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GCSE History · key term
The process of moving away from aspects of Stalin’s rule, including criticism of his personal dictatorship and repression; it did not mean abandoning communism or Soviet control of Eastern Europe.
Used by AQA and Edexcel
Paper 1
Khrushchev’s policy of criticising Stalin’s rule and moving away from some of his methods of government.
Revise: The ‘Thaw’In 1956, Khrushchev also criticised Stalin’s rule and began de-Stalinisation. This encouraged hopes of reform within the communist world. However, relaxing some methods of government was not the same as allowing Soviet-controlled countries to become independent.
Paper 2, Paper 3
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In February 1956, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev delivered his Secret Speech to the Soviet Communist Party’s Twentieth Congress. He criticised Stalin’s cult of personality—the glorification of Stalin as an unquestionable leader—and his use of terror. This de-Stalinisation encouraged hopes that communist rule might become less harsh.
The criticism and rejection of aspects of Stalin’s rule, particularly his use of terror, associated with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev after Stalin’s death.