Communist Government in the USSR, 1917–85 (Edexcel A-Level History): Revision Notes
Communist Government in the USSR, 1917–85
Introduction
The story of communist government in the USSR from 1917 to 1985 traces a dramatic journey of rise, transformation and eventual decline. This period saw the establishment of a revolutionary one-party state under Lenin, its transformation into a totalitarian dictatorship under Stalin, attempts at reform under Khrushchev, a return to stability under Brezhnev, and finally a period of leadership crisis in the early 1980s. Understanding this evolution is essential for grasping how communist rule shaped the Soviet Union and why it ultimately faced insurmountable challenges.
The period 1917-1985 covers the entire lifespan of the Soviet communist system from its revolutionary beginnings to the eve of Gorbachev's reforms. Understanding the evolution of communist government through these decades is crucial for explaining both the system's remarkable durability and its eventual collapse.
Overview: from revolutionary movement to party of government
The communist government underwent three distinct phases across this period:
Rise (1917-1928): Lenin established a radical new form of government following the October Revolution. He claimed to be creating a government of the workers, but in practice built a system based on Communist Party control and bureaucratic administration. The survival of the new regime depended on political compromise and, ultimately, the creation of a one-party state where the Communist Party held absolute power.
Transformation (1928-1953): Stalin launched his own revolution, transforming Lenin's political achievement into an attempt to build the world's first socialist society. His policies made the USSR an economic superpower but also created a totalitarian state founded on terror, propaganda and a cult of personality around Stalin himself.
Decline (1953-1985): After Stalin's death, the communist government struggled to balance reform with maintaining Party control. Khrushchev made communism more humane but his reforms threatened the system's stability. Brezhnev restored order but at the cost of stagnation. The final leaders, Andropov and Chernenko, faced the same fundamental question: how could the Communist Party reform without abandoning Lenin's one-party state?
Lenin's government, 1917-24
Establishment of communist rule
In October 1917, Lenin led the Bolsheviks in overthrowing the Provisional Government that had ruled Russia since the February Revolution earlier that year. Lenin immediately established Sovnarkom (the Council of People's Commissars) as the new executive governing body. This marked a decisive break with the past and the beginning of communist rule in Russia.
Sovnarkom (Council of People's Commissars) became the main executive governing body of the new Soviet state. Despite its name suggesting collective leadership, it quickly became dominated by Lenin and the Bolshevik Party, establishing a pattern of centralized control that would characterize Soviet government throughout its existence.
Lenin's government was revolutionary and uncompromising from the start. He was determined to create an entirely new type of government that would, he claimed, represent the interests of workers. However, the reality was more complex. Lenin's Russia became a mixture of utopian revolutionary vision and pragmatic political compromise.
Consolidation through the Civil War
Between 1918 and 1921, Lenin fought a brutal Civil War against various opponents of Bolshevik rule. This period saw increasing political centralisation as Lenin concentrated power to ensure the survival of his government at all costs. The demands of war pushed the government towards greater authoritarianism and reliance on force.
A key moment came when Lenin disbanded the Constituent Assembly, an elected parliament that had been intended to determine Russia's future. This decision showed Lenin's willingness to abandon democratic processes when they threatened Bolshevik power. The government became based much more on administrators and bureaucrats than on working people themselves.
The dissolution of the Constituent Assembly in 1918 was a turning point in Soviet history. The Assembly had been democratically elected, but when the Bolsheviks won only about 25% of the seats, Lenin forcibly closed it. This demonstrated that the Bolsheviks would prioritize maintaining power over democratic principles, setting a precedent for authoritarian rule.
Creating the one-party state
By 1921, the Communists had triumphed in the Civil War, but Lenin moved to eliminate all remaining challenges to Party control:
- Opposition political parties were banned in 1921, transforming Russia into a one-party state
- At the March 1921 Party Congress, Lenin banned factions (organised groups within the Communist Party itself)
- These measures guaranteed the supremacy of the Communist Party within Russian government
Lenin had established a system where the Communist Party held absolute control. This one-party state would define Soviet government for the next seven decades. When Lenin died in January 1924, he left behind a governmental structure built on Party supremacy rather than genuine workers' democracy.
