Edexcel A Level History Paper 1 option: Russia, 1917-91: from Lenin to Yeltsin June 2017 question paper 9HI0/1E

How accurate is it to say that the nature of government under Lenin and Stalin was markedly different?

How far do you agree that the benefits of Stalin’s economic policies outweighed the costs in the years 1928–50?

How accurate is it to say that the status of women was transformed under Soviet rule in the years 1917–85?

How significant was the role of the secret police in maintaining communist control in the years 1917–85?

Study Extracts 1 and 2 in the Extracts Booklet before you answer this question.

In the light of differing interpretations, how convincing do you find the view that the USSR collapsed in 1991 because Gorbachev’s confidence in his reform policies ‘proved gravely misplaced’ (Extract 1, line 9)?

To explain your answer, analyse and evaluate the material in both extracts, using your own knowledge of the issues.