The Great Purge
Bekzat Zhanybaev
In 1937, during Joseph Stalin’s rule in the Soviet Union, a period known as the Great Terror began. It was a time of extreme cruelty, where many people suffered from the government’s indifference to human life. Stalin and his government attacked or criticized anyone they saw as potential opponents, even within their own party. Many were arrested, killed, or forced to work against their will in harsh conditions. This terrible time left deep scars on Soviet society for many years. It was a dark period, full of suffering and injustice, which will be remembered with heavy hearts for a long time. If you imagine the data about mass arrests and executions in Stalin’s USSR as a graph, it would show peaks during certain periods. This shows that while state terror was present throughout Stalin’s rule, there were times when it was particularly intense and cruel. One such period was the “Great Terror” of 1937-1938, when repression reached its peak and many became victims of political killings and unchecked power.
The Great Purge in the Soviet Union is one of the darkest moments in the country’s history. According to the “Stalin’s claws” by Hooton this period was in 1937-1938 and it was characterized by mass arrests and beheading of people. And Wikipedia says that over 1.6 millions people have been arrested , and more than 680.00 of them have been killed. On average, about 100,000 people were arrested every month, and more than 40,000 of them were executed. These actions were not accidental, but were part of a state plan. The goal of the operation was to eliminate the population that this regime considered dangerous, such as former peasants, military, religious leaders and members of opposition parties. Such actions have made the “great terror” widespread. The leadership , including Stalin , made decision about such actions.
In the period from 1937 to 1938, mass persecution occurred in the Soviet Union, which is called the “Great Terror”. It was organized by order from the Politburo under the number 00447. According to this order, people were divided into two groups: some were arrested and shot, others were sent to camps. In each region, targets were set for the number of arrests. At first, they planned to arrest about 270,000 people, and kill more than 70,000 of them. To do this, “troika” were created, which passed sentences without trial. Stalin personally approved additional arrests and executions, giving instructions via telegrams. He followed the whole process very closely and gave instructions on further actions. This period was very difficult for him, which was reflected in his notes. He didn’t even go on vacation, as he was completely occupied with these matters.
Due to pressure from the center and activity on the ground, terror expanded. The plans for arrests and executions under № 00447 exceeded expectations. Mass operations were also carried out against various nationalities considered potential enemies. They were planned and controlled from Moscow. These actions formed the basis of the “Great Terror”. Historians have asked the question: why did this surge in repression, arrests and executions occur? It is important to understand the reasons for the massive operations and such a huge number of victims in 1937-1938.
In the early 1930s, Joseph Stalin strengthened his control over the Soviet Union by removing anyone who opposed him and making people believe he was like a god. He called people who disagreed with him names like “saboteurs,” “enemies of the people,” and “counter-revolutionaries” to scare everyone into obeying him.
Stalin’s government went after different groups, like old Bolsheviks, government workers, and soldiers, by punishing them harshly. Even a meeting like the 1934 Communist Party Congress became all about praising Stalin, with people who used to disagree with him saying sorry and talking about how great he was.
To make people admire him even more, Stalin’s government used things like art, books, songs, and movies to show him as really smart and powerful. They even changed the names of cities and streets to honor him more.
If anyone said anything bad about Stalin or what he was doing, they would get in big trouble, like going to jail or being sent far away. The media and radio only said good things about Stalin and made anyone who disagreed with him look bad. People were scared to say anything bad about Stalin because they were afraid of what might happen to them or their families.
Everyone was so scared of Stalin’s government that they lived in fear of their neighbors, friends, or even family members telling on them. This made it even harder for anyone to speak out against Stalin or his government.
Stalin’s actions hurt a lot of people in the Soviet Union. Families were torn apart, and many communities suffered because of what he did.
Even though Stalin was really cruel, many people still thought of him as a great leader for a long time. It wasn’t until after Stalin died in 1953 that people started to realize how bad he really was.
As I said before, during the Great Terror of 1937, many people in the Soviet Union were unfairly accused and punished by the government. These people, called the repressed, were often arrested, put in prison, or even killed just because the government thought they were against its policies. The families of these repressed people suffered a lot because they lost loved ones, sometimes not knowing where they were taken or what happened to them. This time of fear and uncertainty broke families apart, leaving deep wounds that lasted for many generations.
