On March 5, 2020, the Russian government held an event in the square outside the Kremlin in Moscow to commemorate the 67th anniversary of the death of Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin.
At the commemoration, Gennady Andreyevich Zyuganov, chairman of the Communist Party of Russia, stood in a cold square and gave an impassioned speech, but he was already 76 years old.
In his speech, Zyuganov mentioned the hope that Russian President Vladimir Putin can become the fifth "Stalin" and return to Russia's former glory.
Why is Putin expected to become the fifth "Stalin"? Who were the first four "Stalin" who led the development of Russia? Today, let's talk about its history.
A look back at the history of the Soviet Union
The first "Stalin" refers to the Grand Duke of Kiev of the Rurik dynasty, Vladimir Svyatoslavich.
Vladimir I led expeditions to expand the territory of Ancient Rus' throughout his life, and with extraordinary military acumen, he led his army to invade and occupy the surrounding primitive tribes, capture Kiev and establish the Kievan Rus' regime.
After the establishment of the regime, Vladimir I did not focus all his energy on governing the country, but remained keen on expanding his territory, snatching Peremyshli and other regions from the Polish king, and expanding the territory of Rus' to Galicia, becoming one of the most extensive states.
In addition to his military prowess, Vladimir I was also very good at governing the country, arranging for his cronies to be stationed in various occupied regions to prevent the local magnates from threatening the imperial power.
While the country was strong, in order to control the large number of people and control their minds more conveniently, Vladimir I introduced the Orthodox Church, using the power of religious belief as a political tool.
The introduction of religion further transformed Kievan Rus' from a backward primitive society to a feudal class society, getting rid of the backward and barbaric image of the Rus' people, and gradually moving towards civilization.
Therefore, for Ancient Rus, Vladimir I played a crucial role in promoting and developing, laying a solid foundation for the establishment of the Russian Empire in the future, and can be called the first "Stalin" deservedly.
The second "Stalin" refers to Ivan IV Vasilyevich, the ill-fated Grand Duke of Moscow, whose father died early when he was young, and who succeeded to the throne at the age of three, with his mother Yelena in charge of the court.
However, the Russian magnates were eyeing the throne and the young emperor, especially Ivan IV's uncles, had been trying to usurp the throne.
When Ivan IV was eight years old, his mother Yelena was poisoned, and the power fell into the hands of the lord Duma.
Of course, Ivan IV, who grew up in the midst of setbacks, also exercised extraordinary courage and wisdom, and after coming to power, in order to change the status quo of the country, he established a council of important ministers, codified the law, controlled the centralization of power, firmly grasped the imperial power in his hands, and reformed all areas of the country.
In particular, the military reform and contribution were indelible, and Ivan IV formulated military decrees that allowed the Russian army to rapidly increase its combat power in a short period of time.
The military system was well established and clear, and the gradual transition of the Russian army into a regular army laid the foundation for the Russian Empire to become one of the world's leading powers.
After the reform of the army, Ivan IV led an expeditionary force to defeat the Kazan Khanate, freed himself from the nightmare of being controlled by the Mongol-Tatars, and then led his army into Siberia, annexing many countries and integrating other peoples into a multi-ethnic state.
Under the leadership of Ivan IV, Russia became a military power that feared the surrounding countries. In order to further improve the country's economic level and enhance its national strength, Ivan IV promulgated a new legal code, reorganized the administrative organs, implemented a special jurisdiction, weakened the power of the aristocracy and realized a centralized system.
In general, although Ivan IV had a brutal and murderous side that terrified the population, he played a crucial role in the establishment of the Russian Empire and was an indispensable iron-blooded czar.
Russia was once strong
The third "Stalin" refers to the first emperor of the Russian Empire, Peter I Alekseevich. Peter I was the fifth tsar of the Russian Romanov dynasty and one of only two emperors in Russian history.
Peter I was born on June 9, 1672 in Moscow, the capital of the Romanov dynasty, to the son of Tsar Alexei I and his second wife.
Peter was the only healthy son of Alexei I, so he was raised as an heir from birth.
Alexei I took care of everything for Peter in every detail, and even personally selected nurses, maids and other personnel to take care of Peter, and it was necessary to cultivate an excellent heir.
However, Peter's path to the throne was not smooth, he did not have an advantage in the face of the struggle for power, and once he left the protection of Alexei I, Peter would suffer from the enemy.
When Peter succeeded to the throne in April 1682 at the age of ten, he was ousted from the throne by his half-sister Princess Sophia, a coup d'état in which Peter and his mother were exiled to remote parts of Russia.
His mother took Peter to settle down in a village, where he lived a poor life, and although he could not study in the village, he did not stop studying.
