supporters of Bukharin, Zinoviev and Trotsky. Stalin demanded Ryutin's execution, but Kirov and the Politburo moderates successfully argued that he should be imprisoned instead. This demonstrated that Stalin's power was not absolute.
The Second Five-Year Plan (1933): Kirov and the moderates pushed for more realistic economic targets and greater emphasis on producing consumer goods rather than heavy industry. This challenge to Stalin's economic vision showed Kirov's growing influence within the Party.
Kirov himself represented a significant threat to Stalin. He was a talented speaker, considered handsome, and crucially, he was Russian (whereas Stalin was Georgian), making him popular within the Party. Although Kirov was a Stalinist who supported collectivisation, the Five-Year Plans and political terror, he had a reputation for being more pragmatic and moderate than Stalin. In 1933, he was nominated as Stalin's deputy, confirming his status as a potential rival.
Economic problems
Economic difficulties provided Stalin with multiple reasons to launch the purges:
Undermining Stalin's authority: Senior government figures were aware of the serious problems with Stalin's industrial and agricultural policies. This awareness threatened Stalin's position and reputation.
Scapegoating: By accusing workers and managers of being 'wreckers' and 'saboteurs', Stalin could blame them for economic failures rather than accepting responsibility for the shortcomings of his own policies.
Labour supply: Those accused of sabotage were sent to Gulags (huge labour camps). The terror therefore created an enormous workforce of slave labour that could be used to build factories, mine resources and complete other economically important tasks.
The economic justification for the purges served multiple purposes simultaneously. Stalin could deflect blame for policy failures, eliminate potential opposition, and create a massive forced labour system—all while maintaining the appearance of protecting the Soviet economy from saboteurs.
The Congress of Victors
The Congress of Victors, held in February 1934, revealed the extent of opposition to Stalin within the Party. In the vote to elect the new Central Committee, Stalin came second to Kirov—Kirov received 1,225 votes compared to Stalin's 927 votes. Senior Party members even approached Kirov privately, urging him to stand against Stalin for the position of General Secretary. Although Kirov refused and the vote was kept secret, this Congress clearly demonstrated that Stalin faced a serious rival within the Communist Party.
The voting results at the Congress of Victors were a humiliating defeat for Stalin. The fact that he received nearly 300 fewer votes than Kirov showed that significant opposition existed even at the highest levels of the Party. This event likely intensified Stalin's paranoia and determination to eliminate potential rivals.
Kirov's murder
Kirov was murdered in December 1934. Some historians have speculated that Stalin ordered the assassination, but no conclusive proof has ever been found. Regardless of who was truly responsible, the murder served Stalin's interests in several ways:
Removing a rival: The murder eliminated Stalin's main political competitor within the Party.
Creating a pretext: The assassination allowed Stalin to claim that a dangerous conspiracy existed to overthrow the Communist government. This gave him justification to arrest his rivals and launch a mass campaign to hunt down supposed enemies of the state.
The Great Terror, 1934–38
The Great Terror began in Leningrad immediately after Kirov's murder in December 1934. Stalin arrested Zinoviev and Kamenev and organised an investigation into the Communist Party in Leningrad. The terror spread throughout the Soviet Union in 1936 and reached its most intense phase in 1937.
Show trials
The most public aspect of the terror was three major show trials that destroyed Stalin's rivals from the 1920s:
The Three Major Show Trials:
The Trial of the 16 (1936): This trial resulted in the execution of Zinoviev, Kamenev and 14 of their supporters.
The Trial of the 17 (1937): This led to the execution and imprisonment of 17 former supporters of Trotsky.
The Trial of the 21 (1938): This resulted in the execution of Bukharin and many of his closest allies.
These trials served a dual purpose. Not only did they physically eliminate Stalin's former rivals, but they also destroyed their reputations. All defendants confessed to plotting to murder Kirov and conspiring with capitalist nations to overthrow the Soviet Union. These confessions, obtained through torture and psychological pressure, discredited the defendants in the eyes of the Soviet public.
However, the show trials represented only a tiny fraction of the Great Terror. The purges affected all aspects of the Party and government. Notably, 95 per cent of those affected were men aged 30 to 45 who held senior positions in the Party or played important roles in the economy.
Secret trials
In addition to the public show trials, Stalin organised secret trials of the Red Army's leadership. In 1937, eight senior generals were tried for plotting to overthrow the government. All eight had worked with Trotsky when he was head of the Red Army, making them suspect in Stalin's eyes. All were executed.