Stalin's rule, 1928-53
The 'revolution from above'
When Stalin emerged as leader of Russia in 1928, he launched what he called a 'revolution from above' – a forced transformation of Soviet society driven from the top of government rather than from popular movements below. Stalin aimed to build on Lenin's achievement: Lenin had ended capitalism, but Stalin would attempt to create the world's first genuine socialist society.
Stalin's term "revolution from above" contrasted with traditional Marxist theory, which envisioned revolution coming from the working class below. Instead, Stalin's approach meant the Party and state apparatus would force change upon society through centralized planning, collectivization, and industrialization – regardless of popular support or resistance.
Stalin's revolution had enormous consequences. It made Russia an economic giant through rapid industrialisation and collectivisation of agriculture. However, it also came at a tremendous human cost, creating a truly totalitarian state where the government exercised complete control over all aspects of life.
Elimination of opponents
Stalin moved systematically to eliminate anyone who might challenge his authority:
- In January 1934, private criticism of Stalin was expressed at the Congress of Victors, showing that some Party members still questioned his leadership
- In December 1934, Sergei Kirov (a popular Party leader) was murdered in Leningrad, an event Stalin likely orchestrated or exploited to justify increased repression
- From August 1936, Stalin removed high-profile opponents in the first of the infamous Moscow show trials, where former leading Communists were forced to confess to imaginary crimes before being executed
These show trials served multiple purposes: they eliminated Stalin's rivals, intimidated potential opponents, and demonstrated that no one, regardless of their past service to the Party, was safe from Stalin's purges.
The Moscow show trials were carefully staged public spectacles designed to justify Stalin's terror. Old Bolsheviks who had led the Revolution alongside Lenin were forced through torture and threats to confess to being "traitors" and "foreign agents." These confessions were completely fabricated, but they served to legitimize Stalin's elimination of anyone he perceived as a threat.
The Great Terror
In 1935, Stalin initiated the Great Terror with a purge of the Leningrad Communist Party following Kirov's murder. The terror intensified dramatically in September 1936 when Nikolai Yezhov became head of the secret police.
The Great Terror involved:
- Mass arrests of Party members, military officers, intellectuals, and ordinary citizens
- Deportations to labour camps (the Gulag system)
- Executions of hundreds of thousands of people
- An atmosphere of fear where anyone could be denounced and arrested at any time
The scale of the Great Terror: The Great Terror (1935-1938) was not random violence but systematic state terror. Estimates suggest:
- At least 700,000 people were executed
- Millions more were sent to labour camps
- The Communist Party itself lost approximately 70% of its Central Committee members
- The Red Army lost most of its experienced officer corps
This terror created a climate where absolute loyalty to Stalin personally became the only guarantee of survival, transforming the Soviet state into a personal dictatorship.
The terror was not random violence but a systematic tool of government. Stalin used it to establish a personal dictatorship where absolute loyalty to him personally (not just to the Party or communist ideology) became the only guarantee of survival.
The totalitarian state
By the time of Stalin's death in March 1953, the Soviet Union had become a classic totalitarian state characterised by:
- Terror: The secret police, purges, show trials and labour camps created an atmosphere of constant fear
- Propaganda: The state controlled all information and used it to promote Stalin and communist ideology
- Cult of personality: Stalin was presented as an all-knowing, infallible leader; his image and words were everywhere
This system differed fundamentally from Lenin's government. While Lenin had created a one-party state, Stalin transformed it into a personal dictatorship where the Party itself became a tool of one man's rule.
Khrushchev's reforms, 1953-64
De-Stalinisation begins
After Stalin's death, Nikita Khrushchev attempted to reform the Communist government and make it more humane. His most dramatic action came in February 1956 when he delivered his 'Secret Speech' to a Party Congress, openly criticizing Stalin's crimes and cult of personality. This marked the beginning of widespread de-Stalinisation across the Soviet Union.
