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He was born on this date.Born to a poor family in Gori in the Russian Empire (now Georgia).
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Stalin assumed leadership over the country following Lenin's 1924 death. Under Stalin, "socialism in one country" became a central tenet of the party's dogma. Through the Five-Year Plans, the country underwent agricultural collectivisation and rapid industrialisation, creating a centralised command economy.
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Serious disruptions in food production began, leading to the famine of 1932-1933.
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To eradicate accused "enemies of the working class", Stalin instituted the "Great Purge", in which over a million were imprisoned and at least 700,000 executed between 1934 and 1939. By 1937, he had complete personal control over the party and state.
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Stalin's government promoted Marxism–Leninism abroad through the Communist International and supported European anti-fascist movements during the 1930s, particularly in the Spanish Civil War. In 1939, it signed a non-aggression pact with Nazi Germany.
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Germany ended the pact by invading the Soviet Union in 1941.
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Despite initial setbacks, the Soviet Red Army repelled the German incursion and captured Berlin in 1945, ending World War II in Europe.
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