Part 2/7:
Stalin's fear of dissent manifested in widespread arrests of former Bolsheviks, military personnel, and even ordinary citizens. By 1938, the impact of these actions had severely weakened the Soviet Union's infrastructure, economy, and military capacity, with hundreds of thousands executed—a landscape of devastation that historically overshadows the achievements of the era.
Amid this chaos, Nikolai Yezhov would rise to prominence. Born on May 1, 1895, in St. Petersburg, Yezhov came from humble beginnings and faced numerous struggles in his early life. Despite his short stature and modest education, he enlisted in the Imperial Russian Army and later joined the Bolshevik Party, participating in the Russian Civil War.