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The Era of Stagnation (also called the Period of Stagnation, Stagnation Period, Stagnation Era, the Brezhnevian Stagnation, or the Brezhnev Stagnation) was a period of economic, political, and social stagnation in the Soviet Union, which began during the rule of Leonid Brezhnev (1964–1982) and continued under Yuri Andropov (1982–1984) and Konstantin Chernenko (1984–1985). This period ended when Mikhail Gorbachev, who succeeded Chernenko, introduced his policies of ''glasnost'', ''perestroika'', ''uskoreniye'', and ''demokratizatsiya''. The efforts of Gorbachev to preserve the Soviet system by its modernization failed, which resulted in the Revolutions of 1989 and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The 1964–82 period in the Soviet Union began hopefully but devolved into disillusionment. Historians, scholars, and specialists are uncertain what caused the stagnation, with some arguing that the planned economy suffered from systemic flaws which inhibited growth. Others have argued that the lack of reform, or the high expenditures on defence, led to stagnation. The majority of scholars set the starting year for economic stagnation at 1975, although some claim that it began as early as the 1960s. Social stagnation began much earlier, with Brezhnev's rise to power, his revoking of several of the relatively liberal reforms of his predecessor, Nikita Khrushchev, and his partial rehabilitation of Stalinist policies, beginning with the Sinyavsky–Daniel trial in 1965. Politically, the stagnation began with the establishment of a gerontocracy, which came into being as part of the policy of stability. Brezhnev has been criticised posthumously for doing too little to improve the economic situation. Throughout his rule, no major reforms were initiated and the few proposed reforms were either very modest or opposed by the majority of the Soviet leadership. The reform-minded Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Government), Alexei Kosygin, introduced two modest reforms in the 1970s after the failure of his more radical 1965 reform, and attempted to reverse the trend of declining growth. By the 1970s, Brezhnev had consolidated enough power to stop any "radical" reform-minded attempts by Kosygin. When Brezhnev died in November 1982, the Soviet Union he handed over to his successor, Andropov, was much less dynamic than when he assumed power. During his short rule, Andropov introduced modest reforms; he died little more than a year later in February 1984. Chernenko, his successor, continued much of Andropov's policies; whether those policies improved the economic situation in the country is still debated amongst scholars. ==Terminology== The term "Era of Stagnation" was coined by Mikhail Gorbachev to describe the economic difficulties that developed when Leonid Brezhnev ruled the Soviet Union from 1964 to 1982 although scholars disagree on when the stagnation started and the causes (see Analyses section). Gorbachevians have criticised Brezhnev, and Brezhnevism in general, for being too conservative and failing to change with the times. Gorbachev once referred to Brezhnev's rule as "The Zombie Apocalypse". The value of all consumer goods manufactured in 1972 in retail prices was about 118 billion rubles ($530 billion).〔(Manufactured goods sector was worth 118 billion rubles in 1972 )〕 The economic problems that began under Brezhnev persisted into the short administrations of Yuri Andropov and Konstantin Chernenko both of whom instituted reform policies but whether the economic situation improved as a result is disputed. The Era of Stagnation ended with Gorbachev's rise to power during which political and social life was democratised〔 〕〔 〕 even though the economy was still stagnating. The social stagnation may have started with the Sinyavsky–Daniel trial, which marked the end of Nikita Khrushchev's "Thaw" or, as considered by some, with the later suppression of the Prague Spring in 1968. Brezhnev himself declared the era as the period of Developed Socialism in 1971 at the 24th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The term "Developed Socialism" stems from Khrushchev's promise of reaching communism in 20 years. There are several people who consider this the best era in Soviet history in which the standard of living improved as a result of stable social security and low levels of social inequality.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Era of Stagnation」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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