Chapter 14 - Industrial and social developments in towns and cities 1929-1941

Question 1

When was the first 5YP launched?

Answer 1

1928

Question 2

When was the Dnieprostroi Dam completed?

Answer 2

1932

Question 3

When was the second 5YP launched?

Answer 3

1933

Question 4

When was new emphasis placed on armaments production?

Answer 4

1936

Question 5

When was the Moscow-Volga Canal completed?

Answer 5

1937

Question 6

When was the third 5YP launched?

Answer 6

1938

Question 7

What doubled in 1940?

Answer 7

Armaments spending

Question 8

What/who organised the Five Year Plans?

Answer 8

Gosplan (the State Planning Agency)

Question 9

What did Gosplan do?

Answer 9

Drew up plans and set output targets for each economic enterprise in accordance with Party directives

Question 10

Why were Gosplan’s targets usually very ambitious?

Answer 10

If Party leaders didn’t consider them ambitious enough, they would be revised upwards

Question 11

Why was the process of setting targets for the 5YP’s difficult?

Answer 11

Gosplan did not have reliable statistics about the economy (especially imports and possible exports) to base them on

Question 12

Why did enterprises falsify their production figures?

Answer 12

There were severe punishments for missing targets
Overambitious planning assumptions never got corrected

Question 13

What did Regional Party bosses compete for?

Answer 13

For their regions to be given the most resources and assigned the most prestigious new projects

Question 14

Aims of the first 5YP

Answer 14

• Develop heavy industry
• Boost electricity production
• Double the output from light industry e.g. chemicals

Question 15

Successes of the first 5YP

Answer 15

• Electricity output tripled
• Coal and iron output doubled
• Steel production increased by 1/3

Question 16

Limitations of the first 5YP

Answer 16

• None of the extremely ambitious targets were met
• Improvements in the chemical industry lagged behind
• Consumer industries were badly neglected

Question 17

Aims of the second 5YP

Answer 17

• Continue the growth of heavy industry
• Boost light industry: chemicals, electricals, consumer goods
• Develop communications
• Foster engineering

Question 18

Successes of the second 5YP

Answer 18

• Some large-scale communication projects
• Rapid growth in electricity production and chemicals
• New metals (e.g. copper and tin) mined for the first time
• Steel output tripled
• Coal production doubled
• The USSR was self-sufficient in metal goods and machine tools by 1937

Question 19

Limitations of the second 5YP

Answer 19

• Oil production failed to meet its targets
• Consumers were still very short of some products
• Quantity increased but quality still tended to be very low

Question 20

Aims of the third 5YP

Answer 20

• Renewed emphasis on heavy industry
• Promote rapid rearmament
• Complete the transition to communism

Question 21

Successes of the third 5YP

Answer 21

• Some strong growth in machinery and engineering
• Defence industries developed exceptional models e.g. the T-34 tank
• Spending on rearmament doubled 1938-40

Question 22

Limitations of the third 5YP

Answer 22

• Other areas stagnated after defense was prioritised
• Oil production failed to meet targets, causing a fuel crisis
• Lack of specialists due to Stalin’s purges
• The German invasion of 1941 disrupted the Plan, causing it to end early

Question 23

What was a fundamental problem with the plans?

Answer 23

Stalin’s increasingly authoritarian and repressive regime, where any criticism of the system was likely to be viewed as treason

Question 24

What happened during the first 5YP?

Answer 24

The 1929 Wall Street Crash

Question 25

What world event impacted all of the 5YP's?

Answer 25

The Great Depression 1929-39

Question 26

The Dnieprostroi Dam

Answer 26

A dam generating hydro-electric power, built on the Dnieper river in Ukraine

Question 27

When was the Dnieprostroi Dam constructed?

Answer 27

Between 1927 and 1932

Question 28

Why was the Dnieprostroi Dam significant?

Answer 28

One of the largest power stations in the world at the time

Question 29

How did the Dam impact Soviet electricity?

Answer 29

Increased Soviet electric power by 500% after 5 extra generators were installed in the second 5YP

Question 30

What did the Dam power?

Answer 30

Aluminium and steel production in new nearby industrial cities

Question 31

When was the Moscow Metro constructed?

Answer 31

1932-1937 A project of the second 5YP

Question 32

What was the significance of the Metro?

Answer 32

The first underground railway system in the USSR Aimed to showcase the achievements of the socialist state, with chandeliers, marble walls and intricate mosaics

Question 33

What was the purpose of the Metro?

Answer 33

Designed to help Moscow deal with rapid industrialisation as peasants moved from the countryside to the city

Question 34

When was the Moscow-Volga Canal constructed?

Answer 34

1932-37

Question 35

The Moscow-Volga Canal

Answer 35

A 128km canal connecting the Moskva River to the Volga River

Question 36

Who built the Moscow-Volga canal?

Answer 36

~200,000 prisoners from the Dmitlag labour camp ~22,000 died

Question 37

What was Magnitogorsk?

Answer 37

A gigantic steel plant and town of 150,000 people, purpose-built in the Urals, away from the USSR's western borders

Question 38

What was Komsomolsk?

Answer 38

A heavy plant and several shipyards in east Russia, built to open up this area to development

Question 39

How was Komsomolsk built?

Answer 39

Constructed by volunteer labour from the Komsomol and prison camp labour

Question 40

What was the Komsomol?

Answer 40

The Communist youth organisation

Question 41

Why were foreign companies recruited to help with industrial development?

Answer 41

To provide the expertise needed to develop new industries, and to plan and construct the new industrial centres and showpiece projects

Question 42

How were foreign companies involved in the construction of the Moscow Metro?

