Moscow Trials

The Moscow trials were three trials during the 1930's period of "the Great Terror" in which Stalin used his power to remove members of the Old Bolshevik party in order to solidify his totalitarian authority. The main goal of the trials was to purge Stalin's political opponents from power in order to fortify his control. In each one, members of the Old Bolshevik party were put on trial for crimes such as murder, terrorism, espionage, and political conspiracy. Rather than being indicted due to specific evidence of crime, the defendants were abused, blackmailed, and given false promises until they confessed. These trials were extremely biased and demonstrated Stalin's ability to manipulate others through threats and violence.

"Stalin required not only submission but complicity."
Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1386999/Stalin-Joseph-Mengele-Nazi-jet-fighter-New-book-Annie-Jacobsen-reveals-real-story-alien-landing-Roswell.html

The period of "the Great Terror" began following the assassination of Bolshevik leader Sergei Kirov. During this time Stalin framed communist party members with the murder of Kirov, plots to murder others, and betrayal against the party. Stalin did not only target political opponents, he also arrested civilians and sent them to gulags or killed them. As a result of this period the work camps in A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich were formed. According to Gale World History, "The historian Robert Conquest puts at 3 million the number who were executed or died in the camps during the height of the terror, 1936-38. Estimates of the total number of Stalin's victims--by execution, by illness and overwork in prison camps, by starvation as a result of failed economic policies--have ranged upward to 20 million."

"One by one, the defendants agreed to admit their guilt in open court in return for Stalin's guarantee that their lives and those of their families would be spared."
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Show_trial

The first of the three trials took place in August 1936 in the Trade Union House in Moscow. Stalin's main goal was to arrest Old Bolsheviks Lev Kamenev and Grigori Zinoviev. These two men stood in the courthouse accompanied by other party members having already been deprived of sleep and beaten in order to lower their morals and encourage their submission to Stalin's accusations. The men were charged with taking part in Kirov's assassination, plots to kill Stalin and other leaders, and connections with the exiled Trotsky. Most confessed right away due to promises that their lives and those of their families would be spared. However, one man named Smirnov would not accept the accusation and fought to prove that the trial was unfair and did not provide any evidence. The other defendants testified against Smirnov due to the persuasion and abuse of Stalin's men and he was ultimately declared guilty as long with the others. The defendants all new from the start that they had no chance at a fair trial so most complied with Stalin in hopes to spare their lives. Despite his promises, the Old Bolsheviks on trial were all killed along with many of their family members because according to Stalin, their relation to the guilty was considered a crime. 

"I demand that these dogs gone mad should be shot--every one of them," -Andrey Vyshinsky (Chief Prosecutor)
Source: http://themoscownews.com/news/20101004/1880965333.html

Following the first trial, Stalin replaced the head of his police force with Nikolai Yezhov. Under his lead "the Great Terror" developed into its most brutal phase which was named Yezhovshchina. It was during this time period that the second Moscow trial took place beginning January 23, 1937. In this trial only 17 men were accused. They had all been members of the Bolshevik party but Stalin gave them a new label, "The Anti-Soviet Trotskyite Center." These men were accused of attempting to destroy Russia's economy and spying for Japan and Germany all under the command of Trotsky. The men admitted to multiple terrorists acts that weakened the agricultural and industrial economies. It is unclear whether any of this is true or not due to Stalin's powers of persuasion through threats and abuse. At the close of the trial, all the men were shot except two who were sent to work camps and died there. 

"In a few hours, you will pass your sentence. And here I stand before you in filth, crushed by my own crimes, bereft of everything through my own fault, a man who has lost his party, who has no friends, who has lost his very self." -Grigori Pyatakov (A chief target in the second Moscow Trial)
Source: http://codoh.com/library/document/2703/

The third and final trial was said to be more of a grand finale or victory parade for Stalin. He had already purged all political threats from the country and "the Great Terror" was running so wild and powerfully that Stalin's police force could arrest people anywhere. The men on trial included Stalin's chief of police during the first phase of the terror and members of Lenin's Politburo. The crimes were similar to those before including plans to assassinate Stalin, espionage, attempting to restore capitalism, and working with Trotsky. The economic problems and agricultural failure in Russia was blamed on the defendants and they willingly accepted the guilt. All but one man, Nikolai Krestinsky, pleaded guilty of all charges. However, at the end of the second day of trail he caved in and confessed after a suspected night of beatings and torture in the Lubyanka prison. A witness present at the trial described the way he looked as, "more than ever like a small bedraggled sparrow." Without surprise, all the defendants were again found guilty and 19 out of the 22 men were killed right away while the others were banished to gulags. 

"The purge left a legacy of state-sponsored terror in the Soviet Union as well as a permanent system of labor camps--the Gulag--to which dissidents of all types could be banished."
Source: https://roadtrippers.com/blog/gulag-themed-holidays-are-all-the-rage-in-sunny-siberia

Moscow trials relate to A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich because the period in which they took place lead to the rise of gulags as a punishment for those against Stalin and communism. They demonstrate how anyone can be found guilty of a crime even if there is no concrete evidence and they are innocent. For example, Shukov was sent to the work camps because he was captured while fighting for his country. This shows how Stalin was ruthless in his accusation and felt no guilt sending people to gulags. The trials display how no one was safe from punishment in the Communist environment as even men who were powerful political figures were arrested and killed.  In the novel, despite Tsezar's wealth, he is not protected and is sentenced to life in a gulag. The trials were a way for Stalin to get rid off his political enemies while covering up the murders by accusing them of crime.               
                   
                       



External Links:
http://soviethistory.macalester.edu/index.php?page=subject&SubjectID=1936terror&Year=1936

http://www.wsws.org/exhibits/1937/lecture1.htm 

"The Moscow Purge Trials: 1936 and 1937-38." Great World Trials. Detroit: Gale Research, 1994. World History in Context. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.

Marrin, Albert. "Stalin, Joseph." Academic World Book. World Book, 2014. Web. 11 Dec. 2014.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Show_trial