The economic situation during the great patriotic war and modernmilitary policy

1

Plan

The entry………………………………………………………………………...….2

1.The Soviet Navy at the Outbreak and During the Great Patriotic War: Introduction………………………………………………………………………...3

2. The second period of the Great Patriotic War…………………………………...7

The list of literature.………………………………………………………………11

The entry

At the first session of the USSR Supreme Council, held January 1938, V.M. Molotov, the Chairman of the People's Commissar Council, declared the following: “Our mighty Soviet power must have such sea and ocean fleet that would comply with her interests and would be worthy of our great mission”. The Soviet Premier's words reflected the point of view of the USSR government - first of all, its head - Stalin - which had undergone significant changes concerning the main aspects of the further Navy formation process. It was exactly the time when the 10-year “Big Shipbuilding Programme” was introduced in accordance with which it was planned to start battleships and heavy cruisers construction which would represent ocean might and strength of the country.

Following the initial version of the 19-year programme, by 1946, the Soviet Fleet would have had 15 battleships, 15 heavy and 28 light cruisers, 144 destroyers, 336 submarines, dozens of ships of other types and hundreds of battle boats.

1. The Soviet Navy at the Outbreak and During the Great Patriotic War: Introduction

Thus, in contrast to the first and second “piatiletka” (five-year plan introduced by the Soviet government) where the main attention had been focused on means and instruments for a “small-scale war” at sea and, first and foremost, submarines, the “Big Shipbuilding Programme” was chiefly concentrated on battleships and cruisers construction.

However, the emphasis placed on large surface ships building did not exactly correspond to the demands of naval science as well as to the existing points of view on warfare at sea. In connection with rapid development of aviation and submarines, the era of battleships might and total supremacy was coming to its end.

There is no doubt that orientation of the Soviet shipbuilding policy was, to a large extent, influenced by those impressive results and experience shown by the leading sea powers which continued intensive battleships construction. In the middle of the 1930s, at the shipyards of six countries there were as many as 20 battleships under construction, though the proportion of the large surface ships in the foreign fleets became smaller. Though, they still continued to construct aircraft-carriers.

The fact that the USSR economy could not support and secure the construction of such a fleet was quite obvious. The construction costs of only four first battleships of the Soviet Union type amounted to as much as a quarter of the country annual budget. Nowadays, it is not a secret anymore that implementation of the plans drawn up for the 1st and 2nd piatiletkas had been systematically undermined. On the whole, both piatiletkas remained unfulfilled. The system of financing the current construction on account of future plans advances flourished. Thus, the percentage of “unfinished ships” increased.

Formation and further development of extended fleet required some re-organization and modernization of the fleet management system as well as enhancement and diversification of the shipbuilding industry management. In December, 1937, the People's Commissariat of the Navy was established, and in January 1939 - People's Commissariat of the Shipbuilding Industry.

Five major groups of shipbuilding factories and shipyards started to appear: Leningrad group, South group, Far-Eastern group, Northern group and the Central one (river group). The first two produced up to 2/3 of total shipbuilding output.

15 July, 1938, the foundations of the first new battleship the Soviet Union (project 23) were laid at the Baltic Shipyards in Leningrad. B.G. Chilikin was the chief designer of that ship. Prominent naval scientists such as A.N. Krylov, Y.A. Shimanskiy, P.E. Papkovich, V.G. Vlasov provided consulting services to him.

Two years after this lead battleship construction, three more battleships were laid: the Soviet Ukraine in Nikolaev, the soviet Russia and the Soviet Belorussia in Molotovsk (Severodvinsk since 1957). It was a common notion that the soviet-made battleships would be the world's largest war ships. Their standard displacement was 59 150 tons with length of 260 m, breadth of 38 m and draft of 9.27 m. With a nominal main engines capacity of 201 000 horse-power, the battleship could develop a speed of 28 knots. Her main caliber battery included ten 406-mm weapons in three turrets. The main armour belt thickness reached 402 mm. The battleships construction process took a very slow pace. Technical output plans were broken mainly due to constant delays in materials and equipment delivery. By the end of 1940, readiness availability of the Soviet Union was 19, 44% while the Soviet Ukraine - only 7%.

