USSR, 1921–1928
Autocracy · Republic · Eastern Europe · Interwar Years era
The early Soviet Union under the New Economic Policy, a one-party state permitting limited markets as the succession struggle after Lenin unfolded.
After civil war and famine, the Bolshevik state adopted the New Economic Policy, restoring limited private trade and peasant markets while the Communist Party retained a monopoly on political power and controlled heavy industry, banking and security. The period combined economic recovery with the consolidation of a one-party dictatorship. The succession struggle after Lenin’s death ended with Stalin’s ascendancy and the abandonment of NEP.
Dominant patterns
- Authoritarian Shift
- Succession Crisis
- Personalist Rule
- Revolutionary Risk
- Economic Crisis
Political-science factor profile
Each factor 0–100; higher = stronger authoritarian / crisis pole (except institutional stability, where higher = stronger institutions).
| Centralization of Power | 70 |
| Media Control | 68 |
| Repression | 62 |
| Nationalism | 45 |
| Militarization | 60 |
| Economic Stress | 55 |
| External Conflict | 45 |
| Cult of Personality | 50 |
| Elite Fragmentation | 62 |
| Institutions | 52 |
| Social Polarization | 60 |
| Corruption & Patrimonialism | 50 |
| Ideological Mobilization | 78 |
| External Sovereignty | 95 |
Economy & society
| GDP per capita | $1400 (intl-$) |
| GDP growth | +6%/yr |
| Population | 148.0M people |
| Share of world population | 7.4% |
| Urban share | 18% |
| Territory | ~21.0M km² |
| Capital population | ~1.8M |
Closest historical twins
The country-eras whose structural profile most resembles USSR 1921–1928, by similarity score (0–100).
- China, 1978–1989 – similarity 75/100 · shared: Authoritarian Shift, Personalist Rule
- China, 1949–1965 – similarity 72/100 · shared: Authoritarian Shift, Personalist Rule, Economic Crisis
- China, 1966–1976 – similarity 71/100 · shared: Authoritarian Shift, Personalist Rule, Revolutionary Risk
- Brazil, 1937–1945 – similarity 71/100 · shared: Authoritarian Shift, Personalist Rule
- Ghana, 1957–1966 – similarity 71/100 · shared: Authoritarian Shift, Personalist Rule, Revolutionary Risk, Economic Crisis
- Yugoslavia, 1945–1980 – similarity 70/100 · shared: Authoritarian Shift, Personalist Rule
- Iran, 1979–2024 – similarity 70/100 · shared: Authoritarian Shift, Personalist Rule, Economic Crisis
- USSR, 1953–1964 – similarity 69/100 · shared: Authoritarian Shift, Personalist Rule
What followed
- Economic recovery under mixed NEP policies.
- Stalin’s rise and the end of NEP.