The importance of Lenin in the period up to

1917

Family background and early political life

• Lenin was from a comfortable but socially conscious background.

• All Lenin’s 5 siblings would become revolutionaries.

• Lenin’s older brother Alexander was a member of ‘the People’s Will’ Narodnik party. Anna, Maria and Dimitry became Bolsheviks.

• He was arrested and executed in 1887 for plotting to execute Tsar Alexander III.

Alexandr Ulyanov

Olga Ulyanova Anna

Ulyanova

• Lenin went to Kazan University in 1887.

• He was expelled in his first year for political activities – and he was placed under police surveillance.

• He was first influenced by Narodnik/Populist revolutionary ideas.

• He was greatly influenced by the founder of this movement - Nikolay Chernyshevsky - and his novel, ‘What is to Be Done’ (1862) .

• He rejected Populism for marxism – though some historians say he remained influenced by it.

Chernyshevsky

Lenin and the League of Struggle

For the Emancipation of the

Working Class

League of Struggle for the Emancipation of the Working Class 1897

• In 1895 Lenin founded this organisation – alongside future Menshevik and friend Julius Martov, and Lenin’s partner Nadya Krupskaya.

• It was the first marxist organisation to spread marxist propaganda to the working class.

• Despite imprisonment and exile of Lenin (to Siberia) the League led important textile worker strike in 1896.

• The League translated and distributed key marxist works – including the Manifesto of the Communist Party (Marx and Engels) and Socialism: Utopian and Scientific (Engels).

Martov

Krupskaya

In exile in Siberia (1896-99) Lenin contributed greatly to the development of marxism in Russia:

He wrote countless articles on political organisation, tactics, and the prospects for revolution in Russia.

This included:

The Development of Capitalism in Russia (1899)

The Tasks of Russian Social Democrats (1897)

Lenin, ‘Iskra’ and the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP)

• In March 1898 Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) was formed.

• Lenin joined on his release – going into exile in Europe to build the movement.

• He set up the newspaper ‘Iskra’ the Spark in 1900 with Martov and other key figures, such as Giorgi Plekhanov and Gregory Zinoviev.

• The paper was smuggled into Russia by a network of contacts and distributed.

Tension and Division in the RSDLP

• At the 2nd Congress of the RSDLP in 1903, the Menshevik and Bolshevik split occurred.

• Split outcome of conflict over tactics, party organisation and make up of editorial board of ‘Iskra’.

• Lenin, as head of Bolshevik faction, wanted a secretive, highly disciplined and centralised party of full-time revolutionaries.

• Martov, as head of Mensheviks, wanted a looser, more democratic organisation.

• Mensheviks believed in alliance between workers and Russia’s liberal bourgeoisie.

• Lenin saw a worker-peasant alliance as key to revolution in Russia.

• These differences would shape the factions attitudes to the February Revolution and the prospects for socialism in Russia.

The differences soon became more ‘political’ and sharper.

Lenin’s influence 1902-1917.Decisive or Over-stated?

• Lenin lived in exile outside of Russia for almost the whole period between 1900-1917.

• Therefore, despite calling for a ‘centralised’ party, Lenin’s influence and control over the Bolsheviks was very far from complete.

• He only made brief visits in response to events, such as after the 1905 revolution.

• Therefore his direct influence over events was also limited.

• Thus – unlike Trotsky - he played no role in the soviets in 1905 and returned to Russia only AFTER the February Revolution of 1917.

Moreover, the decisions of those in power and political rivals arguably led to the Bolshevik victory:

• Fatal mistakes of Tsar Nicholas II e.g going to war against Japan in 1905 and FWW in 1914; taking control of army; refusing to grant real democratic reforms; using violence to suppress protest; failure to deal with Rasputin.

• After fall of Tsar, Provisional Government also did not end the war, move quickly enough to free elections; resolve land issue etc

• Other opposition contributed to their own loss of support e.g. Mensheviks and SR’s joined Provisional Government and were blamed for continuing the war.

Yet Lenin’s role was decisive in many respects..

• Even in exile Lenin directed Bolshevik party strategy - and exerted much influence in the international revolutionary movement.

• He directed the party’s opposition to boycott of the first Duma.

• He formulated the Bolshevik policy of opposition to FWW.

• He decisively transformed party strategy with his ‘April Thesis’ (1917) – in which he argued for overthrow of Provisional Government and ‘All Power to the Soviets!’

• He transformed party policy to appeal to the peasantry – undercutting the SR’s.

• He won over other party leaders to supporting an October armed uprising.

• For his Menshevik opponents, Lenin was an autocrat and divisive figure.

• He had ‘perverted’ marxism with his views on party organisation and tactics.

• He shamelessly exploited popular discontent to build support for his party.

• His decision to take power in October was a reckless gamble – destroying Russia’s chances of a peaceful transition to democracy.

Hero or villain?..

• For his supporters, Lenin was a skilful politician, and master tactician.

• He had adapted marxism to Russian conditions – and created the instrument of revolution.

• Unlike the Mensheviks he maintained a principled opposition to the FWW and the Provisional Government.

• His slogans and programme of ‘Peace, Bread and Land’ and ‘All Power to the Soviets’ responded to the real needs of the Russian people.

Hero or villain?..