In November, 1939, heavy cruisers the Kronshtadt (Leningrad) and the Sebastopol (Nikolaev) under project 69 were laid. Their displacement capacity was approximately 35 000 tons. Main caliber battery consisted of nine 305-mm weapons in their three-gun turrets. Total speed was 32 knots. By the beginning of the war, the cruisers readiness availability reached 12%.

In September, 1938, lead light cruiser the Kirov under project 26, which had been laid in Leningrad in October 1935, was put into service. Her chief designer was A.I. Maslov. Two years later, the Baltic Sea Fleet added to its arsenal another light cruiser the Maxim Gorky under project 26-bis, while the Black Sea Fleet, right at the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War, was equipped with the new cruisers Voroshilov and Molotov. All these four cruisers took an active part in the war, were damaged in the course of sea battles but still remained in operation. In Komsomolsk-on-Amur, light cruisers the Kalinin and the Lazar Kaganovich of project 26-bis were under construction. They were allotted to the Pacific Ocean Fleet during the war years.

19 October, 1940, the Soviet government made a decision on termination of the battleships and heavy cruisers construction, while one of the battleships under construction was sent for disassembling. It was ordered to concentrate all their efforts on small-size and medium-size warships building and to continue completion of large ships with high percentage of readiness availability. On the whole, the Soviet shipbuilding was once again re-directed for submarines and light surface ships construction. Nevertheless, the completion of ships of various classes, laid before, continued.

The next stage of the Soviet-cruiser-building was design and keel-laying of the light cruisers under project 68. Seven cruisers in accordance with this project were laid in Leningrad and Nikolaev in 1939-1940. They managed to launch five of them before the war started.

By the beginning of the Great Patriotic war, the lead cruiser Chapaev was finished by 35%. She was commissioned in 1950 under project 68K, which had been revised and modified taking into account the battle experience (chief designer - N.A. Kiselev). An extended series of cruisers was constructed following the project 68-bis (chief designer - A.S. Savichev). The lead cruiser Sverdlov was allotted to the Baltic Fleet in 1952.

In 1938-1941 as well as during the war, the Soviet Fleets were constantly equipped with new destroyers of project 7 and project 7U.

A new torpedo-boat destroyer, under project 30, was designed by the group of constructors headed by A.M. Yunovidov. The lead ship of this series, the Ognevoy, was laid in NIkolaev in August 1939. It was planned to put her to the standard receiving-passing tests in December 1941. Unfortunately, the war delayed further construction of Ognevoy. She was completed and commissioned in Poty in 1944-1945. Before the war, ten hulls of future torpedo-boat destroyers under project 30 had been built.

Mass construction of new destroyers began only in the first post-war decade following a modified and improved project 30-bis this time. Welded-hull destroyers were armed with four 130-mm guns in two turrets and equipped with radar installations and sonar devices.

After a rather lengthy pause, design and construction of guard-ships resumed. In 1937-1039, a design office headed by Y.A. Koperzhinskiy worked out a project of guard-ship the Yastreb (“Hawk”) of project 29. They managed to launch six ships of this series before the war. During the war years (1944), the lead ship Yastreb, under the improved project 29, was allotted to the fleet. Displacement of this guard-ship was 998 tons, speed - 33, 5 knots; she was armed with three 100-mm guns and four 37-mm anti-aircraft guns. She also had three-tube 450-mm torpedo-tube. As many as 24 mines could be taken on her board. Two bomb-release gears with depth-charges complexes were fixed on her stern. The rest five ships launched were completed after the war following the project 29K.

