Role of the Secret Police in maintaining Communist control

• S2: Introduction

  - Highly Significant in period

  -Maintain= Protect C.P from Opposition

  -1917-53, mainly used for terror but after stalin more for surveillance and repression

  -Counter: Control over media&propaganda

  - Lenin, Stalin, Khrushchev & Brezhnev
• S2: Lenin's Secret Police

  - The Cheka(1917), used to oppress bolshevik opposition

  -Role in Civil War: Fought with Red Army, Requisitioned Grain(War communism), Killed those who rivalled Party.

  -During Red Terror(1921-22),killed 200,000 Social-Rev's and their leaders trialed

  -Between 1917-24, secret police most significant role in maintaining power
• S2: Stalin's Secret Police

  -Stalin heavily dependent on NKVD, for their role in his mass terror

  -he used NKVD against political rivals in a attempt to sustain his own political power.

  -E.g. Zinoviev&Kamenev

  -Removed old bolshevik's(lenin supporters) and replace them with new generation loyal to him

  -By using secret police for terror, Stalin was able to maintain control, further proving significance of secret police
• S2: Counter:Control of Media&Propaganda

  -1917-85, govt. strictly censored press.

  -from 1920s, non-bolshevik news banned, Glavit(censorship office) controlled all media public saw

  -Stalin used Propaganda to strengthen his Cult of personality.

  -Helped him gain control over party and state

  -As important under stalin as terror was in sustaining control

  -Less effective under K&B, as Media modernised, so less censorship and weaker C.O.P

  - Was important between 1917-85 but Secret police was more significant
• K&B's Secret police

  -K renounced use of mass terror, thus limiting role of secret police.

  -Instead encouraged 'Popular oversight'

  -B used more under his regime

  -Reversed limit in secret police, didn't use terror.

  -Used his police, KGB, to suppress dissidents.

  -KGB, led by Andropov, used warnings to silence dissidents who rivalled govt.

  -The secret police wasn't as significant under K but under B it helped him suppress uprisings against his weak leadership