Abstract

On March 5, 1953, Joseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union, died. For the first time since the death of Vladimir Lenin in 1924 the USSR was confronted with the issue of political succession. Just like Lenin, Stalin left no designated successor or power transfer process, but unlike in 1924, this problem occurred in the context of a politically stable superpower engaged in a global Cold War against the United States. What resulted was a bitter power struggle between Stalin’s heirs who initially united behind the desire to reform and liberalize the Soviet system, but ultimately rifted over the issue of foreign policy and how to best handle the worsening Cold War. That power struggle ultimately brought on the first tentative steps toward de-Stalinization and the ascendancy of Nikita Khrushchev as Soviet leader. 

But why did this succession-crisis occur? This study will answer that question by examining the policies and decisions of the post-Stalin government, the efforts Stalin’s heirs took to undermine each other, as well as their individual personalities and ideological outlooks. This process will allow us to understand Stalin’s impact on the USSR and the Cold War, why the succession crisis played out the way it did, and how the country moved on after his death. All of which provides critical context behind subsequent events in Soviet history and the Cold War. This is not a new topic in Soviet or Cold War studies, but this study’s main argument of foreign policy causing the crisis is what sets it apart. Whereas previous studies have examined foreign policy disagreements as contributing to the succession crisis, this study will argue that it was the primary cause.

Keywords: Soviet Union, USSR, Joseph Stalin, Nikita Khrushchev, Succession Crisis, Power Struggle, Cold War, Foreign Policy, De-Stalinization, East Germany, German Democratic Republic, GDR

How to Cite:

McColgan, P., (2024) “Stalin is Dead! Examining the Post-Stalin Succession Crisis”, Footnotes: A Journal of History 6(1), 53-61.