THE ATTITUDE OF THE POPULATION OF THE TAMBOV REGION TO THE ACTIVITIES OF THE CPSU(b) IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE 1930s (based on letters and diaries)

Abstract

The attitude of the population of the Tambov Region to the activities of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (bolsheviks) in the second half of the 1930s is analyzed. The main actions of local authorities in the period under investigation are considered. Particular attention is paid to the study of the scale of the activities carried out and their impact on the local population. The reasons for the failure of the regional government to fulfill many of the government’s goals have been identified. The methods used by local officials aimed at achieving the assigned tasks are considered. Based on letters and diaries written in the second half of the 1930s, the attitude of the region’s inhabitants to the events is defined. The assessment is formed under the influence of many factors, including age, place of residence, social status, political oppression or lack of it, as well as the religiousness of memoirists. During the events, the population moved to the city, and also often committed crimes in the form of theft or speculation of scarce goods. To fight negligence, slowness and abuses of local authorities, they began to appeal more often with complaints or various explanations to higher authorities, but stopped organizing uprisings and rallies. The position of the authors of letters and diaries on foreign policy pursued by the Soviet government is considered.