The Secret Speech of 1956: Khrushchev's speech to the Twentieth Party Congress shocked delegates by exposing Stalin's crimes, including the Great Terror, the show trials, and the cult of personality. Although called the "Secret Speech" because it was delivered in a closed session, news of its contents quickly spread throughout the Soviet Union and internationally, fundamentally changing how Stalin's era was perceived.
Khrushchev's reforms made communism significantly more humane:
- People were no longer sent to labour camps or executed in such large numbers
- Political terror was dramatically reduced
- Greater cultural and intellectual freedom was permitted, especially after the World Festival of Youth and Students in July 1957
Goals and limitations of reform
Khrushchev wanted to revive popular faith in communism after the horrors of Stalinism. He believed the system could work better without terror and with more room for initiative and creativity. His reforms represented a genuine attempt to improve how the Communist government functioned.
However, Khrushchev's reforms had the potential to destabilise communist rule in Russia. If terror was removed and criticism allowed, how could the Communist Party maintain its monopoly on power? If the Party admitted Stalin's mistakes, might people begin to question the entire system?
The Reform Dilemma: Khrushchev faced a fundamental contradiction: he wanted to make the Soviet system more humane and efficient, but meaningful reform threatened the Communist Party's monopoly on power. Reducing terror meant people could criticize more freely; admitting past mistakes raised questions about the Party's infallibility; allowing more freedom risked undermining Party control. This tension between reform and stability would haunt Soviet leaders until the system's collapse.
Removal from power
In October 1964, the Communist Party removed Khrushchev from office. The Party leadership decided his reforms had gone too far and threatened the stability of communist rule. They replaced him with Leonid Brezhnev, a leader they could rely on to protect the Party's position and reverse some of Khrushchev's more radical changes.
This marked a turning point: the Party chose stability and control over reform and liberalisation. The question of how to improve the system without undermining Party supremacy remained unresolved.
Brezhnev's era, 1964-82
Reversing Khrushchev's reforms
Under Brezhnev, communism in Russia lost its revolutionary energy and completed its transformation from revolutionary movement to party of government. Brezhnev began reversing many of Khrushchev's reforms almost immediately after taking power.
Key changes included:
- New criminal code (December 1966) that tightened laws on political dissent
- Increased repression of criticism and opposition
- Rehabilitation of some aspects of Stalin's legacy
- Emphasis on stability and order over reform and innovation
Brezhnev's government created a new legal category of "anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda" that allowed authorities to arrest and imprison dissidents for actions that would be considered normal political expression in democratic societies. This represented a return to suppression, though without the mass terror of Stalin's era.
The stability-stagnation dilemma
Brezhnev's greatest strength was also his greatest weakness: his ability to guarantee stability meant he was unable to reform. He provided the Communist Party with the security it wanted, but this came at the cost of addressing growing problems.
By 1975, Brezhnev became increasingly ill and unable to govern effectively. At the Twenty-Fifth Party Congress in February 1976, he failed to introduce reforms despite growing economic, social and political problems. The USSR under Brezhnev entered a period known as the 'era of stagnation' – the economy slowed, social problems mounted, and the government seemed incapable of responding effectively.
The Brezhnev era demonstrated a crucial lesson: simply maintaining the status quo was not a viable long-term strategy. The problems that had prompted Khrushchev's reforms – economic inefficiency, social discontent, technological backwardness – had not disappeared; they had merely been suppressed and were steadily worsening. By prioritizing stability over reform, Brezhnev created the conditions for an eventual crisis.
The final years: Andropov and Chernenko, 1982-85
Andropov's brief reform attempt
When Brezhnev died, Yuri Andropov became leader in November 1982. He recognised the need for change and initiated reforms to tackle corruption and inefficiency within the Party and government. Andropov tried to restore discipline and improve economic performance.
However, Andropov's reforms faced the same fundamental challenge that had confronted all Soviet leaders since Stalin: how could the Communist Party reform without abandoning the one-party state created by Lenin? Any significant reform risked undermining the Party's monopoly on power.
Chernenko's interlude
Andropov died in February 1984 before his reforms had taken effect. He was replaced by Konstantin Chernenko, an elderly leader in poor health who represented continuity with the Brezhnev era rather than reform. Chernenko's brief leadership (he died in March 1985) symbolised the Communist government's inability to address its fundamental problems.
