Soviet Union
How the Treaty of Versailles impacted them:
Because of the Treaty of Versailles, Ukraine and Azerbaijan were annexed from the Soviet Union in 1920. In the following year, 1921, Armenia, Georgia and Belarus were annexed from the Soviet Union.
Types of government in the interwar years(1919-1938):
In 1917, the Soviet Union became the first totalitarian state after World War I. It was led by Vladimir Lenin until he died in 1924. Once Stalin came to power, he got rid of the totalitarian ideas and created a system that dictated everything from the locations of factories to how the famers should plant crops. He believed that heavy industry would be the foundation of the Soviet Union. Stalin also created farms owned and operated by the government, in a policy called collectivization. In collectivization, peasants would pool their land. The Central Purge Commission was created in 1933. It publicly investigated and tried members of the Communist Party for treason.
How their leader, that led them throughout WWII, came to power:
Vladimir Lenin led the Soviet Union until he died in 1924. Many believed that Leon Trotsky should be the successor of Lenin, but Joseph Stalin received the spot because he was in the position of general security at the time. Stalin also sent a worker to follow Trotsky around once he left the country, and killed him in Mexico.
How this leader change their country(for the better and worse) prior to WWII:
Stalin had tanks and guns made before food, housing, and other consumer goods. He had to build up the economy and modernize the military. Millions of people died from starvation and overworking.
The goals of the leader:
Stalin wanted the Soviet Union to be a major world player. After World War II he wanted all Soviet Union citizens back in the country. His only competition with mass murdering was Hitler.
The military strategy of this country in the inter-war years(1919-1938):
The military of the Soviet Union was known as the Red Army. It was created on January 28, 1918. All male citizens of the Russian Republic who were over 18 could join.
The role they played in WWII:
Germany hated the Communist Russians. The Soviet Union used the beginning of World War II for territory gains. In 1939 the Soviets invaded Poland after they and the Germans signed a secret non-aggressive act about splitting Poland. They invaded Finland in 1939, and Finland surrendered in 1940, then attacked the Baltic states the same year. A neutrality act was signed between the Soviet Union and Japan in 1941. On June 22, 1941 Germany invaded Russia and started Operation Barbarossa. Following the invasion, Italy, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Finland all declared war on them. In October 1941 the United States began the Lend-Lease Act with the Soviet Union. Over 90,000 German troops surrendered to Soviets in January 1943. In the years following the Soviets took over areas such as Minsk, Estonia, Vienna, Warsaw and Berlin. Stalin then broke the pact with Japan and invaded them.
Their allies in WWII:
Early in the war the Soviet Union was allies with Germany. Once Germany turned on them, the Soviets looked for help from Great Britain and the United States. The four big allied powers in the world were Great Britain, United States, Soviet Union and France.
How WWII impacted/effected the country:
The Soviet Union was one of the world’s two superpowers and stayed that way for four decades. It was a great force because of its military strength, economic strength, aid to developing countries, and scientific research. They established multiple communist states. The Soviet Union came to an end in 1991.
I chose the Soviet Union as my topic because I thought it would be interesting to research, and mostly because it wanted to say I was doing my history research on a country that no longer exists. I found it challenging to find even bits and pieces of the information I needed to the Soviet Union, and it shocked me! This time I used Bing AND Google, so I know that’s not why. I guess my information was limited because I didn’t have Germany, but I always heard a lot about the Soviet Union when learning about World War II before so it was no doubt surprising. I did learn quite a bit of information from this, and that’s what I was going for. Even though my blog isn’t extremely informative like I was going for, I got a better grasp of the Soviet Union’s role during, before, and after World War II. I love this time period, so I can’t wait to hear about the other countries during blog discussions!
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