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Lenin on the Train: The Journey that Changed the Course of History
A gripping, meticulously researched account of Lenin’s fateful 1917 rail journey from Zurich to Petrograd, where he ignited the Russian Revolution and forever changed the world
In April 1917, as the Russian Tsar Nicholas II’s abdication sent shockwaves across war-torn Europe, the future leader of the Bolshevik revolution Vladimir Lenin was far away, exiled in Zurich. When the news reached him, Lenin immediately resolved to return to Petrograd and lead the revolt. But to get there, he would have to cross Germany, which meant accepting help from the deadliest of Russia’s adversaries. Millions of Russians at home were suffering as a result of German aggression, and to accept German aid—or even safe passage—would be to betray his homeland. Germany, for its part, saw an opportunity to further destabilize Russia by allowing Lenin and his small group of revolutionaries to return.
Now, drawing on a dazzling array of sources and never-before-seen archival material, renowned historian Catherine Merridale provides a riveting, nuanced account of this enormously consequential journey—the train ride that changed the world—as well as the underground conspiracy and subterfuge that went into making it happen. Writing with the same insight and formidable intelligence that distinguished her earlier works, she brings to life a world of counter-espionage and intrigue, wartime desperation, illicit finance, and misguided utopianism.
When Lenin arrived in Petrograd’s now-famous Finland Station, he delivered an explosive address to the impassioned crowds. Simple and extreme, the text of this speech has been compared to such momentous documents as Constantine’s edict of Milan and Martin Luther’s ninety-five theses. It was the moment when the Russian revolution became Soviet, the genesis of a system of tyranny and faith that changed the course of Russia’s history forever and transformed the international political climate.
In April 1917, as the Russian Tsar Nicholas II’s abdication sent shockwaves across war-torn Europe, the future leader of the Bolshevik revolution Vladimir Lenin was far away, exiled in Zurich. When the news reached him, Lenin immediately resolved to return to Petrograd and lead the revolt. But to get there, he would have to cross Germany, which meant accepting help from the deadliest of Russia’s adversaries. Millions of Russians at home were suffering as a result of German aggression, and to accept German aid—or even safe passage—would be to betray his homeland. Germany, for its part, saw an opportunity to further destabilize Russia by allowing Lenin and his small group of revolutionaries to return.
Now, drawing on a dazzling array of sources and never-before-seen archival material, renowned historian Catherine Merridale provides a riveting, nuanced account of this enormously consequential journey—the train ride that changed the world—as well as the underground conspiracy and subterfuge that went into making it happen. Writing with the same insight and formidable intelligence that distinguished her earlier works, she brings to life a world of counter-espionage and intrigue, wartime desperation, illicit finance, and misguided utopianism.
When Lenin arrived in Petrograd’s now-famous Finland Station, he delivered an explosive address to the impassioned crowds. Simple and extreme, the text of this speech has been compared to such momentous documents as Constantine’s edict of Milan and Martin Luther’s ninety-five theses. It was the moment when the Russian revolution became Soviet, the genesis of a system of tyranny and faith that changed the course of Russia’s history forever and transformed the international political climate.
368 pages, Hardcover
First published October 6, 2016
273 people are currently reading
2712 people want to read
About the author
Catherine Merridale
9 books90 followersCatherine Anne Merridale, FBA (born 12 October 1959) is a British writer and historian with a special interest in Russian history. Merridale was Professor of Contemporary History at Queen Mary, University of London from 2004 to 2014. She has been a senior research fellow at the Institute of Historical Research, University of London, since her retirement from full-time academia in 2014. Having retired from her academic career, Merridale became a freelance writer in 2014. She has also contributed to BBC Radio.
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March 9, 2019
In 1917, at the height of the First World War, Germany turned to a new weapon in their fight against the Allied Powers. They found a revolutionary called Lenin, who was living in neutral Zurich, stuck him on a sealed train, and fired him (in Churchill's words) ‘like a plague bacillus’ through Germany and into Russia.
‘What Lenin brought to Russia was class hatred, German money and elaborate works on the application of Marxism in Russia,’ as the chief of police in Petrograd put it (though how much Lenin was actually financed by the Germans is debatable). The point was that he, as a revolutionary socialist, was opposed to the war and would, it was hoped, pull Russia out of it altogether – so Berlin considered that ‘the interests of the German government are identical with those of the Russian revolutionaries’.
The journey was a complicated one, logistically, and Catherine Merridale does her best to retrace the route – but in the end, the train journey itself is the least of what's being written about here. It's an excuse to examine the state of the war, and of the world, in 1917, from the swarming network of spies and chancers, to the competing intellectual arguments about people power versus government authority.
Is the sealed train enough to hold the book together thematically? Well…just about.
It's a useful book for fleshing out the character of Lenin, someone marked by his total intransigence with anyone who disagreed with him even slightly, and also by a sort of infuriatingly fussy authoritarianism. Even on the journey in question, he was legislating his infamous ‘in-train rules’ about when people had to go to sleep and what hand-drawn vouchers they needed to use the toilet. It sounds like sheer pettiness, but the difference between that and the regime he established in Russia – ‘a stifling, cruel, sterile one, a workshop for decades of tyranny’ – is only one of scale.
Given the aims of the Germans in putting Lenin on this train, it is frustrating that Merridale never spells out the result of the journey: namely, that after Lenin's coup, the Bolsheviks did indeed sign a peace treaty with Germany. Unless I missed it, this simple fact is not even stated in the book.
In any case, the real punchline comes when she considers the fate of Lenin's companions on the train once Lenin had died and the journey had passed into myth. The people with him had experienced it as reality, not myth – which from Stalin's point of view meant they knew too much.
My problems with the book had to do with its focus – Merridale's prose, by contrast, and her powers of explanation, are excellent. So you need a fair working knowledge of the context, but if you have that, this book makes for a fascinating snapshot on a particularly freighted moment in European history. It's also enjoyable to imagine someone picking it up as an imagined sequel to Girl on the Train.
‘What Lenin brought to Russia was class hatred, German money and elaborate works on the application of Marxism in Russia,’ as the chief of police in Petrograd put it (though how much Lenin was actually financed by the Germans is debatable). The point was that he, as a revolutionary socialist, was opposed to the war and would, it was hoped, pull Russia out of it altogether – so Berlin considered that ‘the interests of the German government are identical with those of the Russian revolutionaries’.