In 1938, following the order of the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs, a frontier-guard ship of project 122 was designed. Having slightly modified it, the Soviet Navy used this project as a large submarine-chaser. Under the project 122A (chief designer N.G. Loschinskiy), a series of big submarine-chasers was laid. The first two - the Artillerist and the Miner - were allotted to the Caspian Sea flotilla in November 1941. Three years later, they, together with other ships of this project, were re-based to the Black Sea Fleet.

At the outbreak and during the war, a large number of small-size submarine-chasers of MO-2 and MO-4 type with displacement of 56 tons and full speed of 25, 5 knots were built (chief designer - L.L. Ermash). These ships had wooden hulls. Their battery included two 45-mm guns as well as two bomb-release gears with depth-charges sets. They could take on board four mines. Apart from that, each chaser was equipped with portable hydro-phone station.

Since 1943, the fleet started being equipped with small-size submarine-chasers of OD-200 type with displacement of 47 tons and speed of 28 knots. Their battery consisted of 37-mm and 25-mm guns. Total number of small submarine-chasers of MO-2, MO-4 and OD-200 types reached 334 units. The ships of these series became the most universal and multi-purpose ships of the Great Patriotic War. They landed troops, were on patrol duty, escorted transports and submarines as well as suppressed fire sectors on shore.

Armoured small-size submarine-chasers of project 194 (chief designer A.N. Tyushkevich) were built in besieged Leningrad and were sent to the Baltic Fleet since 1943. Their displacement capacity was 61 tons with a speed reaching 23 knots; their battery included one 45-mm gun and 37-mm submachine gun, two bomb-release gears with depth-charges and hydro-acoustic station. In all, 66 armoured chasers were built. They were aimed for action in skerry areas, and were to provide fire-support of the land forces and participate in landing operations.

2. The second period of the Great Patriotic War

The second period of the Great Patriotic War (November 1942 - end of 1943) was marked by the Soviet troops counter-offensive operation and defeat of the 330 000-strong group of Germans near Sebastopol. Resulting from the increased military production output and extension of military reserves, the USSR managed to gain both economic and military superiority over Nazi Germany.

During this period, the Navy continued to assist the land troops on the sea-coast flanks and started to take a more active part in military operations on the sea lines of communication. The river flotillas provided direct fire-support of the troops. Fleets and flotillas kept on landing operational and tactical troops, carrying out troops and equipment transportation on the sea and river routes. An important role was played by the Volga River military flotilla which was responsible for securing Volga River strategic oil-communication. The Black Sea Fleet conducted a number of landing operations in districts of Novorossiysk, Taganrog and Mariupol. The Kerch-Eltingen landing operation resulted in Kerch beachhead capture which later allowed us to accomplish successful military operations for liberation of the Crimea.

Unlike the first period of the GPW, when it was mainly submarines that were active on the sea lines of communication, beginning from 1943 they started to engage aviation on a large scale. Almost half of the enemy sank transport tonnage is the result of the aviation attacks. Airplanes with mine-torpedo weapons were added to the fleets Air Forces' armoury. Aviation started to play a key role in the operations directed at enemy sea transportation lines undermining. Submarines activity was to a large extent hindered by the poor instrumentation and equipment of repair depots with modern machinery and appliances, while at the Baltic Sea Fleet they had to deal with powerful anti-submarine constructions erected by the enemy. The fact that the Soviet Air Forces finally managed to win air superiority and equip the ships with efficient anti-aircraft guns was conducive to the anti-aircraft defence enhancement. The most valuable sea shipping started being covered by fighters. Moreover, losses of ships while transporting cargoes reduced.

The third period of the GPW (January 1944-May 1945) was marked by the USSR Army conducting offensive operations on all the battle-fronts. The Navy participated in most of them.

With the joint efforts of the Leningrad and Volkhov fronts together with the Baltic Sea fleet, the 900-day-long blockade of Leningrad was raised. The naval artillery and aviation, by waging an attack, helped our troops to break the enemy defense. The fleet carried out transportation of the 2nd attack army troops to the Oranienbaum beachhead. In September-October 1944, together with the Leningrad front troops, the fleet conducted successful operations for the Moonzund Islands liberation. In the course of the offensive along the Ukrainian right sea-coast, the Soviet troops reached the USSR frontier and then stepped on the Romanian territory.

