Joseph Stalin served as General Secretary of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1953. During the 1930s he managed to consolidate enough power to become the country's dictator.
Stalin executed his "5 Year plan", where the country underwent agricultural collectivization. This plan involved the seize and administration of all agricultural lands by the government. This would eventually lead to overall mismanagement of crop production which resulted in the great famine of 1932. The government would start facing opposition in the face of this event, but Stalin would execute "the Great Purge", where he would imprison over a million politically opposed citizens. It is believed that 700000 of those imprisoned were executed.
