In the period from December 2 to December 19, 1927, the fifteenth congress of the CPSU (b) was held in Moscow, which was attended by 1669 deputies who received the right to represent almost 900 thousandth army of the country's communists and another 350 thousand candidates for joining the ranks a party that single-handedly seized full power.
Successes in international politics
Despite the fact that formally its agenda, which included reports from the Central Committee, as well as a number of commissions and committees, was not much different from those that became the basis for the work of most subsequent party forums, it was this composition of deputies that was destined to adopt a number of decisions that largely determined the entire subsequent history of the state.
After listening to the political report of the Central Committee, which was delivered by I. V. Stalin, the 15th Congress of the CPSU (b) stated that, despite the complexity of the international situation, it was possible to significantly strengthen the power of the USSR, increase its role in maintaining peace, and to make tangible progress in organizing a worldwide revolutionary movement.
Especiallythe last point was emphasized, since in those years the prospect of establishing communist rule throughout the earth was still quite seriously considered. At the same time, having approved the foreign and domestic policy pursued by the Central Committee, the congress instructed to further strengthen the country's defense capability and strengthen ties with the working people of foreign countries in every possible way.
Internal political issues
Having thus completed consideration of issues related to international politics, and expressing their readiness to provide every possible assistance to the world proletariat in getting rid of exploitation, the deputies turned to domestic affairs, which was also reflected in Stalin's report. In it, he noted, in particular, that during the reporting period the country “confidently moved forward along the path indicated by Lenin.”
Encouraging statistics
Behind this phrase, which later became a propaganda stamp, born at the 15th Congress of the Communist Party, quite real indicators were hidden. In particular, industry increased its share in the national economy - by 1926, its income amounted to 39%. For comparison, we can say that two years ago this figure did not exceed 32%.
A significant breakthrough was made by heavy industry, in which new industries appeared, such as mechanical engineering, turbine building, machine tool building, chemical industry and aircraft building. The process of nationalization of industrial enterprises was completed, which contributed to the displacement of the capitalistelement. This is eloquently evidenced by the indicators of the volume of gross output produced by the private sector. During the reporting period, it decreased from 40% to 24%, which was also noted by the deputies of the 15th Congress of the CPSU (b)
Course towards collectivization
However, along with these obvious successes, the issue related to the organization of agriculture remained unresolved. In the pace of its development, this area lagged far behind industry. Party ideologists saw the reason for this phenomenon primarily in the struggle that unfolded between socialist and capitalist tendencies that engulfed the village.
The fact is that if in the cities by the period of the 15th Congress of the CPSU (b) production relations formed on the basis of Leninist principles pursued by the party prevailed, the village still continued to live in the old fashioned way, that is, focusing exclusively on the private-property way of life economy. As a result, the increase in the volume of agricultural production was 4-5 times inferior to that in industry, which prevented the satisfaction of the ever-increasing demand for food.
In this regard, it became necessary to carry out comprehensive reforms aimed at a radical restructuring of production relations in agriculture and the creation of a solid socialist base in it. This became the main task of the 15th Congress of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks. The course towards collectivization, proclaimed by its deputies, was supposed to ensure the displacement of small-scale peasant farmspowerful production complexes created on the basis of joint land use and ownership of all productive means.
Searching for reasons behind the backlog in agriculture
At the same time, the resolution passed on this issue by the congress provided for an uncompromising struggle against anyone who could directly or indirectly oppose the planned reforms. Since the landlords as a class have long ceased to exist, the role of enemies of progress in agriculture has gone to the kulaks, that is, the most industrious and successful part of the peasantry.
Representatives of this social stratum, having managed to raise production to the proper level, significantly exceeded their fellow villagers in terms of living standards, which aroused envy and hatred in them. This is exactly what the communists used to carry out plans for the socialization of peasant farms.
Dispossession is a dark page in Russian history
Directly during the work of the XV Congress of the CPSU (b) was declared a course to fight the kulaks. The success of this direction in domestic politics was ensured in advance, since the ally of the communists in this case became the many millions of peasant poor, who had nothing, and, accordingly, could not lose, while the kulaks were deprived of everything that they had acquired through hard and many years of work.
Thus, strong kulak farms that provided the bulk of suppliesfoodstuffs were ruined, and the collective farms formed in their place could not feed the country of many millions. As a result, a famine began, the main victims of which were the peasants themselves, since all the products they produced were mercilessly confiscated and sent to the cities for the needs of the growing and gaining strength of the proletariat.
Political opponents of Stalin
In addition to the development of directions in foreign policy and the collectivization of agriculture, there was another important topic raised at the 15th Congress of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks. The date of its opening went down in history as the beginning of the struggle against the so-called Trotskyist-Zinoviev opposition. This was an extremely important moment in the history of the country, as it gave a new impetus to the destruction of all internal political opponents.
At the suggestion of the Central Control Commission of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks - this is how the Central Control Commission was abbreviated - the issue of the anti-party bloc that had arisen a few years earlier, numbering more than a hundred members, and headed by L. D. Trotsky and G E. Zinoviev. At first, separately, and then merging together, its participants waged a purposeful struggle against the course taken by the party, at the head of which Stalin firmly established himself.
Political heretics
Their activities in the eyes of ordinary communists seemed to be a real heresy, since the supporters of Trotsky and Zinoviev questioned the possibility of building a he althy socialist society in a single country - be it the USSR or another state - and, worst of all, tried to revise the doctrineLenin, pointing out the contradictions hidden in it. The very presence in the party ranks of these "political renegades" - as they were subsequently dubbed by official propaganda - violated the unity of its ranks. Urgent action was required.
In this regard, the resolution of the 15th Congress of the CPSU (b) was recorded that persons belonging to the Trotskyist-Zinoviev opposition cannot continue to be in the ranks of the Communist Party, therefore their membership in it is suspended. In response to this, the oppositionists present at the congress issued a statement about the cessation of the factional struggle and complete submission to decisions emanating from the leading party bodies. However, at the same time, they made a reservation that they reserve the right to adhere to their former political views.
The defeat of the opposition
For a more detailed study of materials related to the activities of the anti-party bloc, a commission was created within the framework of the congress, headed by G. K. Ordzhonikidze. After considering all aspects of the case, its members came to the conclusion that from an ideological point of view, the activities of the above-mentioned group are of a programmatic nature, and tactically they have gone beyond party discipline.
In general, according to the commission, there were all signs of anti-Soviet activities, the responsibility for which is provided for by the relevant articles of the law. At this stage, by the decision of the 15th Congress of the CPSU (b), all members of the bloc were expelled from the party, and later declared enemies of the people and, for the most part,shot. Their ideological inspirer L. D. Trotsky was forced to leave the country, but in 1940 he was killed as a result of an assassination attempt in the Mexican city of Coyoacan by the NKVD agent Ramon Mercader.
These are the results of this congress, which marked the beginning of the actual destruction of the country's working peasantry class that had developed over the centuries and the beginning of mass political repressions.