However, they didn’t just arrest people for no reason, right? Surely someone was guilty! The Soviet political terror of the late 1930s was different from Nazi terror because it was unpredictable. People from all walks of life, like janitors, drivers, housewives, athletes, and artists, could be arrested for no clear reason. Only a very small number of those arrested were actually doing something wrong, but because of torture during investigations, almost everyone confessed. Confessions became the main evidence against people, along with statements from others who were already arrested or executed.
Why is Stalin blamed for the repressions if it was citizens who informed on each other? There’s a big myth about the repressions — the idea that there were “three (sometimes two, sometimes four) million reports.” People did write reports, but a lot more folks got arrested just from lists made beforehand. These lists had all sorts of people the government didn’t trust. Also, many reports were made under a lot of pressure. During investigations, people often accused their own family or friends because they felt they had no other choice. It’s not just about individuals though; it’s about how society as a whole dealt with the state terror. It’s important to understand that while many people were involved, it wasn’t just regular folks taking the lead on this.
Did Stalin personally give orders for executions or not? The most commonly asked question. Yes, definitely, Stalin did give orders for executions. He signed 357 out of 383 lists called the “Stalin lists,” which were checked by top officials. About 44.5 thousand people were sentenced this way, and most were shot. Stalin and his close advisors were in charge of the whole system of terror. He got reports on arrests, added names to lists himself, and read interrogation records.
Has it ever happened that a person was arrested, and then they realized they made a mistake and let them go? Stories of people being miraculously freed after being arrested usually happened in the 1920s or early 1930s. But during 1937-1938, the investigation process didn’t allow for people to be found innocent: they didn’t get a lawyer or a chance to appeal their case (often, they were sentenced right after the court made its decision). Some people arrested during Yezhov’s time were let go in 1939 – sometimes called “Beriev amnesties”. If someone was lucky enough not to be sentenced by November 1938, they sometimes got their case looked at again – especially if the investigator changed or the case wasn’t finished yet. But many of these hundreds of thousands of people got arrested again later – during or after the war – in 1947-1948, when people who survived the Gulag were arrested again as victims of the Great Terror.
Overall, the Great Purge was a dark chapter in Soviet history, characterized by repression, violences, and the abuse of power by Stalin and his regime. Its legacy continues to be felt in Russia and other former Soviet states to this day, serving as a reminder of the dangers of authoritarianism and totalitarian rule. What consequences did the events of 1937-1938 lead to for the country and society? Stalin and his subordinates killed thousands of innocent people. They ruined the lives of millions of people, including the family members of repressed people. During times of terror, a lot of people suffered because of the lies, fear, deceitful behavior of the governments and opportunism. Moreover, not only did they killed human bodies, but also the souls of the survivors, in addition to that scientific, economic , military, cultural and artistic workers suffered heavy losses, and the most damaging consequence, which is huge human capital was destroyed. As a result, all of these weakened Russian society and the country. Morally, it showed how dangerous things can get when a leader has too much control and doesn’t care about people’s rights or fairness. The Great Purge teaches us that we must always respect people’s rights, treat everyone fairly, and never let any leader have too much power without being held accountable, a reminder to be kind and to stand up against unfairness.
Work cited
Hooton, E. R. Stalin’s Claws : From the Purges to the Winter War : Red Army Operations before Barbarossa, 1937-1941. Tattered Flag Press, 2013.
Stalin’s Great Purge: Over A Million Detained, More Than Half A Million Killed: War History Online . June 08, 2017
https://www.warhistoryonline.com/world-war-ii/10-facts-stalins-great-purge.html
The Great Terror , Seventeen Moments in Soviet History
Shameful Questions About 1937: What was the Great Terror? What was the purpose of the repressions? Did Stalin personally give orders for executions?
https://meduza.io/feature/2017/07/30/stydnye-voprosy-pro-1937-god
“The Great Terror”: 75 Years Later
https://www.bbc.com/russian/russia/2012/10/121030_stalin_big_terror
