The Late-Stalinist Period, 1945-53
(Stalin died in March 1953)
Impact of the war on the USSR: about 20m dead (1/5 of
pre-war population), huge economic burden, Stalin’s
leadership unchallengeable, suppression of Soviet
people, some lifting of restrictions (more flexible during
war- e.g. Orthodox Church), developed sense of
patriotism
Stalin’s popularity: He was great leader who
steered the USSR to victory in 4 long years of
war and his leadership was unchallengeable and
the ‘Cult of Personality’ reached new heights.
However his paranoia reached new heights (e.g.
war hero Marshal Zhukov was demoted as Stalin
saw him as a political threat), massive
celebrations for Stalin’s 70th birthday in 1949
Stalin’s death in March 1953
was met with widespread
hysteria (perhaps not
genuine) and uncertainty over
the future in a post-Stalin
Russia
Post-war Purges: Fresh wave of Purges occurred in some ways even
more ruthless than in the 1930s. Society was subdued by the effects of
war, lack of swift economic recovery and ruthlessness of regime.
Continued mass deportations occurred as ‘punishment’ for sections of
society siding with the enemy (e.g. Cossacks, Tartars, Volga Germans).
Large numbers of returning Red Army soldiers were imprisoned straight
into Gulags to prevent them ‘infecting’ society with their views or stories
about their contact with the West at the end of the war. The Gulags
camps had never been so full. Stalin undertook a fresh wave of Purges-
‘Leningrad Affair’ (1949), of Jews (1952) and the ‘Doctors’ Plot’ (1953)
Leningrad Affair (1949): Leningrad was seen as a rival city to
Moscow (murder of Kirov) and as an ‘independent state’ during
the war. The Leningrad leader Zhdanov was seen as a successor
to Stalin so he had him ‘removed’ (Zhdanov died mysteriously in
1948 see below) and following thousands of Leningrad party
officials and intellectuals were executed or imprisoned)
‘Anti-Semitism and the ‘Doctors’ Plot’ (1952-53): Stalin had the leaders of the
‘Anti-Fascist Jewish Committee’ (which was set up during the war) shot. This
culminated in the Doctors’ Plot where nine Kremlin doctors (6 Jewish) were
arrested for the murder of Zhdanov and were claimed to have admitted to
poisoning him, this was declared to have only been the tip of the iceberg (it
was even claimed that Jewish doctors were purposely infecting people with
viruses – 8,000 were arrested and could have led to another widespread purge
but Stalin died in March 1953
Fourth Five-Year Plan (1946-50): undertaken on similar basis to earlier Five-Year Plans (e.g.
target-setting etc). Emphasis on heavy industry to recover from devastation of war – there were
considerable successes in this area (by 1950 output of heavy industry was 75% in excess of
1940 levels). Ordinary citizens saw little improvement in their lives due to limitations on the
supply of food and consumer goods and this period was, for many, worse economically than
during the 1930s. Agriculture suffered – return to famine in some parts in 1946