The Lenin's heirs in the image of the population of Soviet Russia in the 1920s

Author(s):  M.V. Bryantsev, Dr., Bryansk State University named after academician I.G. Petrovsky, Bryansk, Russia, bmwbox@mail.ru

Issue:  Volume 45, № 4

Rubric:  Topical issues of russian history

Annotation:  The article based on the materials, both published and archived, examines the views of the population of Soviet Russia about the heirs of the recognized leader – Lenin – after his death. The population of the country gradually came to the realization of the lack of unity in the ruling elite, revealing personal ambitions in the struggle for Lenin's heritage. Most real contenders seemed to be L.D. Trotsky and G.E. Zinoviev. However, I.V. Stalin, using the power of party propaganda, has managed to discredit the first one and then the other. Stalin managed to create a mechanism to discredit any possible opponent, whether Trotsky, Zinoviev or anyone else. And if Stalin did not become a leader for the entire population, the party mass began to recognize his superiority. However, throughout the 1920s, the names of Trotsky, Zinoviev, Kamenev and other leaders, who were in no way inferior to Stalin, and for some part of the population and surpassed him in importance, constantly surfaced here.

Keywords:  heirs, presentations, wrestling, Zinoviev, Trotsky, Stalin

Full text (PDF):  Download

Downloads count:  492