The journey was a complicated one, logistically, and Catherine Merridale does her best to retrace the route – but in the end, the train journey itself is the least of what's being written about here. It's an excuse to examine the state of the war, and of the world, in 1917, from the swarming network of spies and chancers, to the competing intellectual arguments about people power versus government authority.
Is the sealed train enough to hold the book together thematically? Well…just about.
It's a useful book for fleshing out the character of Lenin, someone marked by his total intransigence with anyone who disagreed with him even slightly, and also by a sort of infuriatingly fussy authoritarianism. Even on the journey in question, he was legislating his infamous ‘in-train rules’ about when people had to go to sleep and what hand-drawn vouchers they needed to use the toilet. It sounds like sheer pettiness, but the difference between that and the regime he established in Russia – ‘a stifling, cruel, sterile one, a workshop for decades of tyranny’ – is only one of scale.
Given the aims of the Germans in putting Lenin on this train, it is frustrating that Merridale never spells out the result of the journey: namely, that after Lenin's coup, the Bolsheviks did indeed sign a peace treaty with Germany. Unless I missed it, this simple fact is not even stated in the book.
In any case, the real punchline comes when she considers the fate of Lenin's companions on the train once Lenin had died and the journey had passed into myth. The people with him had experienced it as reality, not myth – which from Stalin's point of view meant they knew too much.
Zinoviev was shot with Kamenev in 1936. His son Stefan – who as a little boy in Switzerland had enchanted Lenin so much that the leader once attempted to adopt him – was shot in 1937. Zinoviev's second wife and travelling companion of 1917, who was exiled to one of the most northern labour colonies, was shot in 1938. […] In September 1937, and still protesting his innocence, [Shlyapnikov] was shot for his supposed involvement in Zinoviev's so-called conspiracy.… Radek and Sokolnikov were beaten to death in their respective labour camps within a few days of each other.… Fürstenberg was shot, as were his wife and son, after a fifteen-minute trial.
My problems with the book had to do with its focus – Merridale's prose, by contrast, and her powers of explanation, are excellent. So you need a fair working knowledge of the context, but if you have that, this book makes for a fascinating snapshot on a particularly freighted moment in European history. It's also enjoyable to imagine someone picking it up as an imagined sequel to Girl on the Train.
October 6, 2017
When revolution erupted in Russia, Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was in Switzerland, condemned to exile by tsarist courts. Like other Bolshevik leaders, Lenin was immediately desperate to make it back home, but, in his case, it was easier said than done. This was 1917, when Russia was at war with Germany, and he was stranded, with no obvious way to make the journey. However, to his surprise, there was unexpected co-operation from German High Command, who were actually eager to return the troublemaking firebrand back to Russia, where they hoped (rightly, as it turned out) that he would disrupt Russia’s war effort. This then, is the story of how Lenin, and a group of other displaced Russians, were taken across Germany in a sealed train, first to Sweden, and then on to Russia.
In a way, I do wish there was more about the actual train journey in this book, as it is wonderfully bizarre. Although later writers, and artists, were keen to portray Lenin’s trip as one of romance and idealism (one artist cleverly inserted Stalin into his painting; which, as the author says was historically incorrect, but probably wise in terms of self preservation) but, of course, the reality was somewhat different. The group consisted of thirty two adults and two children and contained several lawyers and one dentist. So incensed was Lenin by the late night carousing of some of his group that he later created proper Soviet rules for how people should behave on trains – including sleeping at appropriate times. As a commuter, I feel his rules and regulations would be warmly welcomed by many who are bothered by the behaviour of other people and sympathise with his thoughts.
Certainly though, Lenin was not a man who suffered fools gladly. A three day trip across Germany, with many delays and discomforts, might have worn some people down – but not him. On arrival, he gave speech, after speech, after speech. Sprinting to the top of cars, leaping up stairs to find a balcony; finding a platform and sweeping aside the less daring plans of his rivals, he was a man on a mission. His enemies might have scurried around looking for evidence that Lenin was being funded by Germany – a spy even – but the Germans reported he was, ‘working, exactly as we would wish.’
As well as the story of Lenin’s journey back to Russia, this is also a look at the revolution, especially from the point of view of the British. There is much about the British Embassy, whose building was opposite the house taken from a famous ballerina (and former mistress of the former tsar) for use by the Bolshevik Party. There is also some interesting information on W. Somerset Maugham, who later wrote “Ashenden,” about his experiences as a war spy and who quarrelled with Hugh Walpole, head of the British propaganda effort (who he later lampooned in the novel, “Cakes and Ale”), but it was clear that the Russian people were not affected by the British arguments, as Germany poured money into the country. Overall, an interesting read, which attempts to put the events in this book into political, and historical, context.
In a way, I do wish there was more about the actual train journey in this book, as it is wonderfully bizarre. Although later writers, and artists, were keen to portray Lenin’s trip as one of romance and idealism (one artist cleverly inserted Stalin into his painting; which, as the author says was historically incorrect, but probably wise in terms of self preservation) but, of course, the reality was somewhat different. The group consisted of thirty two adults and two children and contained several lawyers and one dentist. So incensed was Lenin by the late night carousing of some of his group that he later created proper Soviet rules for how people should behave on trains – including sleeping at appropriate times. As a commuter, I feel his rules and regulations would be warmly welcomed by many who are bothered by the behaviour of other people and sympathise with his thoughts.
Certainly though, Lenin was not a man who suffered fools gladly. A three day trip across Germany, with many delays and discomforts, might have worn some people down – but not him. On arrival, he gave speech, after speech, after speech. Sprinting to the top of cars, leaping up stairs to find a balcony; finding a platform and sweeping aside the less daring plans of his rivals, he was a man on a mission. His enemies might have scurried around looking for evidence that Lenin was being funded by Germany – a spy even – but the Germans reported he was, ‘working, exactly as we would wish.’
As well as the story of Lenin’s journey back to Russia, this is also a look at the revolution, especially from the point of view of the British. There is much about the British Embassy, whose building was opposite the house taken from a famous ballerina (and former mistress of the former tsar) for use by the Bolshevik Party. There is also some interesting information on W. Somerset Maugham, who later wrote “Ashenden,” about his experiences as a war spy and who quarrelled with Hugh Walpole, head of the British propaganda effort (who he later lampooned in the novel, “Cakes and Ale”), but it was clear that the Russian people were not affected by the British arguments, as Germany poured money into the country. Overall, an interesting read, which attempts to put the events in this book into political, and historical, context.