Following this trial, the purge of the military intensified dramatically:
- More than 37,000 officers were purged from the army
- All the admirals of the Soviet navy were executed
- The majority of the army's senior officers were shot
Impact on Soviet Military Capability:
This massive purge of military leadership would have serious consequences when the Soviet Union faced Nazi Germany in the Second World War. The loss of experienced commanders and officers severely weakened the Red Army's ability to respond effectively to the German invasion in 1941.
Scale and victims
The terror affected millions of Soviet citizens across all levels of society. Between 1929 and 1939, an estimated 24 million people were sent to labour camps, where approximately 13 million died. Victims were accused of various crimes including treason, being kulaks (wealthy peasants), holding bourgeois views, and many other alleged offences.
Even those who led the terror were not safe. Yagoda, head of the NKVD (Stalin's political police), was shot in 1937. His successor, Yezhov, was executed in 1939, accused of being a British agent. Lavrentiy Beria then became NKVD chief from 1938.
The terror reached even those who had fled the Soviet Union. In 1940, Trotsky was killed at his home in Mexico City by a Soviet agent.
Consequences of the Great Terror
The Great Terror fundamentally transformed Soviet government and society:
Elimination of rivals: Stalin's political opponents from the 1920s were finally and completely destroyed.
Removal of old Bolsheviks: The terror led to the death or imprisonment of an entire generation of communists who had known and worked with Lenin. This removed all Party members who could claim authority independent from Stalin, based on their revolutionary credentials.
New generation of leaders: A new generation of Communist Party leaders emerged who owed their positions entirely to Stalin. These individuals were therefore completely loyal to him.
Legitimisation of terror: The purges established the principle that Stalin had the right to use terror against anyone considered disloyal, for any reason.
Rise of the NKVD: Stalin's political police became a powerful organisation within the regime. Lavrentiy Beria, Stalin's NKVD chief from 1938, became one of the most powerful figures in government.
Stalin as sole authority: The Great Terror established that Stalin was the only source of authority in the Soviet Union. Neither other politicians nor the Party itself could be trusted—only Stalin could be trusted to defend the Soviet Union and the revolution.
The transformation was complete: Stalin had created a system where loyalty to him personally was more important than loyalty to Communist ideology or the Party itself. This represented a fundamental shift in the nature of Soviet power.
Totalitarianism
Stalin's form of government has often been described as totalitarian. Historians and political scientists argue that Stalin constructed a fundamentally new type of dictatorship that went far beyond previous authoritarian regimes.
Features of Stalin's totalitarian state
Complete economic control: Stalin controlled every aspect of the economy through central planning and state ownership.
Widespread political terror: Stalin used mass terror systematically to eliminate opponents and control the population through fear.
Complete media control: All newspapers, radio, film and other media were under strict state control.
Extensive propaganda: The state used propaganda intensively to shape public opinion and create a cult of personality around Stalin.
Different aims from traditional dictatorships
Stalin's dictatorship differed from previous dictatorships, such as tsarist Russia, in its fundamental aims. Whereas traditional dictators like the Tsar were content with the absence of opposition, Stalin demanded genuine enthusiasm and commitment from the Soviet people. Stalin didn't simply want obedience; he wanted the full emotional and ideological commitment of his citizens. This attempt to control not just behaviour but thoughts and feelings is what made Stalin's regime totalitarian.
Understanding Totalitarianism:
The key distinction of totalitarian regimes is their attempt to control not only citizens' actions but also their thoughts, beliefs, and emotions. Unlike traditional authoritarian dictatorships that merely suppress opposition, totalitarian states actively seek to transform society and create new forms of human consciousness aligned with state ideology.
Key Points to Remember:
- The Great Terror (1935-1938) resulted from Stalin's deep insecurity about his position, despite being undisputed leader by 1928.
- Key causes included opposition from Politburo moderates led by Kirov, economic problems, Stalin's poor showing at the 1934 Congress of Victors, and Kirov's murder in December 1934.
- The terror involved both public show trials (which destroyed Zinoviev, Kamenev, Bukharin and their supporters) and secret trials (which decimated Red Army leadership).
- Approximately 10 million people died during the purges, representing about 10% of the Soviet population.
- The Great Terror established Stalin as the sole source of authority, eliminated old Bolsheviks who had worked with Lenin, created a new generation of loyal leaders, and transformed the NKVD into a powerful instrument of control—characteristics of Stalin's totalitarian dictatorship.