Joseph Stalin was the longterm Soviet Communist leader who retained power between 1929-1953 due to a variety of reasons, a number of which can be attributed to the appeal of Communism.

Stalin's intention in his industrial policiy was to transform the Soviet Union into a Superpower by equipping the country with a formidable industrial base. His aims were to catch up with Western industrial output and to give Russia a strong economy which would enable the country to equip and defend itself against foreign invasion. Stalin aimed to achieve this through a series of Five Year Plans.

Part of the appeal of Communism was the equality of the people. The Russian people liked the fact that the resources of the country were being used to help the people achieve equality with the West. Stalin used this to his advantage within his Five Year Plans, as it emphasised rapid industrialisation based on these principles. To some extent these policies were successful, in only ten years the Soviet Union had made up the fifty year difference between her and the West. For example: production expanded six-fold, her

In 1941 Germany invaded the Soviet Union, cutting short Stalin's third Five Year Plan. Living standards decreased dramatically, because by 1941 defence expenditure took over 32.6% of the total budget. The Nazis conquered huge areas of Soviet land very quickly. In response, Stalin ordered his people to destroy bridges, roads, crops, anything that the Nazis could use. This was known as the Scorched Earth policy, which caused a great amount of suffering to both the Nazis and the Russsian people. However, it did not stop the Nazis from reaching the outskirts of Moscow, and Leningrad did not fall. Military victories were attributed to Stalin, which reinforced his position as leader.

After the war, Stalin pushed with the 'Sovietisation' of Eastern Europe. By 1947 Bulgaria, Rumania, Poland, Hungary and Albania had communist governmentsin power (Czechoslovakia followed in 1948). So once again Stalin was helped by the appeal of Communism to retain his power as Soviet leader.

To a certain extent, the success of Stalin in retaining power in the Soviet Union was due to the appeal of Communism. However, there were other factors such as the purges, and Stalin being seen as Europe's saviour from Fashism. Therefore a variety of factors resulted in Stalin retainingpower between 1929 and 1953.

Untill 1941 Stalin retained power in the Soviet union due mostly to the appeal of Communism, and the terror of his purges. However, after this his support was

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