October 6, 2025
The Cat Returns
I really enjoyed Lenin on the Train. Fast paced with a silky smooth writing style, Catherine Merridale does not beat around the bush. It tells the tale of how and why Vladimir Lenin was able to leave political exile in Zurich, Switzerland during the height of the world crisis of the First World War and re-enter a war torn and collapsing Russia.
For me the questions are adequately tackled. The true circumstances are also described and finally unpicked. Who was on the journey? Where did it traveled through? (Amazing this has not been tied down until recently); Was it a really a sealed train? Or were there any Germans or soldiers present?
Due to the subject matter, (this focuses on a very small part of the Revolution), the book does not need to be long, extremely detailed or labour the point. What is equally important is how these events are remembered and turned into propaganda pieces for the Bolsheviks and more importantly Stalin himself. Lenin is an enigma in modern Russia, a stain on the country’s past which cannot be removed, mainly to keep him where he belongs, dead and in the past. The position, as it should be, to keep the warning and memory alive, but to keep the ideas buried.
There is also further controversy with the event, the questions of how much German money Lenin accepted to take on the journey. With everything involving Lenin, it is all propaganda and twisted truths designed to distance himself from the dirty work. Money did exchange hands and those keys figures on the train were wiped from history in the 1930s as they were slowly exiled, sent to the Gulag or executed. One figure however, is painted into the story. Where he shouldn’t be, but as always circulating himself closer and closer to the revolutionary leader: Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvilli, Man of Steel, Joseph Stalin.
Overall, I really enjoyed Lenin on the Train and couldn’t put it down in parts. For anyone who is interested in Russian history this should be on your shelf!
I really enjoyed Lenin on the Train. Fast paced with a silky smooth writing style, Catherine Merridale does not beat around the bush. It tells the tale of how and why Vladimir Lenin was able to leave political exile in Zurich, Switzerland during the height of the world crisis of the First World War and re-enter a war torn and collapsing Russia.
For me the questions are adequately tackled. The true circumstances are also described and finally unpicked. Who was on the journey? Where did it traveled through? (Amazing this has not been tied down until recently); Was it a really a sealed train? Or were there any Germans or soldiers present?
Due to the subject matter, (this focuses on a very small part of the Revolution), the book does not need to be long, extremely detailed or labour the point. What is equally important is how these events are remembered and turned into propaganda pieces for the Bolsheviks and more importantly Stalin himself. Lenin is an enigma in modern Russia, a stain on the country’s past which cannot be removed, mainly to keep him where he belongs, dead and in the past. The position, as it should be, to keep the warning and memory alive, but to keep the ideas buried.
There is also further controversy with the event, the questions of how much German money Lenin accepted to take on the journey. With everything involving Lenin, it is all propaganda and twisted truths designed to distance himself from the dirty work. Money did exchange hands and those keys figures on the train were wiped from history in the 1930s as they were slowly exiled, sent to the Gulag or executed. One figure however, is painted into the story. Where he shouldn’t be, but as always circulating himself closer and closer to the revolutionary leader: Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvilli, Man of Steel, Joseph Stalin.
Overall, I really enjoyed Lenin on the Train and couldn’t put it down in parts. For anyone who is interested in Russian history this should be on your shelf!
November 22, 2017
I dithered a bit about whether to rate this as 3 or 4 stars. In the end I went for 4 as it is a decent enough read. It covers a narrower time period than I expected though. The book focuses very much on the run-up to the February Revolution, and then on Lenin’s return to Russia. In fairness, this is what the title actually suggests, but for some reason I had expected the author to finish with the October Revolution, when she actually finishes the narrative part in the summer of 1917. There is then a last chapter reviewing Lenin’s legacy.
We all know of course how Lenin, in exile in February 1917, got back to Russia with the aid of the German government, and the author also examines other German assistance and funding for the Bolsheviks. Her examination is unemotional, and she largely concludes that the Bolsheviks and the German government used each other for their own ends. There’s a lot in the book about secret agents and their activities, and I had the impression the author quite likes the cloak and dagger side of history.
I think the strongest part of the book is the assessment of Lenin as a person. He is pictured as an intensely driven man, spending all his time reading, writing, delivering speeches, and haranguing colleagues. His energy was though combined with political fanaticism of the most extreme kind. A Menshevik, Pavel Axelrod, is quoted as saying “Lenin is the only man for whom revolution is the preoccupation 24 hours a day, who has no thought but of revolution…” whilst Trotsky wrote “It is not without significance that the words “irreconcilable” and “relentless” should be among Lenin’s favourites.” For Lenin, ideological purity was everything, people were nothing.
The last chapter provides a thoughtful assessment. Before coming to power Lenin dreamed of a society with no police, no army and no bureaucracy. In practice, the Soviet Union was dominated by these 3 aspects of state power. Almost all of Lenin’s closest comrades were executed by Stalin. Compared to some historians, the author provides low estimates for the number of innocent victims of Soviet rule, suggesting that Lenin was responsible for tens of thousands of such deaths and that the number rose to “the low millions” across the seven decades of Soviet rule. Even those numbers were bad enough, but despite this miserable legacy, Lenin is still viewed favourably by many people. The author sets down some thoughts as to why this is so.
Overall, I enjoyed the book, but for me it didn’t quite live up to the expectations generated by the blurb.
We all know of course how Lenin, in exile in February 1917, got back to Russia with the aid of the German government, and the author also examines other German assistance and funding for the Bolsheviks. Her examination is unemotional, and she largely concludes that the Bolsheviks and the German government used each other for their own ends. There’s a lot in the book about secret agents and their activities, and I had the impression the author quite likes the cloak and dagger side of history.
I think the strongest part of the book is the assessment of Lenin as a person. He is pictured as an intensely driven man, spending all his time reading, writing, delivering speeches, and haranguing colleagues. His energy was though combined with political fanaticism of the most extreme kind. A Menshevik, Pavel Axelrod, is quoted as saying “Lenin is the only man for whom revolution is the preoccupation 24 hours a day, who has no thought but of revolution…” whilst Trotsky wrote “It is not without significance that the words “irreconcilable” and “relentless” should be among Lenin’s favourites.” For Lenin, ideological purity was everything, people were nothing.
