Joseph Stalin's first wife had survived

[Insufficient Dakka]

In a happy coincidence an alternate history subforum opened up just a few days after I had some idle wonderings about if Joseph would have been the same sort of monster if the "creature who softened my heart of stone" was around when Stalin was at his most cruel.

 

[Sabot Cat]

Even when Stalin's first wife was alive, he was a committed Bolshevik who helped carry out the 1907 Tiflis bank robbery, was in attendance at the Second International, etc. I don't know if his ideological views would be all that different, to be honest.

 

[VolantRedX]

Stalin might be less paranoid and thus less likely to kill anyone he even thinks as a threat to himself, but stuff like the famine in the Ukraine and the invasion of Finland would likely still happen because to him those were necessary steps to secure the Communist Revolution.

 

[Dustin]

Stalin might be less paranoid and thus less likely to kill anyone he even thinks as a threat to himself, but stuff like the famine in the Ukraine and the invasion of Finland would likely still happen because to him those were necessary steps to secure the Communist Revolution.

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I generally agree with this post. I also think that Stalin would be less brutal in terms of his other actions as a result of reduced paranoia.

 

[Sabot Cat]

I don't think Stalin's actions as dictator were out of paranoia, but out of savvy. Eliminating your rivals to consolidate power is a successful tactic for authoritarian leaders, as is discussed in this paper: https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/120843/erinmcg_1.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

 

[Insufficient Dakka]

I don't think Stalin's actions as dictator were out of paranoia, but out of savvy. Eliminating your rivals to consolidate power is a successful tactic for authoritarian leaders, as is discussed in this paper: https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/120843/erinmcg_1.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

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But didn't he do it to the point it crippled the government since it ended up removing so many of the people with experience helping lead the country?

 

[Dustin]

I definitely think that he would at least not feel the need to take tha extra step of trying to literally eliminate his rivals from the historical record.

Maybe Trotsky wouldn't get that ice pick either?

 

[Sabot Cat]

But didn't he do it to the point it crippled the government since it ended up removing so many of the people with experience helping lead the country?

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I think it was more that he demoralized the military by purging its leadership in the midst of an invasion... you have a point, actually. I guess the line between paranoia and betraying your allies to maintain power becomes pretty thin.

 

[Sabot Cat]

I definitely think that he would at least not feel the need to take tha extra step of trying to literally eliminate his rivals from the historical record.

Maybe Trotsky wouldn't get that ice pick either?

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This was definitely an ideological thing though. The notion of History as a guiding force, an ultimate vindication, etc., is very common from a Leninist lens.

 

[Potato]

Speaking out of my ass (with a little bit of background knowledge) here, but wasn't Stalin greatly affected by his wife's death?

Please enlighten this scrub.

 

[Napoleon IV]

It's also important to remember that the Bolsheviks tended to be paranoid. This is mainly due to the fact that they had to operate illegally and faced the constant threat of Okhrana agents infiltrating their ranks (indeed one of the top Bolsheviks, a guy named Ramon Malinovsky, proved to be one). Then after the Revolution they faced a situation where most of the world and much of their own country were trying to overthrow them. The large part of the Great Terror is due to Stalin, but the general paranoia of the Bolsheviks really aided him in his quest to crush the opposition.

 

[Insufficient Dakka]

Speaking out of my ass (with a little bit of background knowledge) here, but wasn't Stalin greatly affected by his wife's death?

Please enlighten this scrub.

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In regards to her death, Joseph Stalin said this:

This creature softened my heart of stone. She died and with her died my last warm feelings for humanity.

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But as has been said he had certain views that weren't the most altruistic as @Sabot Cat points out. The question is just how much having Kato by his side would have changed things, and how much she'd object to his more cruel acts.

 

[General Mosh]

The Iron Lady joins the Man of Steel in historic notoriety.

 

[Dustin]

The Iron Lady joins the Man of Steel in historic notoriety.

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They would just become the most evil power couple the world has ever known? I admit that I really like that idea.

What role, if any, would Stalin's wife play in running the Soviet Union? I imagine she could have some part of it, especially given that she would be trusted, which is more important than anything else.

 

[Cetashwayo]

I'm not sure what role she would have played; the trouble is that Kato died so terribly young that we don't know that much about her and a lot of what we do know is through Stalin's later point of view. He certainly didn't seem to involve her in his activities even though they appealed to her and she seemed to agree with him.