Why did no one stand up to stalin. Most of his inner circle wanted him gone anyway?
Because he held the reins of power. He was very suspicious to the point of being paranoid. How else do you explain his purges in the 1930's. Besides wiping out anyone in the government who might even think of opposing him he took out most of the senior officer corps just because the German Ambassador presented him with a document saying they were bad. I mean how stupid can a person be, wipe out your officer corps because your worst enemy tells you to.
Who were the specific members of Stalin's Inner Circle?
Stalin was a creature of necessity, not of sentiment. Members of his inner circle changed, as they were no longer needed: Bukharin was a very close aide of Stalin - they were good friends, dining and holidaying together with their families. Stalin had Bukharin shot when he was no longer needed. Similarly, Grigory, known as Sergo, Ordzhonikidze was very close to Stalin: they were both veteran Georgian Bolsheviks. Ordzhonikidze may have committed suicide, Khrushchev thought he did, as a result of beginning to fall out of favour with Stalin Veterans from the Caucasus and allies from the Civil War were, mostly, protected, by Stalin. Semyon Budyonny, was a first rate cavalry commander, but a very poor modern war general, who, nevertheless, remained close to Stalin, even after he was blamed for the disastrous encirclement of Soviet armies during the battle of Kiev. However, he was only promoted sideways, and was allowed to retire as a Marshall of the Soviet Union. Yezhov, perhaps, demonstrates the ideal person for Stalin's inner circle. He was a gifted and energetic administrator, with a phenomenal memory, and was a hard working, pleasant (surprisingly for such a monster), and sociable young man. But, most importantly, he understood the system, how to act in word and deed. He wrote reports that followed the preferred style perfectly, full of modesty, self-criticism and plans for action; he sought out solutions, rather than deferring to endless committees and waiting on reports. He applied this energy and dedication to whatever task he was given, even when he became NKVD chief in charge of overseeing the bloodletting of the Great Purge. However, when his usefulness was over, he too was cast aside and shot. The most trusted aide was Vyacheslav Molotov, who even divorced his wife, Polina, when she was arrested during the Great Purge, Molotov remained a dedicated Stalinist, defending him until his dying day.
Who was worse and why: Hitler or Stalin?
You know what?To say the least, Hitler had the heart of a human being,Stalin, most probably had a block of stone in his chest.Hitler had feelings.He had an admiration for art.This piece of art above is attributed to the Fuhrer.25 Rarely Seen Artworks Painted By Adolf HitlerHitler trusted people.6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust.Do you know that Hitler’s most trusted family physician was an Austrian Jew himself?Hitler awarded Bloch special protection after the Nazi annexation of Austria.Eduard Bloch - WikipediaHitler knew love.The Day Hitler Died: A Love Story Buried Under All The Evil & TyrannyHe had promised to marry Eva Braun when the things settled. But things never settled for The Leader. The only option left for him was to do away with himself than to face defeat and disgrace.Even at such a time, he fulfilled his promise. The promise of an honest marriage.The last thing the Fuhrer of Nazi Germany did before suicide was to marry his love Eva Braun.Sounds strange, but that’s a fact.I bet you will never find Stalin in a ‘family photograph’ like this.Stalin despised his own kids.Stalin made life hell for his own kith and kin.Stalin’s forcefully married a lady, Nadezhda Alliluyeva. Their marriage was strained, and the two argued frequently.On 9 November 1932, after a public spat with Stalin at a party dinner, Nadezhda shot herself in her bedroom.There is another incident portraying Stalin’s relationship with his eldest son, Yakov Dzhugashvili.He was so tired of Stalin that he, too tried to do away with his own life. He missed the shot and did not die. He was rushed to the hospital and Stalin was informed of the matter.You know what Stalin said at the sight of his son,"He can't even shoot straight".In 1941, Stalin’s son Yakov was captured by the Nazis. Hitler could have ordered to kill him instantly knowing the fact that he was the son of his sworn enemy.Hitler did not.He offered Stalin his back in exchange of the captured German Field Marshal, Friedrich Paulus, thus showing some concern for Yakov as well as Paulus.To this offer Stalin is known for his reply,"I will not trade a Marshal for a Lieutenant."As rulers, both were evil.As humans, Stalin was more.Thanks for reading.Mahesh Sharma
Why did Stalin purge his generals and most of his old allies?
Well, to answer the specific question (why did Stalin purge the Generals) we need to address the general (why did Stalin purge anyone).So for most of the 1920s, Stalin slowly built up his power base as General Secretary and pitted his rivals against each other, resulting in Trostky leaving the Soviet Union and his other rivals retiring. By 1930, Stalin was the undisputed master of the USSR.In the early 1930s, Stalin began the first of his 5 year plans aimed at breaking the kulaks, a class of fairly wealthy landowners created under the NEP policies of Lenin. Stalin wanted to collectivise farms, and it was mostly a disaster, resulting in a massive famine in the Ukraine called the Holodomor. In 1936, a Leningrad Communist Party Boss by the name of Sergei Kirov was murdered outside the Party HQ in Leningrad. Historians today agree that Stalin likely ordered his murder.In any event, Kirov was technically a friend of Stalin's, and he vowed to find his killer. This created a wild goose chase of arrests, accusations, counter accusations, and show trials over the next two years. The Party was the first to get purged. Anyone and everyone was tried, and executed. Most were accused of sabotage and conspiracy against the Soviet Union.The Red Army was tried specifically because Trotsky created the Red Army during the Civil War and it was believed they had connexions with him. Three of the five Marshals, thirteen of fifteen army commanders, eight of nine admirals, fifty of fifty-seven corps commanders, one-hundred and fifty-four of one-hundred and eighty-seven division commanders, and sixteen army commissars, and twenty-five of twenty-eight corps commissars were purged, along with almost 7% of the rest of the Red Army.
Who was more evil, Hitler or Stalin?
We are going into an in-depth study of World War 2 in our History class. We are currently talking about the tactics of Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler. I know Russia fought with the Allies, while Hitler, along with Germany, fought on the Axis of Evil. But Stalin also murdered many of his people. Maybe even more Jews than Hitler killed, but I don't know that for a fact. Anyway, my question: Please tell me who you think is the more evil person of the two. And please leave a little note why. Just wondering, and please no pointless or racist comments. I really am interested to hear what you say!
How did a single country, Germany almost take over the world in ww2?
With all the allies in ww2 how could a single country possibly win the war? It's hard to fathom. Besides having the best military they obviously lacked man power