The last chapter provides a thoughtful assessment. Before coming to power Lenin dreamed of a society with no police, no army and no bureaucracy. In practice, the Soviet Union was dominated by these 3 aspects of state power. Almost all of Lenin’s closest comrades were executed by Stalin. Compared to some historians, the author provides low estimates for the number of innocent victims of Soviet rule, suggesting that Lenin was responsible for tens of thousands of such deaths and that the number rose to “the low millions” across the seven decades of Soviet rule. Even those numbers were bad enough, but despite this miserable legacy, Lenin is still viewed favourably by many people. The author sets down some thoughts as to why this is so.
Overall, I enjoyed the book, but for me it didn’t quite live up to the expectations generated by the blurb.
June 10, 2021
Nu pot să acord notă maximă,dar cartea este foarte bună,se citește ușor având aproape 300 de pagini și reușește cu brio să te țină conectat pe tot parcursul povești. Bineînțeles că personajul principal este Lenin și ideologia lui,dar întâlnim și alte personaje importante din acele momente care voit sau nu ,au fost uitate de către istorie.
December 18, 2018
În aprilie 1917, Lenin pleacă de la reședința sa din Elveția, cu trenul, într-o călătorie finanțată și sprijinită de nemți, pe ruta Zurich-Berlin-Stockholm-Haparanda-Tornio-Petrograd. Scopul: preluarea conducerii revoluției rusești de către bolșevici, retragerea din războiul mondial și instaurarea dictaturii poporului.
Catherine Merridale reconstituie această călătorie destul de periculoasă pentru standardele vremii, concentrându-se însă nu pe călătoria propriu-zisă (documentele sunt puține, mărturiile și mai puține, mulți dintre însoțitori fiind uciși în anii ce au urmat), ci pe circumstanțele ei, respectiv pe influențele politice europene, revoltele împotriva țarismului din Petrograd, coalițiile din capitala Rusiei, personalitatea controversată a lui Lenin, mai ales în primele săptămâni de la reîntoarcere.
Nu este o călătorie ușoară, este o carte de istorie pură.
Catherine Merridale reconstituie această călătorie destul de periculoasă pentru standardele vremii, concentrându-se însă nu pe călătoria propriu-zisă (documentele sunt puține, mărturiile și mai puține, mulți dintre însoțitori fiind uciși în anii ce au urmat), ci pe circumstanțele ei, respectiv pe influențele politice europene, revoltele împotriva țarismului din Petrograd, coalițiile din capitala Rusiei, personalitatea controversată a lui Lenin, mai ales în primele săptămâni de la reîntoarcere.
Nu este o călătorie ușoară, este o carte de istorie pură.
May 11, 2017
A rattling good account of the contradictions of the Russian Revolution - only marred by some well-worn character assassination of the Bolshevik leader. Merridale shows how against all odds, Lenin managed to return to Russia by exploiting the imperialist rivalry of WW1. The Russian Revolution began as a revolt against the war - but the leaders who were thrust into power by the collapse of Tsarism wanted to continue the war. Lenin's genius was to grip this contradiction with "the death grip of the bulldog". For Lenin, the fate of the Russian Revolution would be decided by the revolt of workers throughout the rest of Europe by "turning the imperialist war into a civil war" on a global scale. Sadly, the fate of the German Revolution 1919-23 is barely mentionned. I recommend "The Lost Revolution" by Chris Harman for a detailed account of the interconnectedness of the two great revolutions. Also neglected, is the Bolsheviks' attempt to spread their revolutionary success through the Cummunist International (see Duncan Hallas, "The Comintern" for a lively account). Merridale writes with a great deal of vim, much of her detail is fascinating. However, her portayal of Lenin moves through irrascible curmudgeon, via inveterate conspirator to cynical dictator and alleged "mass murder" (no evidence is provided!). This is the conventional story. Trotsky's fight against Stalinism is pretty much ignored (see Trotsky "My Life"). But it was Lenin who took up this almost forgotten fight first, virtually from his death bed (see Moshe Lewin "Lenin's Last Struggle"). These criticisms apart, I would still recommend this exciting narrative of Lenin's return to Russia and his decisive intervention in the central debate - how does Russia get out of the war?
March 20, 2019
A statesman-- Bismarck, if I am not mistaken-- once said that to accept a thing in principle means, in the language of diplomacy, to reject it in effect.This is one of those great-idea-on-paper sorts of projects. Part of which almost always involves misaligned expectations, so as reader, I'll take some responsibility there. Still.
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
What the book proposes: a secret history of the clandestine ride of Vladimir Lenin from Switzerland up to the Arctic Circle and into the Revolutionary Russia of 1917. At the famous Petrograd Finland Station. As the world was crashing outside in the violent catastrophe of The Great War.
What the author implies: an untold story as Lenin's super-secret sealed train car threads the needle of wartime Germany, a journey packed with spies, variable allegiances, and intrigue. Vetted by the author herself, a Russia Historian who travelled the same route, investigated the places and even the trains themselves.
What this reader expected: even if not a journey of blockbuster revelations, at least some of the drama and jeopardy of the situation. A small but pivotal moment against the grand sweep of history. Undercover agents, a bit of backstabbing, maybe. And certainly a glimmer of the Period, the elemental grit and unexpected elegance of coal-fired rail travel in the Nordic countries of the late teens. Maybe an insight into how tea was served onboard. A gas-lamp here or there. That sort of thing.
What actually happens: Little turns out to be known about the train journey, and the reader gets the impression that it's not what happened there, but mainly that it places Lenin in Petrograd in the spring of 1917. The great mass of the book--- like everything else I seem to have read about the 1917 revolution-- is entirely bogged down in endless, tedious "Org Chart" sorts of discussions. Which collective would report to which soviet, and whose interests were served; what committee resolved to overturn which hierarchy's decree, and how that flipped the game. Until the next day when there was inevitably a new resolution, or a revised previous resolution, or a reconsideration of a prior position.
