Industrial and agricultural change, 1917–85 — Edexcel A-Level History
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Industrial and agricultural change, 1917–85 explained
Industrial and agricultural change, 1917–85 covers 3 specification points, including The nationalisation of industry; War Communism… and The Five-Year Plans and industrial change;….
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Open a point below for its explanation and revision guidance.
Towards a command economy, 1917–28: the nationalisation of industry; War Communism and the New Economic Policy; state control of industry and agriculture.
After 1917, the Bolsheviks moved towards a command economy by nationalising industry: decrees in 1917–18 transferred factories to state control, and the Supreme Council of the National Economy (Vesenkha) was set up in 1917 to manage production. War Communism (1918–21) extended state control through grain requisitioning, nationalisation, and labour discipline, but caused economic collapse and peasant resistance. The New Economic Policy (NEP) from 1921 reintroduced limited private trade and small-scale private enterprise while the state kept control of heavy industry, banking, and transport. By 1928, the state had established a framework of control over industry and agriculture, though the NEP mixed state and market elements.
Industry and agriculture in the Stalin era: the Five-Year Plans and industrial change; agricultural collectivisation and its impact; recovery from war after 1945.
Stalin's economic revolution from 1928 used Five-Year Plans to force rapid industrialisation, setting output targets for coal, iron, steel, electricity and machinery. Heavy industry grew, new cities such as Magnitogorsk appeared, and command planning replaced market signals, though consumer goods stayed scarce and targets were often met on paper only. Collectivisation merged peasant farms into kolkhozy and sovkhozy, backed by dekulakisation, grain requisitioning and deportation. It financed industry through grain exports but caused famine, especially 1932–33, and a fall in livestock. After 1945, the Fourth Five-Year Plan rebuilt war-damaged plants and restored output, yet agriculture remained weak and living standards low.
Changes in industry and agriculture, 1953–85, including: the promotion of light industry, chemicals and consumer goods; investment in agriculture and the Virgin Lands Scheme; the limited attempts at reform after 1964; economic decline.
After Stalin, Khrushchev shifted some priority to light industry, chemicals and consumer goods, aiming to raise living standards while heavy industry remained central. In agriculture he increased investment, raised procurement prices and launched the Virgin Lands Scheme from 1954, ploughing semi-arid land in Kazakhstan and western Siberia for grain. Initial harvests rose, but soil erosion, erratic rainfall and poor storage limited gains. After 1964, Brezhnev's limited reforms, such as the 1965 Kosygin reforms, gave enterprises more discretion and raised agricultural investment, yet central planning, weak incentives and defence spending kept growth slow. By the 1980s the economy faced stagnation, shortages and falling productivity.
Your focus
- Describe the nationalisation of industry and the creation of state control bodies after 1917.
- Explain the features and impact of War Communism and the New Economic Policy.
- Analyse the extent of state control over industry and agriculture by 1928.
Show all 9 objectives
- Describe the aims and methods of the Five-Year Plans and collectivisation.
- Analyse the economic and social consequences of Stalin's industrial and agricultural policies.
- Evaluate the extent of recovery from war after 1945 in industry and agriculture.
- Describe the main changes in industry and agriculture between 1953 and 1985.
- Analyse the successes and failures of the Virgin Lands Scheme and later reforms.
- Evaluate the reasons for economic decline in the Soviet Union by the 1980s.
Industrial and agricultural change, 1917–85 exam tips
Marking Points
- Explains the nationalisation of industry after 1917, including decrees and the role of Vesenkha.
- Describes War Communism: grain requisitioning, nationalisation, and labour discipline, and its economic and social impact.
- Explains the New Economic Policy: reintroduction of limited private trade and small-scale private enterprise, while the state retained control of heavy industry, banking, and transport.
- Analyses state control of industry and agriculture by 1928, including the mixed nature of the NEP and the extent of command economy features.
- Evaluates the shift from War Communism to the NEP as a response to crisis, and the limits of the NEP in creating a fully command economy.
- Explains how the Five-Year Plans set targets for heavy industry and used Gosplan to allocate resources, with examples such as Magnitogorsk steelworks.
- Analyses the human and economic costs of rapid industrialisation, including urban overcrowding, labour discipline and shortages of consumer goods.
- Explains collectivisation as a policy to extract grain and labour from agriculture, including kolkhozy, sovkhozy, dekulakisation and the 1932–33 famine.
- Assesses the impact of collectivisation on agricultural output, livestock numbers and peasant resistance, showing both intended and unintended consequences.
- Evaluates recovery after 1945 through the Fourth Five-Year Plan, noting industrial reconstruction alongside continued agricultural weakness and low living standards.
- Explains Khrushchev's promotion of light industry, chemicals and consumer goods, with examples such as housing and consumer durables, and notes the limits of this shift.
- Analyses increased agricultural investment, including higher procurement prices and state funding, and assesses whether it improved output or rural living standards.
- Evaluates the Virgin Lands Scheme, its initial grain gains and later problems of soil erosion, drought and inefficient harvesting.
- Assesses the limited reforms after 1964, such as the Kosygin reforms, showing how they modified but did not replace central planning.
- Explains economic decline by the 1980s through slow growth, shortages, falling productivity and the burden of military spending.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Use precise terms like nationalisation, Vesenkha, grain requisitioning, and NEP to show understanding of the command economy's development.
- 💡Compare War Communism and the NEP in terms of state control, economic results, and political consequences.
- 💡Link economic policies to the broader aim of establishing a command economy by 1928.
- 💡Support points with dates and examples, such as the 1917 decrees, the 1921 Kronstadt rising, and the introduction of the NEP.
- 💡Use precise dates and figures, such as 1928 for the first Five-Year Plan and 1932–33 for the famine, to support causal claims.
- 💡Link each policy to its intended aim and actual result, for example grain exports funding industry while rural living standards fell.
- 💡When comparing industry and agriculture, organise paragraphs by theme or policy rather than simply narrating events.
- 💡Use specific dates and names, such as 1954 for the Virgin Lands Scheme and 1965 for the Kosygin reforms, to anchor your analysis.
- 💡Compare intentions with outcomes for each policy, for example higher investment in agriculture versus continued food shortages.
- 💡Build an argument about the extent of change across the period, rather than listing policies in isolation.
Common Mistakes
- Thinking the NEP was a complete return to capitalism; correction: the state kept control of heavy industry, banking, and transport, so it was a mixed economy.
- Confusing War Communism with the NEP; correction: War Communism used grain requisitioning and full nationalisation, while the NEP allowed limited private trade.
- Assuming nationalisation happened instantly and completely; correction: it was a gradual process from 1917, with decrees and practical limits.
- Overlooking agriculture in state control; correction: grain requisitioning under War Communism and later state influence were central to controlling agriculture.
- Treating the Five-Year Plans as a single event rather than a series of plans with changing targets; correct by dating each plan and linking it to specific industrial outcomes.
- Assuming collectivisation immediately increased food production; correct by using evidence of famine, livestock decline and grain procurement difficulties.
- Describing post-1945 recovery as complete across the economy; correct by distinguishing industrial rebuilding from persistent agricultural problems and consumer shortages.
- Claiming Khrushchev abandoned heavy industry; correct by showing that heavy industry remained a priority even as light industry and consumer goods received more attention.
- Treating the Virgin Lands Scheme as an unqualified success; correct by balancing early grain increases against environmental damage and inconsistent yields.
- Assuming the Kosygin reforms created a market economy; correct by explaining they were limited, partial and reversed or diluted by the late 1960s.