{"id":2719,"date":"2022-09-28T20:23:07","date_gmt":"2022-09-28T20:23:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.historydefined.net\/?p=2719"},"modified":"2022-09-28T20:23:20","modified_gmt":"2022-09-28T20:23:20","slug":"photos-of-a-young-joseph-stalin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.historydefined.net\/photos-of-a-young-joseph-stalin\/","title":{"rendered":"Photos of a Young Joseph Stalin, 1878-1921"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Joseph Stalin was born on December 18, 1878, in the peasant village of Gori, Georgia, to Vissarion Dzhugashvili, a cobbler, and his wife, Yekaterina. Because his parents were strict Georgian Orthodox Christians, Stalin had a very religious upbringing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like many poor children in the Russian Empire, Stalin suffered numerous ailments as a child. He contracted smallpox, which left him with pockmarks on his face, and he also suffered from an undiagnosed physical condition that left one of his arms slightly deformed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At seven, Stalin began attending the local church school in Gori. Despite the occasional fight and behavioral issues, he excelled academically. Many of his teachers predicted he would go on to great things.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Stalin’s mother and father<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Likely stemming from the poverty he grew up in and his physical hardships, Stalin forever had a chip on his shoulder. But unfortunately, this chip also molded Stalin into the cruel, calculating leader he became.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As he neared adulthood, the Tiflis Theological Seminary accepted Stalin into its ranks in 1894. But, unlike at home, he was an average seminary student as he began to focus more on politics than religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 1899, Stalin left the seminary and was a full-time revolutionary. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike famous Bolsheviks like Lenin and Trotsky, Stalin was never a talented intellectual or fiery orator. Instead, he focused on the day-to-day aspects of the revolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stalin risked arrest on the ground, organizing strikes, passing out literature, and committing crimes to fund the party. He wasn’t one of those Bolsheviks who led comfy lives abroad leading up to the Russian Revolution. Instead, he spent almost two decades as a wanted man on the run or in prison. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 1917 when the Bolsheviks seized power, Stalin was an influential party member who Lenin rewarded with various leadership posts. In 1922, Stalin was the General Secretary of the Communist Party’s Central Committee. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stalin understood something about power in the new Russia that others didn’t: the one who controls the people controls the party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Young
Young Joseph Stalin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Over the next few years, Stalin quietly consolidated power by building a loyal base through appointments and promotions within the party. By the time Lenin died in 1924, almost anyone who was anyone in the Communist party owed it to Stalin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Between 1924 and 1929, Stalin purged political opponents like Kamenev, Zinoviev, and Trotsky, resulting in him becoming the absolute ruler of the USSR. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

During his years in power, Stalin transformed the Soviet Union from a peasant society into an industrial powerhouse. However, many characterize him as a brutal authoritarian who took the lives of millions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stalin passed away in 1953 from a cerebral hemorrhage.<\/a> Today, his legacy is still a matter of debate. Some people view him as a great leader who transformed the Soviet Union into a world power. Others view him as a cruel dictator who took the lives of millions of innocent people.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s take a look at some photos of a young Joseph Stalin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Joseph
Joseph Stalin at the age of 15, 1894.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Stalin
Photo of Stalin with his classmates c. 1892. Third from the left in the standing row.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"A
A school photo of Stalin while he attended the Gori Religious School, 1893.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"17-year-old
17-year-old Joseph Stalin while he was a student at the Tiflis Seminary<\/a>, 1896<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
A 1901 mugshot of Stalin when he was 23.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
A 1908 Mugshot of Stalin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Stalin
Stalin after his return from Exile, 1911.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Imperial
Imperial Police file on Stalin, 1911.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Stalin’s criminal file after being arrested in Baku, Azerbaijan, 1910. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Stalin back from exile, 1911.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Stalin
Stalin enjoying a rolled cigarette, 1915.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Stalin
Stalin with a group of Bolsheviks, 1913. Standing third from the left.
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Joseph
Joseph Stalin in 1917<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Stalin,
Stalin, 1918<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Stalin
Stalin poses with Vladimir Lenin and Mikhail Kalinin, 1919.
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Joseph
Joseph Stalin in 1920<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Stalin wearing an\u00a0Order of the Red Banner.\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Joseph Stalin was born on December 18, 1878, in the peasant village of Gori, Georgia, to Vissarion Dzhugashvili, a cobbler, and his wife, Yekaterina. Because his parents were strict Georgian Orthodox Christians, Stalin had a very religious upbringing. Like many poor children in the Russian Empire, Stalin suffered numerous ailments as a child. He contracted […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2725,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[20,24,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2719","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-modern","category-people","category-ww2"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t