Reasons for terror Distract people from economic

Reasons for terror
Distract people from economic failures
Obtain cheap working force for national projects
Eliminate the opposition
Re-write the history of revolution
Effective control of population
Remove those who may be obstacles in case of war

Why Unnecessary Purges
Whole Country
Urgency
Paranoia

How terror was conducted
Sekret police (OGPU(1922)NKVD(1934)
Global fear of enemy from within
An atmosphere of suspence
Immidiate reason – assassination of Kirov

Great Purges
Purge Zero (1921 – menshevics expelled from party, 1932-reyutin platform)

1st Moscow trial
When – August 1936
Who – Zinoviev and Kamenev
Accusation - Trotskyite-Kamenevite-Zinovievite-Leftist-Counter-Revolutionary Bloc
Assassination of Kirov and plot to kill Stalin

2nd Moscow trial
When – January 1937
Who – Karl Radek, Yuri Piatakov and Grigory Sokolnikov
Accusation – “anti-Soviet Trotskyite-centre“
Plotted with Trotsky and Nazi Germany to overthrow government

3rd Moscow Trial
When – March 1938
Who – Nikolay Buharin, Alexei Rykov , Christian Rakovsky, Nikolai Krestinsky and Genrikh Yagoda
Accused of – Plot to kill Lenin and Stalin, posoning of Gorky, help Germany to divide russia etc