Between 1982 and 1985, Russia's final elderly leaders struggled with the same problems that had faced Khrushchev and Brezhnev. The question remained unanswered: how could the Communist Party modernise and improve its governance while maintaining the one-party system that guaranteed its power?
The rapid succession of elderly, ailing leaders (Brezhnev, Andropov, Chernenko) between 1982 and 1985 became known as the "rule of the gerontocrats." This leadership crisis highlighted the Soviet system's inability to regenerate itself and prepare new leaders, contributing to a sense that the government was out of touch and incapable of addressing the USSR's mounting problems.
Key events timeline
Establishment of communist rule (1914-1924)
- 1914: Russia enters the First World War
- February 1917: The February Revolution overthrows Tsar Nicholas II
- March 1917: A Provisional Government is established
- October 1917: The October Revolution overthrows the Provisional Government; Lenin establishes Sovnarkom
- 1918-1921: Increasing political centralisation during the Russian Civil War; Lenin disbands Constituent Assembly
- 1921: Opposition political parties banned; Communists triumph in Civil War; Russia becomes a one-party state
- March 1921: Party Congress bans factions within the Communist Party
- January 1924: Lenin dies
Stalin's dictatorship (1928-1953)
- 1928: Stalin emerges as leader of Russia
- January 1934: Private criticism of Stalin expressed at the Congress of Victors
- December 1934: Kirov is murdered in Leningrad
- 1935: The Great Terror begins with a purge of the Leningrad Communist Party
- August 1936: Stalin removes high-profile opponents in the first Moscow show trials
- September 1936: Yezhov becomes head of the secret police; the Great Terror intensifies
- March 1953: Stalin dies
Reform and reaction (1953-1982)
- February 1956: Khrushchev's Secret Speech marks the beginning of widespread de-Stalinisation
- July 1957: Greater freedom of expression permitted following the World Festival of Youth and Students
- October 1964: Khrushchev removed from office; Brezhnev begins to reverse Khrushchev's reforms
- December 1966: New criminal code tightens laws on political dissent
- 1975: Brezhnev becomes increasingly ill and unable to govern effectively
- February 1976: Brezhnev fails to introduce reforms at the Twenty-Fifth Party Congress despite growing problems
Leadership crisis (1982-1985)
- November 1982: Andropov initiates reforms to tackle corruption
- February 1984: Andropov dies and is replaced by Chernenko before his reforms had taken effect
Memory aid for leadership sequence: Remember LSKB-AC: Lenin (1917-24), Stalin (1928-53), Khrushchev (1953-64), Brezhnev (1964-82), Andropov (1982-84), Chernenko (1984-85)
You can also think of the pattern: Terror to Reform to Stagnation
- Stalin = Terror and totalitarianism
- Khrushchev = Reform and de-Stalinisation
- Brezhnev = Stagnation and stability
Remember!
Key Points to Remember:
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Communist government evolved through distinct phases: Lenin established a one-party state based on Communist Party supremacy; Stalin transformed it into a totalitarian dictatorship using terror, propaganda and cult of personality; post-Stalin leaders struggled to balance reform with maintaining Party control.
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The one-party state was the foundation: Lenin's decision to ban opposition parties and factions in 1921 created a system where the Communist Party held absolute power. This structure remained in place throughout the entire period and became the central dilemma for reformers.
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Stalin's terror fundamentally changed Soviet government: The Great Terror (1935-1938) and Stalin's personal dictatorship created a system based on fear and absolute loyalty to the leader. This went beyond Lenin's one-party state to create a totalitarian regime.
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Reform versus stability was the key tension after Stalin: Khrushchev tried to make the system more humane but was removed because his reforms threatened Party control; Brezhnev provided stability but couldn't address growing problems; Andropov and Chernenko attempted reforms but lacked time to implement them.
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The fundamental question remained unanswered: Throughout 1917-1985, Soviet leaders struggled with how to improve the communist government without abandoning the one-party state that guaranteed Communist Party power. This unresolved tension would ultimately contribute to the system's collapse after 1985.