Lenin On The Train also manages to glide over the Gulag, the Pogroms, the Relocations & Collectivizations that follow Lenin's "by any means necessary" strategy. Which is odd in that it eventually sums these in a generic indictment of the Soviet Union. (A late-book stretch to Gorbachev and then Putin is also very disconnected feeling.) On Vladimir Lenin himself, the author is incisively clear:
Lenin knew that real peasants wanted only justice, and a piece of land. To force his revolution through, against such odds, the leader had to steel himself to play the part of Robespierre. If people could not see where their true freedom lay, he would impose a revolutionary dictatorship until they were prepared to understand. Meanwhile, he had to put himself above the ordinary ruck, becoming the ideal instrument of History with a big H, a new man, incorruptible and without sin...Make no mistake, author Merridale understands Lenin and his Revolution very well indeed. It's her vehicle that wobbles. One of the absolute best things about the book is right on the cover, in the painting of Lenin at the Finland Station. I won't ruin this little wrinkle, as the author herself duly pulls it out of the hat at the end of the book. But you'll have to get through all the committee meetings to arrive there, comrade.
February 25, 2024
The author Catherine Merridale’s contribution is that she has assembled information about the lead up to the train ride, the actual trip and how Lenin might have accessed German money once he arrived in Russia. The title is deceptive: fewer than 50 pages describe the trip.
What is given about trip is good. You see the logistics such as fake IDs, border crossings, layovers and changing trains and in one case, a change to sledges. Inside the train, there was 1 rest room for 32 passengers and it was also used by smokers to satisfy Lenin’s objections.
Lenin shows himself to be surly on the trip (and elsewhere). He calls people dolts, fools and more. On p. 145 Lenin “seized Oscar Blum by the collar and physically threw him out on to the track”.
Given the title I expected a lot more on the actual train trip. The chapter called “Maps and Plans” leaves a lot to the imagination. For instance, a list of passengers must be approved by the Germans, but there is no information on how the list was assembled and or how the Germans evaluated it. Why did Lenin call the American Embassy? The question of how much food would be brought was mentioned but there was no real answer as to how these, presumably indigent, émigrés were fed for 8 days.
There is very little on the other passengers. The last chapter has the best information on those who were killed or incarcerated later, most likely at Lenin’s command. What did Nadezhda Krupskaya (Mrs. Lenin) do while her husband read and wrote on the train? What of having his alleged mistress aboard? I’d have liked more on the layovers in Berlin and Stockholm, not just what Lenin did, but what of the others.
In the lead up to the trip, you learn of potential British involvement in its planning as well as in the death of Rasputin. There is a lot that most readers will know about the unrest in Russia. You see the British unable to grasp the anti-war tenor of the hungry, overworked civilians and ill-equipped desperate soldiers.
While there are observations on the political factions, most of what is in book on the Revolution will be known by people who read this book. Fortunately, little time is spent on the Tzar and his abdication.
The reception at Finland Station in St. Petersburg is well covered and well written. This is followed by what can be traced regarding the money Lenin most likely accessed upon arrival.
There are some photos, portraits and scenes. The index was not complete; for a few of the names I encountered in the text and checked, there was no citation in the index.
If you are knowledgeable about this time, there may be some new information for you. If you are interested in the trip, you will have to be satisfied with what is here, because I believe this may be your only source.
What is given about trip is good. You see the logistics such as fake IDs, border crossings, layovers and changing trains and in one case, a change to sledges. Inside the train, there was 1 rest room for 32 passengers and it was also used by smokers to satisfy Lenin’s objections.
Lenin shows himself to be surly on the trip (and elsewhere). He calls people dolts, fools and more. On p. 145 Lenin “seized Oscar Blum by the collar and physically threw him out on to the track”.
Given the title I expected a lot more on the actual train trip. The chapter called “Maps and Plans” leaves a lot to the imagination. For instance, a list of passengers must be approved by the Germans, but there is no information on how the list was assembled and or how the Germans evaluated it. Why did Lenin call the American Embassy? The question of how much food would be brought was mentioned but there was no real answer as to how these, presumably indigent, émigrés were fed for 8 days.
There is very little on the other passengers. The last chapter has the best information on those who were killed or incarcerated later, most likely at Lenin’s command. What did Nadezhda Krupskaya (Mrs. Lenin) do while her husband read and wrote on the train? What of having his alleged mistress aboard? I’d have liked more on the layovers in Berlin and Stockholm, not just what Lenin did, but what of the others.
In the lead up to the trip, you learn of potential British involvement in its planning as well as in the death of Rasputin. There is a lot that most readers will know about the unrest in Russia. You see the British unable to grasp the anti-war tenor of the hungry, overworked civilians and ill-equipped desperate soldiers.
While there are observations on the political factions, most of what is in book on the Revolution will be known by people who read this book. Fortunately, little time is spent on the Tzar and his abdication.
The reception at Finland Station in St. Petersburg is well covered and well written. This is followed by what can be traced regarding the money Lenin most likely accessed upon arrival.
There are some photos, portraits and scenes. The index was not complete; for a few of the names I encountered in the text and checked, there was no citation in the index.
If you are knowledgeable about this time, there may be some new information for you. If you are interested in the trip, you will have to be satisfied with what is here, because I believe this may be your only source.
June 17, 2025
THROW LENIN FROM THE TRAIN! Brilliantly written history. Merridale writes with wit and verve, and she does not pull her punches. Pretty much every one comes off as a form of awful (well, sometimes merely bumbling) in this tale, and deservedly so.
She starts with geography, which is a pleasant, almost relaxing entry point (with just hint of the sharp observations that come close and fast later on), and then to the sharp-eyed British in Finland and St. Petersburg, and then shifts focus to the details of the creepy Lenin, who, in a foreshadowing, takes a liking, while in exile in Switzerland, to the English phrase “death grip.”
Lenin claims there can be ‘no democratic peace’ without ‘a series of revolutions.’ That civil war is not only legitimate, but “necessary.” He fights against the “peacemongers” in his party, even as he deviously eliminates all rivals.
And Germany (to the regret of future Germans) plots to send him back to Russia.
For historic irony, see the following from a Bolshevik pamphlet circa 1917, speaking about the Tsar’s involvement in World War I: “The government [of Russia] is guilty. It started the war and cannot end it. … Down with the criminal government and the gang of thieves and murderers!” One hundred years later, the denouement is so sad. (See, e.g., Putin’s People by Catherine Bolton.)
After the February revolution in 1917, when several groups in St. Petersburg who controlled the government were debating whether to continue to fight the Germans or sue for peace, the acting foreign minister, Miliukov, in a creepy imperialist foreshadowing, proposed to unite ‘Russian’s Ukrainians’ with ‘Austria’s Ukrainians’, and argued for the annexation of Constantinople “to protect the doors to Russia’s home.”