The 4th Ukrainian front troops, supported by the independent Priozersk army and Black Sea Fleet, liberated the Crimea.

Throughout the third period of the war, the main operational activity of the fleets and flotillas included the following: landing of sea and river landing force; artillery support of the army flanks; transportation of the troops, equipment and machinery. The Fleet proved itself to be a powerful striking force capable of making abrupt, unexpected changes in the coastal land forces operation zone. The fleets' independently-conducted operations usually included, first of all, submarine and naval aviation operations in the North, on the Black and Baltic Seas. It is in those operations that the Soviet Air Forces achieved its greatest and most impressive results.

During the war against Japan in August-September 1945, the Pacific Ocean Fleet successfully landed a number of operational and tactical landing bodies. In close cooperation with the Soviet Army units, the fleet liberated South Sakhalin, Kuril Islands, ports along the Korea eastern coast and Port-Artur. Each level of government provides many direct services. The federal government, for example, is responsible for national defense, backs research that often leads to the development of new products, conducts space exploration, and runs numerous programs designed to help workers develop workplace skills and find jobs. Government spending has a significant effect on local and regional economies and even on the overall pace of economic activity.

State governments, meanwhile, are responsible for the construction and maintenance of most highways. State, county, or city governments play the leading role in financing and operating public schools. Local governments are primarily responsible for police and fire protection. Government spending in each of these areas can also affect local and regional economies, although federal decisions generally have the greatest economic impact.

Overall, federal, state, and local spending accounted for almost 28 percent of gross domestic product in 1998.

Government also provides many kinds of help to businesses and individuals. It offers low-interest loans and technical assistance to small businesses, and it provides loans to help students attend college. Government-sponsored enterprises buy home mortgages from lenders and turn them into securities that can be bought and sold by investors, thereby encouraging home lending. Government also actively promotes exports and seeks to prevent foreign countries from maintaining trade barriers that restrict imports.

Government supports individuals who cannot or will not adequately care for themselves. Social Security, which is financed by a tax on employers and employees, accounts for the largest retirement income. The Medicare program pays for many of the medical costs of the elderly. The Medicaid program finances medical care for low-income families. In many states, government maintains institutions for the mentally ill or people with severe disabilities. The federal government provides food stamps to help poor families obtain food, and the federal and state governments jointly provide welfare grants to support low-income parents with children.

The national debt, also known as the U.S. public debt and the gross federal debt, is the overall collective sum of yearly federal budget deficits owed by the United States federal government. The economic significance of this debt and its potential ramifications for future generations of Americans are controversial issues in the United States.

This does not take into account absolute income levels. If, for instance, one country's poorest are richer than another country's average, then the inequality comparison becomes less meaningful.

The list of literature

1. Wodehouse P.G. The Code of the Woosters. - London: Penguin Books Ltd, 1974. - 224 p.

2. Wodehouse P.G. Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit//Five Complete Novels. - New York: Gramercy Book, 1983. - P. 140-280.

3. Wodehouse P.G. Jeeves in the Offing. - London: Penguin Books Ltd, 2000. - 250 p.

4. Wodehouse P.G. Right Ho, Jeeves. - London: Penguin Books Ltd, 1973. - 230 p.

5. Wodehouse P.G. Spring Fever//Five Complete Novels. - New York: Gramercy Book, 1983. - P. 282-439.

6. Wodehouse P.G. Thank You, Jeeves// The Jeeves Omnibus 1. London: Hutchinson, 1989. - P. 5-180.

7. Wodehouse P.G. Very Good, Jeeves. - London: Penguin Books Ltd, 2000. - 254 p.

8. The Wordsworth Dictionary of Quotations. London: Wordsworth Editions Ltd, 1998. - 760 p.