Trail of the SixteenTrail of the Seventeen

Trail of the of Twenty - One

Liam O’Shea, Adam Rooney

& Ben Murran

The purpose of the The purpose of the show trials was to show trials was to instil fear and to instil fear and to cement himself as cement himself as the leader of the the leader of the Communist Party.Communist Party.

Another purpose Another purpose was to eliminate all was to eliminate all opponents to him opponents to him that posed any that posed any theart to his theart to his leadership. leadership.

The show trails had an international effect. The international media didn't understand the full extent of the guilt of the defendants. A US diplomat was convinced of their guilt.

The Terror also had devastating effects on Soviet society. Stalin purged managers, doctors, scientists, army officers, artists and workers. Even the NKVD itself was purged.

Stalin’s aim was to intimidate the population into total submission, and the plan worked perfectly.

Fear permeated society, and trust all but disappeared.

Many people accepted Stalin’s claim that a giant conspiracy was taking place against himself and the Revolution. Many did not blame Stalin for the Terror, instead insisting that the ‘traitors’, ‘spies’ and ‘saboteurs’ deserved to die.

THE EFFECT OF THE SHOW TRIALS ON THE UUSR