Lenin’s anguish and intrigues

The last years of his life are a contradictory picture for historians. On the one hand, his cult among the working classes grew, on the other Lenin had never before been so ignored by party dignitaries.

Vladimir Lenin — [Pavel Semyonovich Zhukov (1870–1942), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons]

“The revolution was not carried out so that the landowners could return to their estates. These parasites, who have been sucking the blood of the people for so long, must know that neither liberty nor equality will give them back their lost wealth, which will go safely into the hands of the workers. Wherever the bourgeoisie rules, it gives nothing to the toiling masses (…) We have only one choice: victory or death,” Lenin shouted to the crowd of workers who had gathered at the Michelson factory in Moscow on August 30, 1918.

At the end of his speech he left the hall amidst enthusiastic applause and shouts of approval. However, not everyone came to the meeting with the intention of praising the leader of the Bolshevik revolution. Among the women who besieged Lenin on his way out of the hall was 28-year-old Fanny Kaplan, an activist in the Eserov organization, which was hostile to the Bolsheviks. She pulled out a gun and shot him three times. The bloodied Lenin was immediately transported to a safe place, where doctors dressed his wounds. He was lucky; the bullets were not life-threatening and did little damage. Just three weeks later, he was sitting at his desk with his…