Soviet controls on the circulation of information in the 1920s and 1930s

Historians long have recognized that Stalin and his supporters controlled the circulation of information in order to acquire, exercise, and maintain power. However, few historians to date have sought to consider the consequences of this manipulation on the archives that our research depends on. Thus this article begins with some observations apropos the means utilized by the pre-war "apparat" (the Soviet political machine) to control information. These observations are based on the author's research since 1992 in a variety of Russian archives, both in Moscow and in regional centers. Treated in detail are Stalin-era controls based on limited access to information (classification by topic) and some special information-handling procedures. In addition, the classification scheme used from 1927 until the outbreak of the Second World War is published for the first time. The article concludes by examining the general implications of these controls as well as their practical importance for historical research on the USSR.