Why did it take so long for Stalin to emerge as leader of the USSR?
Marxism as a philosophy was never likely to create a united party under one leader.
Marx had been vague over the issues of:
Policy:
He never provided a strict timescale or method for the realisation of communism
So many different interpretations
Power:
The whole concept of a “single leader” ran counter to communist theory
So difficult for anyone to take control.
In practice, the Bolshevik party was therefore never united.
Policy: Lots of different ideas from different figures:
(a) General points:
Trotsky
only joined in August 1917 after being a Menshevik
Bukharin
had come out in violent opposition to the Brest-Litovsk Treaty (which was only ratified by the Politburo when Lenin threatened his resignation)
Stalin
had treated national minorities in what Lenin thought was a brutal fashion and had insulted Lenin’s wife
Zinoviev and Kamenev
had questioned the wisdom of Lenin’s decision to launch a revolution in 1917
(b) Economic points:
War Communism
– supported by Trotsky and the “Platform of 46” - is ideologically sound, but politically disastrous – leading to famine and near economic collapse.
NEP
– supported by Bukharin – is politically pragmatic, but therefore ideologically more suspect (“the first sign of the degeneration of Bolshevism” – Trotsky).
(c) Results
Ban on internal party factions by Lenin (1922)
prevented these divisions from being openly debated and resolved, making it even less likely that a clear successor could emerge after Lenin’s death.
Key Quote
“Lenin tried his best to keep the two wings of the party together by refusing to make clear whether the NEP was a short-term tactical retreat or represented a radical rethinking of communism, but this merely postponed rather than avoided internal party conflict” (RJT).
Power: Lenin’s idea of a “dedicated revolutionary elite” was frowned on by Democratic Centralists and Workers' Opposition. So his Testament calls for an expansion of the CC to dilute the influence of key individuals, each of whom he suggested was unable to rule alone:
Trotsky
“He has displayed excessive self-assurance and shown preoccupation with the purely administrative side of the work”
Only joined party in 1917
Feared by many as being Bonapartist
Kamenev and Zinoviev
“The October episode with Zinoviev and Kamenev was, of course, no accident…”
Bukharin
“his theoretical views can be classified as fully Marxist only with great reserve, for there is something scholastic about him (he has never made a study of dialectics and, I think, never fully understood it).”
As a result the Politburo choose to ‘bury’ the document altogether and the issue of a succession is left hanging in the air
So, when Lenin died, both power and policy in the party was evenly split, making it difficult for a leader to emerge.
Stalin was General Secretary, and but in itself this was not enough to seize control.
Left
Policy
“Massive industrialisation and collectivisation to accelerate World Revolution”
Power Bases
Trotsky –Minister of War
Zinoviev – Chairman of Petrograd Soviet
Kamenev – Chair of Moscow Soviet
Right
Policy
“Moderate industrialisation and agricultural reform to secure Socialism in one Country”
Power Bases
Bukharin – Editor of Pravda
Rykov – Chair of Sovnarkom
Tomsky – Trade Union Chief
Moreover, Stalin deliberately sank into the shadows, playing a clever waiting game rather than rush into a seizure of power.
None of them regard Stalin as a worthy successor
to Trotsky he was a “Grey Blur…the party’s most eminent mediocrity”
Uses posts of General Secretary and Commissar for nationalities to appoint people to key positions
e.g. Molotov, Kaganovich, Mikoyan
Does not rush his game, but methodically plays each side off against the other:
Destroys Trotsky – using Kamenev and Zinoviev
Destroys Kamenev and Zinoviev – using Bukharin
Destroys Bukharin – using the party apparatus
Only when it was too late did Bukharin recognise the threat posed by Stalin
("[Stalin is] an unprincipled intriguer who subordinates everything to his appetite for power. At any given moment he will change his theories in order to get rid of someone").