The document outlines the Soviet Union's political purges between 1936 and 1938, detailing the show trials, mass terror events like the Yezhovshchina, and the elimination of political rivals, which included millions of arrests and executions. It discusses the roles of various political figures and the mechanisms of terror used by the NKVD to establish Stalin's control. Interpretations of the purges suggest a lack of a master plan from Stalin, as they were driven by his personality and a desire to eliminate potential rivals.

2. 1936-1938 – The Show Trials:
1932-1935 – The Chistka: 20% of resulting in the elimination of the
the party expelled non-violently Old Bolsheviks and securing of
Stalin’s position
1937-1938 – The Yezhovshchina:
named after the head of the
NKVD, period of mass terror
when thousands of party
members, state officials, armed
forces were denounced, arrested
and imprisoned or executed.

3. Politicians Specialists Comrades Others
Senior party Senior military
NKVD operatives Relatives of victims
members officers
Party and state Engineers, scientists Industrial workers Artists, priests,
leaders and managers and peasants Mensheviks and SRs

4. Wheatcroft and Davies
Volkogonov
Conquest
• 7-8 million • 7 million • 10 million
arrests executions died 1927-
• 1-1.5 million 1929-1953 1938
executions • 16.5 million • 8.5 million
• 7-8 million in imprisoned died up to
Gulag 1936, mostly
from famine

6. Ryutin Platform Suicide of Nadezda Allilueva
17th Party Congress Murder of Kirov
Show Trial of Zinoviev and Kamenev Yezhov appointed head of NKVD
2nd Show Trial: Radek and Pyatakov Red Army Purge: Tukhachevsky shot
3rd Show Trial:Rykov and Bukharin Beria replaced Yezhov 18th Congress – “the end”

7. Interpretations of the Purges
Totalitarian Revisionist
View View
Orders passed down to NKVD divided and acted on
NKVD own initiative
Terror generated from
Used to control populace
below also
Used to control party and Stalin not in personal control
remove potential rivals of process
Stalin the architect driven by No masterplan from Stalin
own personality but he set it in progress