Why Did The Soviet Union Develop

Communists first came to power in Russia in 1917 during the Bolshevik Revolution and in time were able to expand its empire and control in the form of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), which by 1940 had control of over 110 million people spanning over fifteen countries. This union remained until the early nineties; however, the regime showed signs of cracking long before then with a rapidly declining economy which was unable to compete with its capitalist competitors. This caused resentment in Eastern Europe, such as, modern-day Poland and Hungary which lead to people wanting greater freedoms and independence a contributing factor to the Soviet collapse. Other nations like the United States also played a large role in the Cold War and made many efforts to improve Soviet relations and attempt to cut Soviet control, which many may argue is a significant reason for the eventual collapse. I, however, believe that the last soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev was the …show more content…
This suggests the Soviet Union if given further time to develop may have been able to improve its economy may have been able to support itself, so was not really that significant of a factor in the collapse of the union. The rigid command economy created by Stalin in the 1930s was not suited for the rapid changes in technology. The Soviet Union had no independently wealthy individuals looking to bankroll a new business with a new idea. In the Soviet Union it was the central government that was doing the investing, not only in the military but also in social programs, including spending money to keep bread available and at a low price. Money to modernise manufacturing was often lacking.
Additionally, the economy was further worsened by the heavy Soviet spending during the arms race with the United States, the never- ending