When Lenin showed up, he managed to argue successfully first for an immediate peace with Germany, and then for an immediate internal revolution where an elite group of leaders (who were ‘wiser’ than the ‘rabble’) would guide the peasants to their glorious collectivist future, thereby setting up (/continuing?) a Russian police state for the next 100 plus years, and opening the door for Stalin and the KGB, and then Putin and his ex-KGB and criminal buddies.
May the poor Russians someday have the blessed opportunity to take turns pissing on Lenin’s grave, forever and ever, without end.
Amen.
p.s., The last 100 years in Russia lends even more credence to the theory, expounded in exhausting detail by Levinson in Confucian China and Its Modern Fate that no matter who is in charge, the core character of country just doesn’t change.
She starts with geography, which is a pleasant, almost relaxing entry point (with just hint of the sharp observations that come close and fast later on), and then to the sharp-eyed British in Finland and St. Petersburg, and then shifts focus to the details of the creepy Lenin, who, in a foreshadowing, takes a liking, while in exile in Switzerland, to the English phrase “death grip.”
Lenin claims there can be ‘no democratic peace’ without ‘a series of revolutions.’ That civil war is not only legitimate, but “necessary.” He fights against the “peacemongers” in his party, even as he deviously eliminates all rivals.
And Germany (to the regret of future Germans) plots to send him back to Russia.
For historic irony, see the following from a Bolshevik pamphlet circa 1917, speaking about the Tsar’s involvement in World War I: “The government [of Russia] is guilty. It started the war and cannot end it. … Down with the criminal government and the gang of thieves and murderers!” One hundred years later, the denouement is so sad. (See, e.g., Putin’s People by Catherine Bolton.)
After the February revolution in 1917, when several groups in St. Petersburg who controlled the government were debating whether to continue to fight the Germans or sue for peace, the acting foreign minister, Miliukov, in a creepy imperialist foreshadowing, proposed to unite ‘Russian’s Ukrainians’ with ‘Austria’s Ukrainians’, and argued for the annexation of Constantinople “to protect the doors to Russia’s home.”
When Lenin showed up, he managed to argue successfully first for an immediate peace with Germany, and then for an immediate internal revolution where an elite group of leaders (who were ‘wiser’ than the ‘rabble’) would guide the peasants to their glorious collectivist future, thereby setting up (/continuing?) a Russian police state for the next 100 plus years, and opening the door for Stalin and the KGB, and then Putin and his ex-KGB and criminal buddies.
May the poor Russians someday have the blessed opportunity to take turns pissing on Lenin’s grave, forever and ever, without end.
Amen.
p.s., The last 100 years in Russia lends even more credence to the theory, expounded in exhausting detail by Levinson in Confucian China and Its Modern Fate that no matter who is in charge, the core character of country just doesn’t change.
November 23, 2017
Una bella ricostruzione storica, che approfondisce il contesto che porta al famoso viaggio in treno di Lenin e del suo gruppo da Zurigo a Pietroburgo attraverso la Germania, le vicende che si susseguono durante i giorni di viaggio e la situazione all'arrivo nella capitale russa.
June 14, 2017
Very strange. Other than the introductory parts, very little about Lenin on the train. It is more of an analysis of the intricate labyrinth of diplomacy during WW I. Her previous works were outstanding, making this effort all the more puzzling.
January 13, 2018
"What that dead man has come to symbolise... is a system so rotten that it does not even qualify to be described as a fossil. But... like fossil hunters everywhere, I dreamed of stepping back into the world where it had breathed."
Above are the words of author Catherine Merridale from her introduction to this fine book, and I am delighted to say that she has thoroughly succeeded in recreating the world of which she speaks, so much so that the reader himself can step back into it too.
Lenin On The Train is not a work of fiction, though Merridale tells the story so well, and focuses in on a sequence of events so dramatic, that it would not seem out of place in a historical thriller. The book describes the titular journey made by the so-called "sealed train" from Zurich to Petrograd (now Saint Petersburg) with radical Soviet Vladimir Lenin and his chums rattling around in its carriages and thinking of ways to kickstart the first Communist state. As we come to realise, however, the big picture is much more complex, and Merridale addresses not just the train journey but the surrounding machinations of the German government, the British intelligence service and the haphazard post-revolutionary government of Russia that was ripe for shaking by the incoming Lenin. What results is a concise and yet original angle on both what happened during that trip and why.
This book is an excellent example of how one small moment in history can be seized upon and expanded into a full and fascinating piece of literature. Lenin's sealed train tends to be left on the cutting-room floor of most histories, whose authors are either focused on the pre-Lenin chaos of February within Russia itself or else tripping over their own feet to get to the juicy bloodshed of October. Merridale, however, sets her sights on those few months of extraordinary tension when the course of global history could have gone in just about any direction. Dredging up what seems to be every single account of the events in both English and Russian, Merridale is able to recreate the stage and its players in as much eye-popping clarity as any other period of the Soviet genesis.
Coupled with that is a very accessible and entertaining style that never seems too academic, but neither does it over-exaggerate to the point of sensationalism. Perhaps this is what imbues the book with its capacity to make the casual reader wonder about other stuff, to prompt the average Joe to actually peruse the "Further Reading" section and ask various questions like, "Where can I find out more about that intriguing man Parvus?" or "How come Switzerland ended up bursting at the seams with all the exiled peeved-off Communists living within a few streets of each other?". In this sense Merridale manages to make one minor event global, relating it to many different countries and perspectives, and indeed eventually relating it to the present state of Russia.
These detours are not always perfect though, nor are they always necessary. A rough estimate would suggest that more pages are devoted to the misadventures of the British agents in Russia than the actual train journey itself, for example. Furthermore, for a book with a tendency to wander off the point somewhat, the author is surprisingly damning of the work of some of her historian ancestors whom she believes have got some elements of the story all wrong; all this proves, however, is that history is constantly being re-edited and refined, and one wonders how long it will take for Merridale's own work to be superseded by someone even more informed.
All things considered, Lenin On The Train is a fascinating insight into an event whose historical importance one may not have realised before. It is, in my opinion, essential for anyone hoping to understand the Russian revolution as a whole, recommended for anyone hoping to get to grips with the complexities of the First World War, and sheer immersive fun for anyone who just wants to read a properly engrossing book. Best read on a literal train, I should think...
Above are the words of author Catherine Merridale from her introduction to this fine book, and I am delighted to say that she has thoroughly succeeded in recreating the world of which she speaks, so much so that the reader himself can step back into it too.
