„W świetle uchwał XX Zjazdu...” Szczecińskie echa moskiewskich wydarzeń z lutego 1956 roku, część I

• Authors: Eryk Krasucki

Title variants

EN

„In the light of the resolutions of the 20th Congress of The Communist Party of The Soviet Union...” Repercussions of the Moscow events of February 1956 in Szczecin. Part one

• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

“The Khrushchev Thaw” entailing a possibility of changes in politics, started soon after the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953. However, the real breakthrough was the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, during which, at a closed meeting, Nikita Khrushchev gave a speech devoted to the cult of personality (Stalin) and its tragic effects. The disclosure of crimes committed by the dead dictator – first only those which concerned the party machine and the state – gave rise to a discussion in which participated millions of citizens of the Soviet Union. The same situation took place in Poland, where the symptoms of the political change could be observed for a few months, particularly in the field of culture. The speech of Khrushchev caused that in the discussion there appeared new, undesirable (from the point of view of the authorities) elements. The monolith of power started to crumble, and in its cracks one could notice a game of various intentions and interests. This occurred both in Warsaw and in the provinces. However, beyond Warsaw the changes took place more slowly and had a somewhat different dynamics. Szczecin is an interesting example of the influence of the Moscow events of February 1956 on the debate and the distribution of power in local party structures.

Keywords

EN

Communism; the Khrushchev Thaw of 1956; “The Secret Speech” of Nikita Khrushchev; the local party machine; propaganda

• Publisher: Towarzystwo Naukowe w Toruniu
• Journal: Zapiski Historyczne
• Year: 2012
• Volume: 77
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 139-160

Contributors

author

Eryk Krasucki

• Instytut Historii i Stosunków Międzynarodowych USz