He and his peers in the village used the art of war to play offensive and defensive military games, simulating the real battlefield arrangement, and these partners also became his biggest help in forming an army in the future, becoming his right-hand man.
Because the village was located on the coast, there were many expatriates living here, and Peter learned shipbuilding and seamanship from these expatriates, which laid a solid foundation for his future seafaring paths.
On October 6, 1689, Peter regained imperial power from Princess Sophia and returned to the throne, creating Russia's first fleet and vigorously developing shipbuilding in order to have his own access to the sea and become a maritime supremacy.
In order to learn the advanced military and shipbuilding techniques of European countries, Peter went out to patrol disguised himself as an ordinary civilian, working at the bottom of the artillery factories and shipyards of various countries, learning the technology of making artillery and shipbuilding.
During his sojourn in various countries, he also deeply understood the local livelihood and political system, and introduced advanced cultural and educational systems to develop his country. Under Peter's leadership, the Russian Empire gradually prospered and splendour, and its maritime power made Russia one of the great powers.
The fourth "Stalin" was Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin, who was once the supreme leader of the Soviet republic. Stalin was born into a poor peasant family, his father was a peasant shoemaker, and his mother was the daughter of a serf.
Such a family could not bring Stalin any help, and the father did not even want him to study, believing that his son would be able to live a good life as long as he inherited his mantle.
Stalin was gifted and hard-working in his studies, and was often awarded scholarships for his excellent grades, which Stalin used to complete his studies.
In the process of studying, he was deeply influenced by Marxism, aspired to become a communist, and after graduation joined the Bolsheviks led by Lenin, and after participating in several revolutionary activities, he gradually became a key member.
Stalin's revolutionary path was not smooth, and he was arrested and exiled several times during his revolutionary activities, and he tried his best to escape from exile.
After the outbreak of the February Revolution in Russia, Lenin fled to Finland because he was wanted by the Russian authorities, and Stalin began to lead and organize the revolutionary work.
After Lenin's death on January 21, 1924, Stalin officially succeeded Lenin as the supreme leader of socialism in the Soviet Union.
He led the Soviet society onto the right track, formulated the general policy of socialist industrialization, and promoted the Soviet Union to gradually move from a backward agricultural country to an industrial country.
At the same time as the gradual development of industry, in order to improve the national economy as soon as possible, Stalin formulated three five-year plans to vigorously develop heavy industry and the collective economy.
During World War II, the Soviet army also successfully defeated Germany under the command of Stalin and helped China encircle and annihilate the Japanese invaders in the northeast.
This series of measures made the Soviet Union a power comparable to the United States, but it is a pity that after Stalin's death, Soviet society gradually declined and finally disintegrated in the Cold War competition with the United States.
Russia under Putin
Now, can Putin really become Russia's fifth "Stalin", as Zyuganov said?
It is clear that Russia is now facing many challenges, and the outlook is difficult, and the economy is deteriorating in the current global economic downturn, and it also has to face the threat of sanctions from the United States and other European and American countries.
Today, when prices are rising, the cost of living of the Russian people is rising day by day, but the people's income has not increased correspondingly, resulting in huge pressure on life, and many people can only barely maintain food and clothing, living on the poverty line.
Coupled with the economic sanctions imposed by the United States and other countries, foreign-funded enterprises have withdrawn from Russia, resulting in a large number of people losing their jobs, insufficient social jobs, and aggravating social contradictions.
The Russian government's main source of funding, such as natural gas and oil, has also been constantly suppressed and sanctioned by European and American countries, restricting its exports, which has hit Russia's finances hard and greatly reduced the income of pillar industries.
At the same time as the economic downturn, the situation in the border areas of Russia is not optimistic, Ukraine continues to provoke Russia, and the European Union is ready to move.
NATO's military exercises have repeatedly been conducted near Russia's borders, forcing the Russian government to send more troops to the border to deter these external threats and ease tensions.
Faced with internal and external troubles, it is very difficult for Putin to bring Russia back to the peak of the Stalin era. After all, history is changing, and the environment facing Russia today is very complicated, and the planned economy and other policies of the Soviet Union have long been unsuitable for today's Russia.
For Putin, what he needs to do is not only to summarize and remember the glory of the Soviet Union, but also to formulate an effective plan in light of the current situation in Russia, gradually restore Russia's economy and ease the military conflict.
In reality, Putin is indeed an iron-blooded man, and his decisiveness and wisdom may be able to lead Russia to break through the encirclement, and he will inevitably become the fifth "Stalin" in Russia.
Perhaps he is also convinced that the support and trust of politicians such as Zyuganov in Russian politics will open up a new path of development and win new vitality for Russia's new future.
What do you think differently about this?