Analyse the Methods Used by One Single Party State Ruler in His Successful Bid for Power

Stalin’s unquestionable dominance over the Bolshevik party and their actions highlights the impact of Stalinism

Soso Djugashvili, more commonly known as Joseph Stalin, ‘man of steel’, dictator of the Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) Russia, can be considered a ‘Red Tsar’ to an extent when features of Stalinism are compared to those of Tsarism and Russia ruled by Nicholas II’s autocratic regime from 1894 to 1917. A ‘Red Tsar’ is a communist leader whom follows similar principles followed under the leadership of a Tsar, that were influenced by few opinions allowing sole leadership and little opposition from others. Stalin can be considered a ‘Red Tsar’ to an extent as he ruled Communist Russia as a somewhat totalitarian state and was considered a ‘God-like’ figure sent to Earth to lead the nation and its people. From Stalin’s reign of terror from 1929 to 1953 there can be similarities seen in his regime to features of Tsarism as well as differences, this is why there are alternative interpretations for Stalin being considered a ‘Red Tsar’.

Had Stalin’s opposition published Lenin’s Testament during the conflict for leadership, he would never have made it to power and Russian history would be very different. However the fact remains that they failed to publish this until it was too late; Zinoviev, Kamenev and Trotsky attempted to publish the testament in 1926 but Stalin was already too strong – he ordered the secret police to remove the illicit copies, leaving the United Opposition to appear desperate and undermined. These general errors by the Bolsheviks made Stalin’s rise to power easier, as they could have ended his political career if people had recognized his vast control and power within the party.

Thus, the “Cult of Personality” was flourishing. Propaganda glorifying Stalin and Soviet ideals brainwashed the minds of Russian people. Stalin successfully impressed his socialist philosophies on millions of workers and peasants. Over time, socialism transformed into Stalinism, and it took hold. Stalin was able to hypnotize people towards one belief, the love of Stalin. When they saw Stalin being portrayed heroically everyday in the news or on posters, they began to idolize him. Stalin is like Big Brother; he was the main focus and had total power over the people and their actions.

Stalin formed a centralized government that did not tolerate any other opinions. He wanted to control everyone and all parts of their life. Over the next several years, Stalin started to bring in all industrial and agricultural systems under control of the government. This was done under what was called Stalin’s Five year plans. One of the main things Stalin did was seize farmer’s lands and force them to give all of their produce to the government. The government would then sell the produce to other countries for profit and leave the farmers and their families with almost nothing. Stalin also took control over all parts of the government and military. He eliminated any leaders who did not agree with him and follow his commands. Stalin strengthened the Secret Police that had been created by Lenin, after the revolution, and all Russian citizens were afraid to say anything against Stalin and the communists because the Secret Police were

Conversely, Stain’s tendency to grasp opportunities and advance in situations was pivotal in explaining his rise to power by 1929. Historian S, Phillips argues that “Stalin was undoubtedly skillful in using the circumstances that presented themselves in 1924 and opportunities that arose thereafter to overcome his opponents in the party” . This view supports the idea that Stalin used his political shrewdness and skills to outwit his colleagues for the battle for power and positioned himself in situations that he could benefit from and gain advantages which is an alternative factor to the Party machine argument as the main reason for Stalin’s dominance of power. It is correct to argue that Stalin had begun to lay down the foundations of power during Lenin’s latter years and used his powers granted to him by

By imprisoning and executing members that opposed his views and were potential threats to his position, Stalin was able to keep control over the USSR by using fear. Hence, this raised up a new ruling elite that he found to be more dependable, as no one dared challenge him for fear of their life.

It is undeniable that Stalin had a profound impact on the Soviet Union following Lenin’s death. His rise to power within the Soviet Union has provided historians with a hotbed of political intrigue for many years. He was an opportunist, coming to dominance by manipulating party politics and influential figures in the politburo to eliminate his opposition by recognising and exploiting their weaknesses thus becoming the dominant leader of the Soviet Union. He was severely underestimated by other members of the Politburo about his potential within the party, leading to missed opportunities to ally and stand against him- a mistake that Stalin never made. He gained support from the public by exploiting the idea of ‘the Cult of Lenin’ in 1924 at Lenin’s funeral, and then adopting this concept for himself, thereby likening himself to Lenin; and, more importantly, gained support from other party members by following the wishes of Lenin, for example, initially supporting the continuation of the NEP and supporting the idea of factionalism. This essay will also argue that he was ideologically flexible as he was able to change his ideas for the party according to who he needed as an ally, in order to achieve dominant status in the party. He sought out which individual was the biggest threat, and eliminated them before they could stand against him.

