Josef Stalin (1879-1953)
Josef Stalin was a cruel dictator from the Soviet Union. Some of his major accomplishments during his reign of power were the making of Gulags, his deal with Hitler and the complete takeover of the Soviet Union. He died on March 5, 1953 at the age of 74 in Moscow of a brain hemmorage. After his death, many leaders argued over who would take over the Soviet empire. For many years this battle for power raged on and on, until the Soviet Union collapsed. There was really no ruler after Stalins' death.
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Stalin's Childhood
He was born on December 18, 1878 in Gori, Georgia, of the Russian Empire. When Stalin was a child, he caught smallpox, then recovered, but this left him with many pox marks on his face. During his childhood he broke his arm several times. There are reports that one arm was shorter than the other. Later in his life his mom sent him to study to become a priest. He never finished his studies and instead started illegal activities, like giving out illegal literature. Some say his harsh spirit was created due to severe beatings from his father.
Josef Stalin as a kid.
Stalin's Accomplishments
The Gulags
One of Stalin's accomplishments where the Gulags, places that were similar to concentration camps in WWII. People were often sent to do work labor and killed on the spot. Seventy percent of the time, the people were arrested for something they did not do. Many times he would send his troops into a city, and if the people were not happy to see him, they were killed. He would often have people arrested for no reason just because he needed more people to work in the Gulags. Most of the time you died of exhaustion, not from being shot and killed.
Industrialization
War had a drastic effect on the Russian economy; industrial output in 1922 was 13% of the output in 1914. Luckily, a new economic plan went in to effect and the economy recovered. Stalin soon replaced it with "Five-Year Plans" in the late 1920s. The plans were going to quickly industrialize the Soviet Union and control agriculture. The way Stalin financed these plans was to cut back the pay of his citizens. In turn, workers pay dropped about 10% in 1933 compared to 1926. They also started using unpaid labor of both common and political prisoners in labor camps. Regardless of early failures, two of the plans worked. Some historians agree that the economy in the Soviet Union grew under Stalin's reign. It is also said that these plans modernized the Soviet Union.
Josef Stalin.
Josef Stalin's Interest
Although Josef Stalin was an evil dictator, he did have a soft side for folk music. His favorite folk instrument was the Domra. The Domra is a triangular instrument that is similar to the guitar, but is played with the bare hands.