Lenin On The Train is not a work of fiction, though Merridale tells the story so well, and focuses in on a sequence of events so dramatic, that it would not seem out of place in a historical thriller. The book describes the titular journey made by the so-called "sealed train" from Zurich to Petrograd (now Saint Petersburg) with radical Soviet Vladimir Lenin and his chums rattling around in its carriages and thinking of ways to kickstart the first Communist state. As we come to realise, however, the big picture is much more complex, and Merridale addresses not just the train journey but the surrounding machinations of the German government, the British intelligence service and the haphazard post-revolutionary government of Russia that was ripe for shaking by the incoming Lenin. What results is a concise and yet original angle on both what happened during that trip and why.
This book is an excellent example of how one small moment in history can be seized upon and expanded into a full and fascinating piece of literature. Lenin's sealed train tends to be left on the cutting-room floor of most histories, whose authors are either focused on the pre-Lenin chaos of February within Russia itself or else tripping over their own feet to get to the juicy bloodshed of October. Merridale, however, sets her sights on those few months of extraordinary tension when the course of global history could have gone in just about any direction. Dredging up what seems to be every single account of the events in both English and Russian, Merridale is able to recreate the stage and its players in as much eye-popping clarity as any other period of the Soviet genesis.
Coupled with that is a very accessible and entertaining style that never seems too academic, but neither does it over-exaggerate to the point of sensationalism. Perhaps this is what imbues the book with its capacity to make the casual reader wonder about other stuff, to prompt the average Joe to actually peruse the "Further Reading" section and ask various questions like, "Where can I find out more about that intriguing man Parvus?" or "How come Switzerland ended up bursting at the seams with all the exiled peeved-off Communists living within a few streets of each other?". In this sense Merridale manages to make one minor event global, relating it to many different countries and perspectives, and indeed eventually relating it to the present state of Russia.
These detours are not always perfect though, nor are they always necessary. A rough estimate would suggest that more pages are devoted to the misadventures of the British agents in Russia than the actual train journey itself, for example. Furthermore, for a book with a tendency to wander off the point somewhat, the author is surprisingly damning of the work of some of her historian ancestors whom she believes have got some elements of the story all wrong; all this proves, however, is that history is constantly being re-edited and refined, and one wonders how long it will take for Merridale's own work to be superseded by someone even more informed.
All things considered, Lenin On The Train is a fascinating insight into an event whose historical importance one may not have realised before. It is, in my opinion, essential for anyone hoping to understand the Russian revolution as a whole, recommended for anyone hoping to get to grips with the complexities of the First World War, and sheer immersive fun for anyone who just wants to read a properly engrossing book. Best read on a literal train, I should think...
November 19, 2019
I am grateful that Catherine Merridale researched and wrote this book. For all the ink historians have spilled on the Russian Revolution, none have so accurately described the controversial circumstances of Lenin's return from exile. (Merridale's is, for example, the first study I've seen that even included a map of Lenin's journey.) The author provides an engaging account of Mssr. Ulyanov's wartime exile in Switzerland and the unpleasant details of the "sealed train's" journey across Germany (only one bathroom, pinched German faces visible out the window, seasickness on the ferry ride to Sweden). She also explains why the German government decided to grant Lenin's request to return home: the new foreign minister, Arthur Zimmerman, was a gambler (the infamous "Zimmerman Telegram" was one of his less successful wagers), and thought sending Bolshevik agitators to Russia worth the risk. As far as Germany's war effort was concerned, the gamble paid off. Merridale also provides a useful day-by-day look at the March 1917 revolt in Saint Petersburg, and at the political chaos and unpopular compromises Lenin ably exploited.
I came away from the book, however, with the feeling that the author had sufficient material for a long essay but not a full-length monograph. LENIN ON THE TRAIN spends an inordinate amount of time on the grievances and inconveniences of overfed British officials in Petrograd, takes far too long to get to its main characters (Lenin, Krupskaya, Parvus, and their allies), and only devotes a few short chapters to the fateful train journey through the Second Reich. Unless the reader loves diplomatic history, the book will probably lose his or her attention before reaching its central story. Merridale could have solved this problem by writing a shorter book, but one suspects that either her publisher or her muse (and Clio is a long-winded muse) would have objected. Fortunately, there is such a thing as skimming, and readers may profitably skim the first and last chapters of this work to get to the more valuable and interesting insights within.
I came away from the book, however, with the feeling that the author had sufficient material for a long essay but not a full-length monograph. LENIN ON THE TRAIN spends an inordinate amount of time on the grievances and inconveniences of overfed British officials in Petrograd, takes far too long to get to its main characters (Lenin, Krupskaya, Parvus, and their allies), and only devotes a few short chapters to the fateful train journey through the Second Reich. Unless the reader loves diplomatic history, the book will probably lose his or her attention before reaching its central story. Merridale could have solved this problem by writing a shorter book, but one suspects that either her publisher or her muse (and Clio is a long-winded muse) would have objected. Fortunately, there is such a thing as skimming, and readers may profitably skim the first and last chapters of this work to get to the more valuable and interesting insights within.
May 22, 2022
Well written, this book reviews the return(s) of Lenin to Russia during the revolutionary year of 1917. It details the actual train journey Lenin and his comrades took through Switzerland, Germany, Sweden and Finland to Petrograd, but actually goes into the most detail in describing how the long-exiled Lenin managed to recapture ideological leadership of the Bolsheviks. Most interesting was Merridale's discussion of the issue of German financial support to the communists. Falsely denied by Lenin, Merridale, following George Kennan's study of the matter, questions the extreme accounts which set the support as very high and absolutely essential, but allows for continued debate about this contentious issue while raising some of the ethical concerns it engenders. For her part, she argues that Lenin might well have set the record straight at the time without compromising his standing and admits that as matters stand we'll probably arrive at definitive answers.
April 26, 2017
The story of Lenin on the train is only 20 pages of almost 300. There is unnecessary information included about the British inteligence in Russia. The most important part how Lenin is persuaded by the German inteligence to get on their train is only 1/4 of a page. I think the caption of this book misleads the readers, more appropriate would be - British Inteligence and Lenin in the years of the World War I.
June 28, 2019
tremendously readable, although both the introduction and the conclusions are stridently anticommunist. Really brings 1917 to life. Sadly, the book is rather short
February 16, 2023
A dramatic, well-written and very detailed work.