Answer 42

The Metro was designed by British specialists recruited from the London Underground

Question 43

How were foreign companies involved in the car industry?

Answer 43

Henry Ford advised the USSR, trained Soviet engineers in the USA, and helped to design the car-plant at Gorky

Question 44

How were foreign companies involved in the construction of the Dnieprostroi Dam?

Answer 44

The project used experience from Canadian and US engineers 6 American engineers were awarded the 'Order of the Red Banner of Labour' in recognition of their 'outstanding work'

Question 45

What attracted Westerners to work in the USSR?

Answer 45

The relatively high wages and prestige of working on the mega-projects (especially during the Great Depression)

Question 46

What are two examples of the dangers of working in the USSR as a Westerner?

Answer 46

1. The secret police arrested several British engineers working on the Moscow Metro on suspicions of spying; the OGPU was concerned about their detailed knowledge of Moscow's geography 2. Engineers for the Metropolitan-Vickers Electrical Company were given a show trial and deported in 1933 (end of the role of British business in the USSR)

Question 47

Who were Stakhanovites?

Answer 47

Workers who exceeded their targets and were held up as examples for others to follow

Question 48

Who were the Stakanovites named after?

Answer 48

Aleksei Stakhanov, a coal miner who exceeded his mining target by a huge amount He was declared a Soviet hero and rewarded with a bonus and awards

Question 49

Why were Stakhanovites not always popular with managers?

Answer 49

Their efforts meant production targets were raised

Question 50

What was the Stakhanovite movement?

Answer 50

A propaganda campaign based on improving worker productivity for the good of the USSR, not individual gain

Question 51

Why were Stakhanovites not always popular with other workers?

Answer 51

They made them look bad and meant higher targets

Question 52

How did the Party react to Stakhanov?

Answer 52

It promoted the Stakhanovite movement and introduced Stakhanovite competitions in different industries Stakhanovites recieved material benefits from their employers

Question 53

What was revealed about Stakhanov in 1988?

Answer 53

His original heroic effort had been stage-managed and several others had helped him achieve his target

Question 54

What could happen if managers tried to reduce the pressure on their workers?

Answer 54

They could be accused of wrecking (sabotage)

Question 55

What happened if managers exceeded their targets?

Answer 55

They received a bonus

Question 56

What happened if managers failed to meet their targets?

Answer 56

They could be put on trial, imprisoned or executed

Question 57

What changed for managers in 1936?

Answer 57

Factories had to pay for their own materials, labour and fuel out of profits from sales Led to careful (creative) accounting Bribery and corruption widespread within the system

Question 58

What were managers responsible for applying in the workplace?

Answer 58

State regulation, e.g. regarding work norms and absenteeism These weren't popular with workers and led to protests

Question 59

What percentage of the workforce was female by 1940?

Answer 59

43%

Question 60

What allowed mothers to work?

Answer 60

State provision of nurseries, creches and child clinics

Question 61

What caused women to enter the workforce

Answer 61

Price increases meant they needed to help earn the income needed to sustain their families

Question 62

What effect did the second 5YP have on female employment?

Answer 62

The Party ordered managers to employ more women in heavy industry Managers continued to give the best-paid, highest-skilled jobs to men and were reluctant to allow women to get training to improve their skills

Question 63

How much did women earn in comparison to men in 1940?

Answer 63

Around 40% less

Question 64

What were the working hours brought in to achieve the first 5YP?

Answer 64

long working hours, 6+ days a week

Question 65

What were labour books?

Answer 65

Books that, from 1938, recorded workers' employment, skills and any disciplinary issues

Question 66

When did absenteeism become a crime?

Answer 66

1940

Question 67

What could absenteeism result in?

Answer 67

Dismissal, eviction from housing and loss of benefits

Question 68

When did measures to toughen up on absenteeism appear?

Answer 68

1930-33

Question 69

What was illegal/a criminal offence in the workplace?

Answer 69

ILLEGAL: Strikes CRIMINAL OFFENCE: Damaging machinery Leaving work without permission

Question 70

Where did most city workers live?

Answer 70

Crowded communal appartments with few amenities and little privacy

Question 71

What effect did Stalin's purges have on workers?

Answer 71

The purges removed white-collar workers and intellectuals, creating opportunities for workers to advance their careers

Question 72

How did wages change in 1931?

Answer 72

Wage differentials were introduced that meant that those who worked hard over long hours were rewarded for their efforts

Question 73

Four ways some workers benefitted

Answer 73

- Far more opportunities for progression than under tsarism - Training programmes widely available to improve skills - Wage differentials - Wage increases after the second 5YP

Question 74

How did the Soviet economy grow between 1928 and 1940?

Answer 74

5-6% per year An impressive result, especially in the context of a global recession

Question 75

5 successes of the 5YP's

Answer 75

- The growth of the economy - The USSR became a major industrial power - Heavy industry showed impressive growth and light industry started to deliver more consumer goods - They created opportunities for ordinary workers to develop new skills and progress in their careers, increasingly for women as well as men - They fostered a sense of pride in the communist system and what it could achieve

Question 76

What were the social downsides of the 5YP's?

Answer 76

- Deteriorating living conditions - Working conditions that were dominated by strict labour discipline

Question 77

What was the effect of fear of missing targets?

Answer 77

It created an environment of bribery and corruption, and a focus on quantity rather than quality

Question 78

What were the downsides of the labour used to achieve the 5YP's?

Answer 78

- Used prison camp labour - Collective farms were paid very low prices for very high quotas of grain (even in times of food shortage and famine)