Stalin's Rise to Power
"Stalin's character was the main reason for his rise to power"Just prior to Vladimir Lenin's death in 1924, a 'power struggle' for authority over communist Russia came between the leaders of the Bolshevik regime, because there was no logical successor to Lenin. The members of the 'Politburo', who were divided between those on the right and those of the left, were the main players in this battle, particularly Bukharin, Zinoviev, Kamanev, Tomsky, Rykov, Trotsky and Stalin. With success depending crucially upon their abilities to gain and secure support, the true rivals were the "two major figures...Leon Trotsky and Josef Stalin" . Although Trotsky was seen as the most likely successor to Lenin, it was Stalin, regardless of his lack of intellect, who was able to establish a personal dictatorship, through his manipulative but shrewd character. However, whilst Stalin's character was strongly responsible for his rise to power, it was not the only aspect. His positions in communist power, his role as editor of the national newspaper, the factional disputes between left and right and his realistic approach contributed greatly to what was to become "the most ruthless autocracy" Russia had ever endured.
His Georgian peasantry and the violence he encountered from his drunken father can be held responsible for his physical strength and determination. However, whilst Stalin's character played a significant role, one cannot disregard other contributing factors that assisted him. Stalin believed that by basing Socialism in one country, it would strengthen the Russian Revolution. This was in fact true but only because Stalin had purposely misinformed Trotsky of the time of the funeral. His alliances with the factions in the party allowed him to stay with the majority and eventually gain leadership within Russia. Exposed to socialism and Marxist ideology as a young man, Stalin developed a 'deep sense of class hatred' which drove him to crimes of bank robbery and note forgery to fund the Bolshevik party. His realistic approach also appealed to many, as opposed to Trotsky's view, which would promote unwanted war once again in Russia. Stalin's realistic ideology was capable of gaining support, on top of the loyalty that he already received from his self-recruited party members, and defeating the left wing movements. Two years later, Stalin launched attack on Trotsky and his supporters by accusing them of 'factionalism', an act which saw the members expelled from the Politburo. Stalin's early life gives some indications of personality traits that came to surface during his rule. His role as General Secretary and position as editor of 'Pravda' gave Stalin easy access to personal information, allowing him to manipulate what was released and what wasn't. In 1926, Trotsky joined forces with Zinoviev and Kamenev, forming the 'United Opposition' or Left Opposition. Again, Stalin betrayed his faction by abandoning the NEP and attacking the Rightists, because Stalin realised a need for industrialisation, with an agrarian revolution as the catalyst. His position as editor of 'Pravda' allowed him to do so and being the only source of national news in Russia, people would naturally believe everything that they read.
Common topics in this essay:
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Acceptance Essays
