Leadership in the Uprising: Comparison of Different Uprising

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After the Second World War, the Soviet Union spread their political ideology among the countries of East Central Europe. Instantly, Josef Stalin spread Stalinization across each of the countries to assert Soviet control. He created totalitarian governments with limited freedoms for its citizens. Following the death of Stalin, the new leader of the Soviet Union, Nika Khrushchev, began changing the repressive policies of Stalin, opening the doors to the countries of East Central Europe to challenge the rule of the Soviets. Using the Soviet Thaw as an opportunity to reform the system of government, many countries including Hungary and Czechoslovakia had uprisings against Soviet Rule. The Hungarian Revolution and the Prague Spring were uprisings against the Soviet Union that both ended in defeat with Soviet Union. However, the outcomes for both countries differed in many ways because of the differences in the motives for the uprising, the loss of life and the differences in the leadership of the uprisings. One difference between the Hungarians and the Czechs was the effects of nationalism on the uprisings. Rooted in their history from 1848 Revolution against the Habsburg Empire, the Hungarians sought independence with the death of Stalin. Matyas Rakoski, a Stalin protégé, came to power as General Secretary of the Hungarian Worker’s Party in 1949. Using his authority as General Secretary, Rakoski oppressed the people of Hungary including purging political dissidents and killing 2,000 people of the total population. He used the State Protection Agency to carry out the purges bringing in an administration of absolute control and fear to the people of Hungary. But, the Hungarians would not completely abandon their nationalist hop... ... middle of paper ... ...e from any opposition, which crippled the country’s economy. The loss of life had profound effects on the aftermaths of the revolutions because it limited any vocal opposition of the Soviet Parties. It was not until the end of Soviet rule that citizens could try to reform the government. The Hungarian Revolution and the Prague Spring were attempted uprisings against the Soviet Union that ultimately ended in defeats. The Hungarians and the Czechs tried to undermine the power of the Soviets when the respective countries were affected with economic downturns and civil oppression. Although these uprisings differed in leadership, nationalism and loss of life, the Soviet managed to continue asserting their control of these countries until the fall of communism in 1989. The two uprisings set the foundation of the collapse of communism within the to respective countries.

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