Deck 21: The Soviet Experiment to World War II

Question 1

What was the result of the out side intervention by Western governments in Russia's civil war?

A)The Bolsheviks were indignant at outside interference in a domestic issue.
B)The intervention led to a victory for the White army.
C)It increased support at home for the White army.
D)It was viewed as a partnership of convenience between Trotsky and Kerensky.
E)There was no real change because it came too late to help the White army.

Answer 1

The Bolsheviks were indignant at outside interference in a domestic issue.

Question 2

Throughout the Soviet Union's history, what was considered the major weakness of the economy?

A)military spending
B)industrial production
C)agricultural production
D)capital goods production
E)infrastructure construction

Answer 2

agricultural production

Question 3

What led to Russia adopting a constitution and elements of a  parliamentary  government?

A)the Revolution of 1905
B)the March Revolution of 1917
C)the October Revolution of 1917
D)the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
E)the Russian Civil War

Answer 3

the Revolution of 1905

Question 4

What was the purpose of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk?

A)A friendship treaty between Russia and the United States for mutual aid.
B)The treaty between Russia and the Central Powers that removed Russia from the war.
C)The treaty between the Red and White Russians for partition of the country.
D)A treaty among the communists to agree to work together for the betterment of Russia.
E)A treaty between England and France to continue the war against Russia.

Question 5

Which of the following statements was true of the post-Tsarist Provisional Government?

A)The Provisional Government prevented the farmers from sending food to the rebellious cities.
B)The Provisional Government tried to establish a separate peace with Germany.
C)The Provisional Government attacked the nobility and aristocracy.
D)The Provisional Government tried to continue the unpopular war effort.
E)The Provisional Government provided free food and basic necessities to all citizens.

Question 6

What was the crucial factor in the collapse of the Tsarist government in Russia?

A)A popular desire for liberation of the Russians by the Germans.
B)An eagerness by the peasants to be more aggressive in the war.
C)The disastrous and unpopular conduct of the war.
D)The refusal of the Americans to provide enough foreign aid.
E)The convincing argument by the communists that they could do better.

Question 7

What was a key factor in Lenin's establishment of a Bolshevik dictatorship?

A)The use of Marx's theory of agricultural collectivization.
B)The use of the Cheka and Soviet-sympathizing parts of the imperial army.
C)The use of rapid industrialization to increase consumer goods production.
D)The use of the New Economic Policy to take over the Russian economy.
E)The use of the Five-Year Plans to purge the Bolshevik Politburo.

Question 8

During Stalin's years of leadership, which of the following was a social change experienced in the Soviet Union?

A)A sharp decline in alcoholism.
B)A small decline in divorce and abortion rates.
C)All classes had to resort to theft to survive.
D)An increasing acceptance of prostitution.
E)An easing of moral restrictions.

Question 9

During the struggles for rule between the Bolsheviks and Provisional Government, what group's support was necessary for victory ?

A)the urban workers
B)the rural peasants
C)the armed forces
D)the monarchists
E)the aristocrats

Question 10

What was one of the major problems in the cities in Russia by the spring of 1917?

A)The overpopulation of cities due to dislocations associated with the war.
B)A lack of effective governmental oversight of the cities.
C)Bread riots due to a lack of availability of food.
D)The military declared martial law and tried to run the cities.
E)Foreigners provided free food so the Russians saw no reason to work.

Question 11

All of the following were part of the Stalin revolution EXCEPT

A)Championed Russia for the Russians.
B)Agrarian collectivization.
C)Rapid industrialization.
D)Show trials and purges of opposition.
E)Communist Party's control of the political process.

Question 12

What was the result of Stalin's coll ectivization and industrialization efforts in the 1930s?

A)Succeeded in helping the Soviet Union weather the post-war period without much inflation.
B)Made it possible for the Soviet Union to turn out large amounts of consumer goods that could be exported.
C)It resulted in the scarcity of automobiles and clothing, as well as rationing of food at times.
D)Were so harsh that even the stoic Russian people finally began to complain.
E)Turned out consumer goods rather than capital goods.

