The Cult of Stalin

Just as the tsar had been known as the ‘Little Father’, Stalin's personality was separated from any errors or bad decisions. Stalin wanted to be praised and adored. A cult of personality developed in the USSR.

Why was there a cult?

Stalin was presented as a wise leader who cared about the concerns of ordinary people.
Creating a cult of personality around Stalin also enabled the leadership of the party to exploit the Russian people’s religious sensibilities.
Problems in society could now be blamed on ‘class enemies’ rather than the leadership of the nation.

A true leader

The cult put Stalin above all critique by the Russian population. He was the only person who could deliver true leadership to the people.
Stalin was also presented as the new Lenin, someone who could take the ‘cult of Lenin’ to new heights.
- He was called the ‘Leader, Teacher and Friend’ of the Soviet Union.

Stalin's transcendent role

He was presented as a genius who understood communism and its politics in a way that no-one else could. He never used the word Stalinism, he was merely a servant of Marxist-Leninism.
Stalin was depicted as working alongside factories, farms and workers. This made him seem close to the people.
He was often surrounded by the Russian youth in propaganda, applauded by workers and gazed at lovingly.

1The Leadership Struggle, 1924-1929

1.1Struggle for Power 1924-28

1.1.1Stalin & his Rivals

1.1.2The End of Lenin & Stalin

1.1.3Stalin & the Communist Party

2Five Year Plans & Collectivisation

2.1Changes in Industry

2.1.1Industrialisation & Gosplan

2.2Agriculture & Collectivisation

2.2.1Five Year Plans & Grain Hoarding

2.2.2Collectivisation

2.2.3Kulaks

3Purges, Show Trials & The Cult of Stalin

3.1The Use of Terror in the 1930s

3.1.1Purges

3.1.2NKVD

3.1.3Show Trials

3.1.4Labour Camps

3.2Propaganda & Censorship

3.2.1Art & Religion Under Stalin

3.2.2Media & the Cult of Stalin

3.2.3The Cult of Stalin

3.2.4History

4Life in the Soviet Union, 1924-1941

4.1Life in the Soviet Union

4.1.1Living Conditions & Ethnic Minorities in the USSR

5The Second World War, 1941-1953

5.1USSR in the War

5.1.11941-1942

5.1.21943-1945

5.2Stalin & WW2

5.2.1Stalin's Popularity

5.2.2Post-War Consolidation

5.3Post-War Recovery

5.3.1Economic Recovery

5.3.2The USSR by 1953

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