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Microphone
In 1878 David Hughes invented the microphone. The microphone is important because it is a huge part of our every day life. The microphone is behind the scenes in music, movies TV shows, etc. ("the history of microphones") -
Birth
Joseph Stalin was born on December 18, 1878. His mother's name was Ketevan Geladze who was a housemaid. His father was a shoe cobbler and his name was Besarion Jughashvili. He was born in Georgia, a republic of Russia. As a child he got small pox. He was often bullied by other children. (History.com). -
Light bulb
In 1879 Thomas Edison invented the light bulb. The light bulb is important because today it is our number one light source. We use the light bulb in homes, flashlights and in transportation. (history.com). -
Finger Prints
In 1885, Sir Francis Galton proved the individuality of finger prints. This is important today because finger prints help police detectives solve many crimes. ("Sir Francis Galton") -
China vs. Japan
In 1895 the Japanese beat the Chinese, in the China-Japan war. This is important because it showed that Japan is now a world power. ("Sino-Japanese war") -
Cuba
In 1898, Cuba became its own independent country. This is important because Cuba developed links to the Soviet Union. ("Cuba"). -
Alpha Beta rays
In 1899 Ernest Rutherford discovered Alpha and Beta rays in his gold foil experiment. This is important because he won a Nobel peace prize in 1908 because of this. ("exploring radioactivity") -
Names
In 1913 Joseph adopted the last name "Stalin" which means "Man of Steel". Stalin also named streets, towns, and factories after himself. He even named a new metal after himself, "Stalinite". (Beck 775) -
Communist Party
In 1922 Stalin was elected to be the General secretary of the communist party. (Bankston) -
Lenin's death
In 1924 the Russian leader Vladimir Lenin died. And from his death, Stalin gained a lot of power. (Bankston). -
Five year plan
In 1928 Stalin developed a five year plan to develop a better economy for the Soviet Union. The plan was to increase production of steel, coal, oil, and electricity. This plan ended up causing a famine. (Beck 776-777). -
The Great Purge
In the 1930’s Stalin obtained nearly total power from the Great Purge. The Great Purge was a period of extreme persecution and oppression in Soviet Union in the late 1930’s. Stalin used his secret police to eliminate anyone who could be a threat to his power. A few thousand people were put on trial and ultimately executed. During Stalin’s purge, somewhere between 8 and 13 million people were killed. (Trueman). -
World War II
Stalin took control of parts of eastern Europe such as Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland. (Beck 822). Stalin used the Scorched-Earth policy in his list of tactics to prevent German victory. Eventually Stalin formed an alliance with the United States and Great Britain, the alliance was called the “Allies”. (Beck 829). The decisions Stalin made in World War II helped the Soviet Union to victory. -
Non-Aggression Pact with Hitler
Stalin signed a 10-year non-aggression pact with Hitler that meant that the Soviet Union and Germany would be peaceful for 10 years. It also stated that the Soviet Union and Germany would have control over Poland. Ultimately, Hitler went against the non-aggression pact by invading the Soviet Union and the Soviet Union was not prepared at all for Hitler’s invasion. (Beck 821). -
Poland
On September 17, 1939 Stalin sent troops to occupy the eastern half of Poland as he agreed to in his non-aggression pact with Hitler. The invasion of Poland added territory to the Soviet Union. (Beck). -
Death
Joseph Stalin made some good decisions and some really bad decisions, one of them was killing millions of his own people. The most significant event about Joseph Stalin was his role in World War II because so many people were killed across the world and his decision to make an alliance with the United States and Great Britain most likely saved millions of lives. (Beck).
