Stalin was ruthless in achieving and keeping power.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (May/June 2022). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [1] Trotsky's idea of permanent revolution was unpopular with many ordinary Russians.
2. [1] People thought that Trotsky's ideas could involve the USSR in new conflicts.
3. [1] Trotsky was seen as arrogant by many in the Communist Party.
4. [1] Trotsky was too confident.
5. [1] Trotsky underestimated Stalin.
6. [1] It was very important to Stalin, who wanted to be in control of everything.
7. [1] It was important in making his position as head of Russia secure.
8. [1] It would take away some of the horrors of his rule.
9. [1] It was important because it showed him as a hero of the Revolution.
10. [1] The 'cult of personality' made it more difficult for any opposition to Stalin's rule.
11. [1] It put him beyond criticism.
12. [Explanation L3] It was important because it made Stalin central to everything in Russia and showed him as representing everything that was good in Russia. He wanted to be worshipped as a great leader and hero of the Revolution. He wanted to be popular and to see pictures and statues of himself everywhere and even have places named after him.
13. [1] They were a disaster and it took Russia a long time to recover from them.
14. [1] They got rid of Stalin's rivals in the Communist Party.
15. [1] They made people scared to criticise or go against Stalin.
16. [1] They were useful in uniting Russia because of the threat from Nazi Germany.
17. [1] They were helpful in blaming people other than Stalin for failures of government policies.
18. [1] They caused the deaths of over a million people.
19. [1] They left the army without its best leaders.
20. [1] They took away from government and businesses a lot of expertise.
21. [Explanation L3 (Disaster)] They were a complete disaster for the Soviet Union. Senior members of the armed forces were arrested, imprisoned and executed. This took away all the best expertise from the armed forces leaving the army without many good generals. This became a big problem for the army, especially when the Second World War started.
22. [Explanation L3 (Not Disaster)] The Purges were important in keeping Stalin in power. He was worried about opposition to him in the Communist Party and the Purges got rid of these rivals. They also struck fear through the whole population, which made everybody obey Stalin. They were too afraid to criticise him. All of this was good for Stalin because it made his position secure.