Question 13

What was the main purpose of collectivization under Stalin?

A)To provide more industrial workers.
B)To gain governmental control over Russia's millions of peasants.
C)To cut down on overpopulation by creating a false famine that killed about a million people.
D)To help Russia to industrialize in a very short time.
E)To become industrially competitive with Germany.

Question 14

How did Lenin, toward th e end of his life, view Stalin?

A)reliable
B)religious
C)righteous
D)reprehensible
E)rude

Question 15

As a result of a breakdown in the national government by the Bolsheviks, what action did Russian peasants take?

A)They took control of local governments.
B)They seized land from the nobles and the church, and redistributed it themselves.
C)They had served their term in the Marxist army, so they returned to their farms.
D)They sent monetary help to the resistance in St. Petersburg.
E)They fought off the royal army and thus retained their sovereignty.

Question 16

What was the essence of Lenin's New Economic Policy (NEP)?

A)The NEP was designed to consolidate all economic activity into state enterprises run by economic bureaucrats.
B)The NEP banned any economic activity not under the direct supervision of Lenin and his Politburo.
C)The NEP encouraged small-scale capitalist business and profit seekers while maintaining firm control by the Bolsheviks.
D)The NEP wanted to build on the economic momentum of the war and push Russia to the commanding heights of economic prosperity.
E)The NEP put the means of industrial production and health care under the control of central government planners.

Question 17

What form of government was Russia evolving toward in the 1920s?

A)true republic
B)strong democracy
C)economic oligarchy
D)totalitarian government
E)constitutional monarchy

Question 18

Lenin changed Marxism to fit the realities of Russia using all of the following EXCEPT

A)A full-time professional leadership supervising a conspiratorial, clandestine party.
B)A movement of peasants', not workers', discontent with the government could lead to revolutionary action.
C)A dictatorship of the Bolsheviks was necessary.
D)The small industrial class of Russia would rise in discontent, followed by the peasants.
E)The small group of the Central Committee and Lenin would rule Russia.

Question 19

What was the overall view regarding  Stalin's early years of rule?

A)Theft increased while concern about committing theft decreased.
B)Embezzlement and fraud was limited because people in a position to commit those acts had no need to do so.
C)Violent crimes decreased because of the oversight of the KGB.
D)Prostitution was rare because few had the funds to purchase such services.
E)The Soviet Union statistics showing a sharp decline in robberies and other theft were completely fabricated.

Question 20

What was the fundamental difference between Stalin's  communism  and Hitler's "national socialism"?

A)Stalin promoted the ideal of a better world for all the world's downtrodden while Hitler only championed the Germans.
B)Stalin was in favor of centralized economic government control and Hitler preferred economic liberty.
C)Stalin wanted freedom for the peasants and Hitler was in favor of freedom only for the upper classes.
D)Stalin crushed all political opposition while Hitler allowed opposition parties to exist in Germany.
E)Stalin opened up membership in the Communist Party to all citizens while Hitler preferred to keep the National Socialists to a ruling elite.

Question 21

____________________ was the term used by the Bolsheviks to describe rule at the point of a gun.

Question 22

What role did Stalin envision for the Comintern under the Five-Year Plans?

A)as an organ of Russian foreign policy
B)as a rival to the Politburo
C)as subordinate to the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
D)as an arm of the Soviet secret police
E)as the administrator of the gulags

Question 23

What is blamed for the death of 10 million peasants during Stalin's collectivization drive?

A)homelessness and starvation
B)hunger strikes in opposition of his plan
C)artificially induced famine
D)brutal banishment to Siberia
E)state-sponsored seizure of crops

Question 24

Which of the following was NOT considered a drawback to Soviet life?

A)religious persecution
B)low standards of living
C)cultural censorship
D)interference in private lives
E)the crime of theft

Question 25

All of the following were true of women's lives under Soviet rule EXCEPT

A)Soviet leaders did not really believe in equality for women.
B)Women held positions in the highest ranks of Stalin's inner circle.
C)Most Soviet women, by the late 1930s, worked outside the home.
D)Women's additional income was necessary for many Soviet families.
E)Women who bore many children were rewarded with cash and medals.