When Joseph Stalin was older he joined a Marxist social democratic movement, the Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin. As a member of the Bolsheviks, he became more involved in criminal schemes such as bank heists. The money they stole was used to fund the Bolshevik party. In 1912 Stalin was chosen to serve on the first central committee of the Bolshevik party. In 1922 he became Secretary General of the central committee of the communist party. Stalin was able to appoint his close and trustworthy friends in government jobs. With Stalin’s friends appointed in government positions, he was able to build a strong team of political support (“Joseph Stalin”). Stalin soon became the dictator of the Soviet Union in the 1920s. In 1924 he gradually took control over the communist party and began a series of five year plans, hoping to convert the Soviet Union into an industrial superpower. Stalin mostly focused on government control of the economy, taking control over farms and extending the capacities of the secret police.Many farmers refused to obey Stalin’s orders, so as a punishment he killed or exiled them. Stalin grew very paranoid and created The Great Purge, a series of trials where the people were tortured or pressured to confess, although most people were found innocent, the secret police covered up the truth with a set of believable lies. The purge trials got rid of the communist party, the military, and anyone considered a threat by

The role played in the Revolution in October 1917 was insignificant (which was hushed up later), but afterwards he proved himself skilful in solving the problems which popped during the Civil War. He was named first Minister of the Nationalities, and in 1922 became the General Secretary of the Communist Party. This desk work, apparently boring, was for Stalin the road to power, giving him the opportunity to control the partyÂ’s committees and so to promote his own sustainers. So the Â’20 were for Stalin full of important successes against his rivals. These were, obviously, politic disputes and not real fights: although the communists treated their opponents with harshness, there was an unwritten rule which said that blood being spilt was a thing to avoid in party

Joseph Stalin, from the time that he was a low level revolutionary to the years that he spent as the dictator of the Soviet Union, always knew what he needed to do to achieve his goals. His organized rise to power allowed him to gain a steady flow of followers who would support him for decades to come. Stalin received a minor government position in 1917, but by the time a new leader was needed in 1924, he “had turned the largely routine post of Party general secretary into the most powerful office in the Soviet Union” (“Joseph Stalin) and “had built a personal empire for himself through his control over committee appointments at all levels . . . expand[ing] the leading Party organs with his supporters, who then voted against his rivals”

One of the most important reasons why Stalin won the power struggle is that he used his high positions in the Communist party and the power that came with it to his advantage. Several factors fall under this category. Firstly is how Stalin used his position as General Secretary, as well as jealousies between the leaders and Trotsky’s illness to stage-manage Lenin’s funeral. To the general public, it appeared that Stalin was very close to Lenin, and as a result

Joseph Stalin used his intellect, and power, to outmanoeuvre his rivals to become leader of the Soviet Union. Using carefully planned propaganda including, painting, statues, and a series of cultivated posters Stalin immortalised and glorified his leadership. These state-manufactured images created a ‘cult of personality' around him, subsequently, creating an image of a heroic worshipped figure, who was associated with every aspect of soviet society. Stalin controlled the media and according to the historian Moshe Lewin, Stalin single handily, ‘become the system,’ (Lewin in Pittaway, 2008, p.137.)

Yet it was Joseph Stalin who was eventually to emerge as leader of the party. This was largely because Stalin was a clever and astute politician, who was seen as being a man of the people. He was able to manoeuvre himself into a position of power through his role as General Secretary of the Communist Party. Once in power, he exerted an iron grip on the USSR. Stalin’s aims differed from Lenin’s in that he did not expect to spread Communism worldwide until Communism was secure in the USSR.

Once eliminating Trotsky, Stalin’s idea of, “socialism in our country,” inevitably meant that Russia needed strength. The productions in the USSR had almost reached pre-war levels by the mid-1920s, but the population of Russia had also increased by 20 million people. No matter, Stalin assured that maximum efforts and resources would be given to the expansion and strengthening of Russia herself rather than an effort to start a revolution elsewhere. This is explained in his famous 1931 speech, gaining power for himself. The people had nowhere else to turn to and needed a leader. Stalin was there and knew what to do to make the people interested in his ideas, thus acquired their trust and control. From these ideas, he created his first