RUSSIA AND THE SOVIET UNION 1917-1941
ESSAY QUESTIONS
Note that when only one question exists, it is because the other question asked that year is
no longer on the syllabus.
National Study
2014:
“Communist theory could not have been brought into practice without War Communism
and the New Economic Policy (NEP).” To what extent is this statement accurate?
Assess the impact of collectivization and industrialistion on Soviet society and the
economy to 1941.
2013:
To what extent was the Treaty of Brest Litovsk significant for the Bolshevik
consolidation of power?
Account for the changes in Soviet society under Stalin to 1941.
2012:
To what extent did practice triumph over Communist theory in the Bolshevik
consolidation of power?
How successful was Soviet foreign policy in achieving its aims from 1917 to 1941?
2011:
To what extent was Lenin responsible for the Bolshevik consolidation of power?
Assess the impact of Stalinism on the Soviet state until 1941.
2010:
To what extent was the New Economic Policy (NEP) essential to the Bolshevik
consolidation of power?
Assess the impact of the purges on the development of Stalinism during the 1930s.
2009:
How significant was Lenin’s leadership in the Bolshevik consolidation of power in the
period to 1924?
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To what extent can Stalinism be considered totalitarianism in the period to 1941?
2008:
To what extent did leadership conflict and differing visions for the USSR shape the
history of the Soviet Union in the period 1917-1941?
Analyse the purpose and impact of Stalin’s Five Year Plans.
2007:
To what extent was communist theory put into practice in Russia in the period 1917-41?
Assess the impact of Stalinism on Soviet foreign policy in the period 1929-1941.
2006:
How significant was military victory in the Civil War for the Bolshevik consolidation of
power in the period up to 1924?
Evaluate the view that Stalinism produced positive changes for Soviet society.
2006 Sample paper:
Assess the effectiveness of the Bolshevik government in creating changes in society in
the period 1917-1928.
Evaluate the view that Soviet foreign policy was dominated by practical rather than
ideological concerns in the period 1928-1941.
2005:
Evaluate the view that Bolshevik power was consolidated only because Lenin modified
Communist ideology in the period 1917-1924.
To what extent was Soviet economic and social life transformed under Stalin in the
period 1928-1941?
2004:
Evaluate the impact of Lenin’s death on party leadership and the debate over
modernisation within the Bolshevik Party.
2003:
Account for the success of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) in
consolidating the Bolshevik Revolution in the period 1917-1928.
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Assess the role of the cult of personality in the creation and maintenance of a totalitarian
society in the USSR in the period 1928-1941.
2002:
Assess the impact of War Communism and the New Economic Policy (NEP) on both the
peasantry and proletariat in Russian society between 1918 and 1928.
2001:
Explain how Russia and the Soviet Union modernised from the Bolshevik Revolution in
1917 until 1941.
Account for the development of totalitarianism under Stalin between 1928 and 1941.
Personalities in the Twentieth Century: Trotsky
2013:
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Describe the rise to prominence of the personality you have studied.
Evaluate the significance of the personality you have studied to his period of national
and/or international history.
2012:
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Describe three significant factors which resulted in the prominence of the personality
you have studied.
To what extent did the personality you have studied have a positive impact on his or
her times?
2011:
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Provide a detailed description of three significant events in the life of the personality
you have studied.
Assess the contribution of the personality you have studied to their period of national
and/or international history.
2010:
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Describe the life of the personality you have studied.
“People are swept along by events. Some individuals use events to advantage.” How
accurate is this statement in relation to the personality you have studied?
2009:
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Outline the life of the personality you have studied.
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“Individuals are products of their times.” How accurate is this statement in relation to
the personality you have studied?
2008:
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Describe personal background and the historical context of the personality you have
studied.
“History is about winners.” How accurate is this statement in relation to the
personality you have studied?
2007:
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Describe the role played by the personality you have studied in national and/or
international history.
“Events shape people more than people shape events.” How accurate is this
statement in relation to the personality you have studied?
2006:
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Outline the main features in the background and rise to prominence of the twentieth
century personality you have studied.
To what extent does history present us with a balanced interpretation of this
personality?
2005 sample paper:
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
Describe the rise to prominence of the Twentieth Century personality you have
studied.
“Those who are inspired by an ideal rather than self-interest make the biggest impact
on history.” To what extent does the study of your personality support this view?
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