Question 26

The _ ___________________ were wealthier peasants whose estates were broken up by Soviet collectivization.

Question 27

A serious obstacle to labor efficiency and a drain on resources in Russia before, during, and after the revolution was the chronic problem of ____________________.

Question 28

All of the following were reasons the Reds were victorious in the Russian Civil War EXCEPT

A)far better organized and coordinated leadership
B)effective Red Army commander in Trotsky
C)control of St. Petersburg and Moscow
D)propaganda to rally the Russian people
E)military assistance from foreign powers

Question 29

In the 1920s through the early 1950s, the only real talent necessary for a successful Communist Party career was to be able to pretend to worship  ____________________.

Question 30

The ____________________ Revolution witnessed the mostly bloodless overthrow of Tsar Nicholas II.

Question 31

Which of the following was NOT a  social  problem that the Soviet Union addressed?

A)violent crimes
B)death rates and infant mortality
C)alcoholism
D)divorce
E)abortion rates

Question 32

What method did Stalin use to remove leading Communist Party members who opposed him?

A)New Economic Policy
B)Five-Year Plans
C)collectivization
D)show trials
E)War Communism

Question 33

Why was there no real opposition to the M arch Revolution in Russia?

A)Alexander Kerensky spoke in Moscow and called for the people to rebel.
B)Tsar Nicholas II abdicated his throne.
C)Vladimir Lenin returned to Russia.
D)Leon Trotsky took control of the military.
E)Russia and Germany signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

Question 34

Stalin's call for hundreds of thousands of Russian citizens to be arrested for crimes against the state and sentenced to prison was called  ____________________.

Question 35

____________________ chaired the St. Petersburg Soviet and became Lenin's second-in-command.

Question 36

What was considered a by-product of the forced industrialization and modernization of the Five-Year Plans?

A)improved and expanded housing
B)mass educational facilities
C)a decisive voice in public affairs
D)security of life and property against the state
E)improvements in their working conditions

Question 37

The ____________________ armies were massed against the Soviet regime during the Russian Civil War.

Question 38

What group constructed much of the Soviet infrastructure?

A)Orthodox priests
B)peasants and landowners
C)slave laborers
D)former aristocrats
E)church officials

Question 39

When other countries tried to influence the Russian Revolution, Soviet propaganda used the issue of ____________________ intervention to great advantage during the Russian Civil War.

Question 40

The Central Powers and Russia signed the  ____________________  in 1918 to end Russia's participation in World War I.​

Question 41

Term for identification: show trials

Question 42

What did "discipline" mean under Stalinist rule from 1928 to 1941? Explain Stalin's reaction to opposition and the effects on the Russian people.

Question 43

Term for identification: Cheka

Question 44

Trace the development of the revolution in 1917 and the Civil War in Russia. Explain the role of Lenin in each of these events.

Question 45

Term for identification: Vladimir Lenin

Question 46

Term for identification: Treaty of Brest-Litovsk

Question 47

Term for identification: Provisional Government

Question 48

Term for identification: Leon Trotsky

Question 49

Evaluate St alin's agrarian and industrial economic policies. To what degree did he succeed in achieving his anticipated goals? Defend your answer with examples.

Question 50

Term for identification: New Economic Policy (NEP)

Question 51

Term for identification: Josef Stalin

Question 52

Term for identification: March Revolution

Question 53

Describe and explain the emergence of Josef Stalin as a leader from the power struggles after Lenin's death to the undisputed master of the Soviet Union and his consistent challenges.

Question 54

Compare an d contrast Lenin and Stalin. Which of the two was best for Russia at the time? Defend your answer with examples.

Question 55

Term for identification: October Revolution

Question 56

​Describe the strengths and weaknesses of Soviet rule and the impact that rule had on the material and social welfare. Was Soviet rule a "savior" of the Russian people? Did life for the average Russian improve under Soviet rule? Defend your answer with examples.