Stalin's Leadership

Stalin’s leadership was the most significant reason for the Soviet victory over Germany in the 1941-1945 war?
Assess the validity of this view (45 marks) The naivety of the Nazi conquering force and the sheer size of Russia and the recourses it had at its disposal played a far more significant role in determining the outcome of the war than the dictatorial leadership employed by Stalin.
Stalin’s commitment to expand and modernise Russia’s industry prior to 1941, established the Soviet power base capable of defeating the Germans in the 1941-45 war. Stalin’s mass industrialisation through his Five Year Plans provided Russia with the capabilities to withstand the strain on its industry during the war. In the third Five Year Plan (that was
Russia’s heavy industry was predominately located in the South and the East of the country, where they were at most danger from advances to their West. This came in the form of the German Blitzkrieg attack of 1941. By November of that year Germany occupied an area encompassing two-thirds of the Soviet population and one-third of its labour force, in addition to well over half of its big industry and industrial capacity, which included heavy industry and weapon production. Whilst efforts were made in 1942 to relocate factories away from the advances to their western front, production in key areas such as coal, steel and oil was relatively low. The factories which relocated produced comparatively low output and by the end of 1942 Soviet productive capabilities were only 68% of pre-war levels. Stalin’s poor strategic management of Russia’s industry was not fully exploited by Hitler who delayed in switching the German economy to War-time production until 1942. There is no doubt that this was a major failure on the part of the Nazis and their ability to facilitate the war in
The restriction of the media and increased censorship, such as the confiscation of radios, facilitated Stalin’s dictatorial ambitions of control. The Russian media was compelled into giving false information on the outcome of the war including exaggerating German losses. In this way Stalin prevented a potential social upheaval against his regime on the back of the millions of Russians who had died. The NVKD further consolidated Stalin’s dominance in Russia playing a vital role in rounding up those who were opposed to the Soviet regime. These were known as the ‘Fifth Column’ who sent dissenters into exile or simply shoot those who resisted. The ‘total control’ imposed by Stalin restricted any anti-war movements in Russia. Without the restriction of the media and the regulation of the Russian people, a social uprising against the failures of the regime on the Western Front may have been