StalinStalinStalin succeeded Lenin as leader of the Soviet Union. He ruled from 1924-1953 as a totalitarian dictator. Stalin is most famous for working to build "socialism in one country," starting five year plans, and the great purges. His rule helped the Cold War develop between the Soviet Union and other western countries. Lenin had left a testament of the qualities of potential leaders following his death. Stalin was not his choice, in fact he recommended that the others find a way of easing Stalin out of power.
Stalin was born Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili, in Gori, which is now in the Republic of Georgia, in 1879, but in 1910 adopted the pseudonym Josef Stalin, Staling meaning "a man of steel." He rose to power from a low economic and political position. His father was a cobbler and ex serf. Also, Stalin was expelled from Tiflis Orthodox Theological Seminary and exiled to Siberia twice for his activities with underground revolutionary movements. It is his involvement with the Bolsheviks that brought to a position of power within the Soviet Union. He was involved in the October Revolution and a member of the Communist Party Politburo, eventually gaining leadership within the party that led to his dictatorial powers.When Stalin came to power in 1924, the Soviet Union was not really a socialist state. They were operating under a plan called the New Economic Policy which allowed for limited capitalism and was meant to help the economy quickly recover from the devastation of civil war. In 1928, Stalin implemented his first Five Year Plan. This ended the market driven economy in the USSR. Stalin's Five Year Plans were meant to rapidly industrialize the USSR. The Five Year Plans set production quotas for everything that was produced and focused mainly on industrial goods. Farmers were also subject to the Five Year Plans. Farms were collectivised and quotas set. So much grain was taken in taxes after collectivization that millions starved.
From 1934-1938, Stalin conducted the Great Purges. He had people he labeled enemies of the state imprisoned, exiled or killed. His purges affected everybody, but especially other people who had power within the USSR. This resulted in the removal of all opposition to Stalin. When in 1941, Hitler invaded the USSR this purge, along with Stalin's refusal to acknowledge Hitler's threat left the USSR unprepared for war. They suffered greatly in the first part of World War II. However, by the end of World War II the Soviet Union had made up for its earlier losses and was able to take an offensive position. Their later victories in World War II helped make them a military power and a super power in the world. However, political differences and the foreign policy he conducted after World War II led to the Cold War. Stalin's policies after WWII until his death in 1953 went largely unchanged.