In February 1956, in one of the most earth-shattering speeches in history, the Soviet leader, Nikita Khrushchev, vigorously denounced some of the worst aspects of the rule of his predecessor, Joseph Stalin. In particular, Stalin was blamed for purging vast numbers of innocent party members (see Box 1).
The Great Terror was a main focus of Khrushchev’s attack. It was known about before his speech, but it was shrouded in mystery and subject to speculations that have still not been dispelled by widening knowledge. Even after the speech there were many unanswered questions. Why had it happened? How many victims had there been? Who had carried it out?
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