Stalin's building mania

Blair152

Banned
The title's correct. Hitler wasn't the only dictator with building mania. Stalin
was too. I saw a program a few years ago which said that Stalin wanted to build a monument to the Soviet Union, a hall of labor, and buildings that would have rivaled the New York City skyline. The problem? It couldn't be done. It was 100% ASB because some of the ground in Moscow, as in Berlin,
is unsuitable for building such megastructures.
 
I've heard about that too, that he intended to build it as a monument to Soviet victory in the Second World War. but getting back to the OP is there a question you want to answer, like what if he just ignored everyone and went ahead?
 

Blair152

Banned
I've heard about that too, that he intended to build it as a monument to Soviet victory in the Second World War. but getting back to the OP is there a question you want to answer, like what if he just ignored everyone and went ahead?
I don't know. Maybe. What if he'd built his megalomaniacal pipedreams?
 
It's not really impossible. Maybe it couldn't be done in Moscow, but the Soviet Union was huge. If push came to shove, he would have found someplace to stick the buildings.
I'm not really sure what the larger impact would be, though.
 
Well if he does build something huge in Moscow, like the Palace of Soviets (I think that's what it was going to be called), let's say it's built in the 50's at the same time as all those Stalin Gothic skyscrapers. If it does start to sink, then it's going to be awfully embarassing, and could be used as a powerful argument for de-Stalinization once that gets under way.

So, while Stalin's body is being removed from Lenin's tomb, and all the big statues are being taken down, etc, do they demolish the Palace of Soviets? I imagine that would be the smartest thing to do, since otherwise it will just slowly collapse, and they'd have to leave it vacant as a huge public eyesore.
 

Goldstein

Banned
Well if he does build something huge in Moscow, like the Palace of Soviets (I think that's what it was going to be called), let's say it's built in the 50's at the same time as all those Stalin Gothic skyscrapers. If it does start to sink, then it's going to be awfully embarassing, and could be used as a powerful argument for de-Stalinization once that gets under way.

So, while Stalin's body is being removed from Lenin's tomb, and all the big statues are being taken down, etc, do they demolish the Palace of Soviets? I imagine that would be the smartest thing to do, since otherwise it will just slowly collapse, and they'd have to leave it vacant as a huge public eyesore.

I have to agree. If the Palace of the Soviets had been built, it could have easily turned into an earlier verion of the Ryugyong Hotel, which could be an interesting source of butterflies for the USSR.
 
Warsaw...

The huge building that Stalin erected in Warsaw (often referred to as 'Stalin's Revenge') seems like a good example of what he had in mind. As I remember the joke about it was:

Q: What is the best view of Warsaw
A: From the top of the Ministry of Culture...it is the only place in Warsaw you cannot see the Ministry of Culture from
 
You mean the Palace of Culture and Science, not Ministery of Culture. And it was called many other names, like "baker's nightmare" or "the elephant in lace underwear". However, many of Warsaw people (including me) actually got used to it, especially after installation of the clock. I also know that Soviet architects and workers whi build it honestly believed they were making Warsaw a favour. Soviet architects even visited some Polish towns with old architecture to use "Polish national elements" in the buiding. Well, visit Warsaw, and you can see for yourselves.
And the joke is very old - I heard it as a joke about Eiffel Tower in Paris.
 
IIRC, the Palace of Soviets was on firm ground, but the sites of some of the other big proposals were found out to be unsuitable. I imagine they'd have adjusted their plans, somewhat as they did OTL. After all, not everyone's as silly as North Korea.
 
zoomar's link contains info about Palace of Soviets. It probably would have been built if not for the WW2. I've read some contemporary documents about it - the builders were aware of the problem of possible instability and worked to prevent possible collapse. It is hard to say how successful they would be of course. But that particular spot was not unsutable to such building if everything done right.
Anyway, the technology developed during the work helped to create a set of "Stalin skyscrapes" in early fifties and they are still standing (despite some shoddy and rushed work). They also gave Moscow skyline an interesting touch even if not really comparable to NY. A least until later buildings clogged the view.
 
Top