Editing History of Russia (section)

===Industrialization and collectivization===
{{Further|Industrialization in the Soviet Union|Collectivization in the Soviet Union}}
The years from 1929 to 1939 comprised a tumultuous decade in Soviet history—a period of massive industrialization and internal struggles as [[Joseph Stalin]] established near total control over Soviet society, wielding virtually unrestrained power. Following Lenin's death Stalin wrestled to gain control of the Soviet Union with rival factions in the Politburo, especially [[Leon Trotsky]]'s. By 1928, with the [[Trotskyist]]s either exiled or rendered powerless, Stalin was ready to put a radical programme of industrialisation into action.<ref name=Deutscbher>I. Deutscher, ''Stalin: A Political Biography'', Oxford University Press, 1949, pp. 294–344.</ref>
[[File:Famine en URSS 1933.jpg|thumb|The [[Soviet famine of 1932–1933]], with areas where the effects of famine were most severe shaded]]
In 1929, Stalin proposed the [[First five-year plan (Soviet Union)|first five-year plan]].<ref name="Richman"/> Abolishing the NEP, it was the first of a number of plans aimed at swift accumulation of capital resources through the buildup of heavy industry, the [[Collectivisation in the USSR|collectivization of agriculture]], and the restricted manufacture of [[consumer goods in the Soviet Union|consumer goods]].<ref name="Richman"/> For the first time in history a government controlled all economic activity. The rapid growth of production capacity and the volume of production of heavy industry was of great importance for ensuring economic independence from western countries and strengthening the country's defense capability. At this time, the Soviet Union made the transition from an agrarian country to an industrial one.

As a part of the plan, the government took control of agriculture through the state and collective farms (''[[kolkhoz]]es'').<ref name="conquest-coll">[[Conquest, Robert]]. ''[[The Harvest of Sorrow]]: Soviet Collectivization and the Terror-Famine''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987. {{ISBN|0-19-505180-7}}.</ref> By a decree of February 1930, about one million individual peasants (''[[kulaks]]'') were forced off their land. Many peasants strongly opposed regimentation by the state, often slaughtering their herds when faced with the loss of their land. In some sections they revolted, and countless peasants deemed "kulaks" by the authorities were executed.<ref>[[Lynne Viola|Viola, Lynne]]. ''Peasant Rebels under Stalin. Collectivization and the Culture of Peasant Resistance''. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. {{ISBN|0-19-513104-5}}.</ref> The combination of bad weather, deficiencies of the hastily established collective farms, and massive confiscation of grain precipitated a serious famine,<ref name="conquest-coll"/> and several million peasants [[Soviet famine of 1932-1934|died of starvation]], [[Holodomor|mostly in Ukraine]], [[Famine in Kazakhstan of 1932–33|Kazakhstan]] and parts of southwestern Russia.<ref name="conquest-coll"/> The deteriorating conditions in the countryside drove millions of desperate peasants to the rapidly growing cities, fueling industrialization, and vastly increasing Russia's urban population.