GCSE History: Russia and the Soviet Union 1917–41

This material covers the GCSE History modern depth study of Russia and the Soviet Union – for example Pearson Edexcel's 'Russia and the Soviet Union, 1917–41', with overlap with the later parts of AQA's 'Russia, 1894–1945: Tsardom and communism'. It follows the country from the collapse of the Tsar's rule to the eve of the German invasion of 1941.

You revise the February Revolution of 1917 and the abdication of Nicholas II, the 'dual power' of the Provisional Government and the Petrograd Soviet, and the problems that weakened the Provisional Government – the war, land and the Kornilov affair. You then study Lenin's return, the April Theses and the Bolshevik slogans, the October Revolution organised by Trotsky and the Military Revolutionary Committee, and how the Bolsheviks kept power: the closure of the Constituent Assembly in January 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, the Civil War and the reasons for the Red victory, War Communism, the Kronstadt uprising and the retreat to the New Economic Policy in 1921.

The second half covers Stalin's Soviet Union: the struggle for power after Lenin's death in 1924, collectivisation, the attack on the kulaks and the famine of 1932–33, the Five-Year Plans from 1928 with projects such as Magnitogorsk and the Stakhanovite movement, the purges and show trials of 1936–38, the NKVD and the gulag, the cult of personality, socialist realism in the arts, and changes in the lives of women and families.

The quiz tests key events, people and policies, including a chronology question. The flashcards drill the vocabulary. The written work asks for explanations of why the Bolsheviks won and kept power, how Stalin changed the Soviet Union, and a judgement about the success of his economic policies, the kind of question depth studies set. In the oral exam an examiner asks one question at a time and gives brief feedback at the end.

The material is revision practice written by Zestly and is not produced or reviewed by any exam board; check the details of your own specification with your teacher.

• Explain why the Tsar abdicated and why the Provisional Government failed
• Explain how the Bolsheviks seized power in October 1917 and kept it until 1921
• Explain why the Reds won the Civil War and why Lenin introduced the NEP
• Explain how Stalin became leader after Lenin's death
• Describe collectivisation and the Five-Year Plans and assess their results
• Explain how Stalin controlled the Soviet Union through terror and propaganda

Practice material written by Zestly, based on the DfE GCSE history subject content (modern depth study) and options such as Pearson Edexcel 'Russia and the Soviet Union, 1917–41' (GCSE History 1HI0 option 32).