Merridale looks at both the story of Lenin’s journey back to Russia as well as the history of the Revolution, up to the summer of 1917. She provides a good portrait of Lenin and the Bolshevik movement, and argues that Lenin’s arrival in Petrograd was a critical turning point. Her coverage of the Russian war effort, the Tsarist system’s collapse, and Lenin’s life in Switzerland is pretty vivid. She reminds the reader that Lenin’s plans to return to Russia weren’t a secret; the British and the provisional government in Russia both knew what his plans were. She also notes that there isn’t a definitive account of the route that Lenin took: “Most experts send him north along a line that was not even built in 1917, and at least one book – a classic that has been reprinted many times – gets the journey wrong by well over 1,000 miles.”
She also notes that it was Lenin who insisted on “sealing” the train, not the Germans, since Lenin didn’t want to be seen as compromised, and therefore avoided direct contact with them (chalk lines separated the German guards from the Bolsheviks) She also looks at the claim that the Germans paid Lenin. She notes that the paper trail on this question is murky, but that if Lenin never accepted any German funds, “the only alternative is to concede that he subsidized himself with profits from the war’s black-market trade in lead pencils and condoms.”
Merridale vividly describes how anxiously the Bolsheviks awaited Lenin’s arrival, fearing that he would make the situation more chaotic (they were right) She also compares the fates of the provisional government and the Bolsheviks; the former emigrated to France or America and enjoyed capitalist trappings, while Lenin’s loyalists, including those that were with him on the train, would often die in Stalin’s purges.
The book is slow at times and somewhat superficial, and the narrative of Lenin’s journey on the train takes up only about twenty pages; the rest of the book deals with Lenin’s role in the Revolution (although there’s not much on its ultimate impact) Merridale doesn’t offer much new information. Among the “new” information there is, the book includes the train’s itinerary. Why do most books skip over this? Because nobody cares. There isn’t much insight into Lenin; she usually talks about how stubborn and energetic he was, and that’s usually it. She also mentions Alexander Parvus’ weight multiple times, for some reason. The maps are pretty unremarkable.
Merridale also has some thoughts of her own to add, wondering about the state of the modern world. “There is as much instability across the planet now as there once was in Lenin’s day, and a slightly different collection of great powers is still working hard to make sure that they stay on top. One technique that they use in regional conflicts, since direct military engagement tends to cost too much, is to help and finance local rebels, some of whom are on the ground, but some of whom must be dropped in exactly as Lenin was. I think of South America in the 1980s, of all the dirty wars in central America since that time. I shudder at the current conflicts in the Middle East.” Is there anything here the reader can use? Are there any thoughts to ponder that readers haven’t pondered before? Nation-states fight proxy wars and engage in covert operations? What a thoughtful conclusion from a concerned citizen! Who knew?
Other parts of the book are puzzling. In the introduction, Merridale puts the German scheme into the context of German support for other revolutionaries working against the Entente empires, such as Irish and Indian nationalists, but then claims that the Germans “sponsored military mutineers in France” (they did?) She also cites the deployment of British troops to the Suez Canal region as a success for Germany, noting German plans to deploy a legion of Irish republicans in Egypt. Weren’t the Turks the more obvious threat in that region?
Still, a colorful, engaging and well-researched work.
Merridale looks at both the story of Lenin’s journey back to Russia as well as the history of the Revolution, up to the summer of 1917. She provides a good portrait of Lenin and the Bolshevik movement, and argues that Lenin’s arrival in Petrograd was a critical turning point. Her coverage of the Russian war effort, the Tsarist system’s collapse, and Lenin’s life in Switzerland is pretty vivid. She reminds the reader that Lenin’s plans to return to Russia weren’t a secret; the British and the provisional government in Russia both knew what his plans were. She also notes that there isn’t a definitive account of the route that Lenin took: “Most experts send him north along a line that was not even built in 1917, and at least one book – a classic that has been reprinted many times – gets the journey wrong by well over 1,000 miles.”
She also notes that it was Lenin who insisted on “sealing” the train, not the Germans, since Lenin didn’t want to be seen as compromised, and therefore avoided direct contact with them (chalk lines separated the German guards from the Bolsheviks) She also looks at the claim that the Germans paid Lenin. She notes that the paper trail on this question is murky, but that if Lenin never accepted any German funds, “the only alternative is to concede that he subsidized himself with profits from the war’s black-market trade in lead pencils and condoms.”
Merridale vividly describes how anxiously the Bolsheviks awaited Lenin’s arrival, fearing that he would make the situation more chaotic (they were right) She also compares the fates of the provisional government and the Bolsheviks; the former emigrated to France or America and enjoyed capitalist trappings, while Lenin’s loyalists, including those that were with him on the train, would often die in Stalin’s purges.
The book is slow at times and somewhat superficial, and the narrative of Lenin’s journey on the train takes up only about twenty pages; the rest of the book deals with Lenin’s role in the Revolution (although there’s not much on its ultimate impact) Merridale doesn’t offer much new information. Among the “new” information there is, the book includes the train’s itinerary. Why do most books skip over this? Because nobody cares. There isn’t much insight into Lenin; she usually talks about how stubborn and energetic he was, and that’s usually it. She also mentions Alexander Parvus’ weight multiple times, for some reason. The maps are pretty unremarkable.
Merridale also has some thoughts of her own to add, wondering about the state of the modern world. “There is as much instability across the planet now as there once was in Lenin’s day, and a slightly different collection of great powers is still working hard to make sure that they stay on top. One technique that they use in regional conflicts, since direct military engagement tends to cost too much, is to help and finance local rebels, some of whom are on the ground, but some of whom must be dropped in exactly as Lenin was. I think of South America in the 1980s, of all the dirty wars in central America since that time. I shudder at the current conflicts in the Middle East.” Is there anything here the reader can use? Are there any thoughts to ponder that readers haven’t pondered before? Nation-states fight proxy wars and engage in covert operations? What a thoughtful conclusion from a concerned citizen! Who knew?
Other parts of the book are puzzling. In the introduction, Merridale puts the German scheme into the context of German support for other revolutionaries working against the Entente empires, such as Irish and Indian nationalists, but then claims that the Germans “sponsored military mutineers in France” (they did?) She also cites the deployment of British troops to the Suez Canal region as a success for Germany, noting German plans to deploy a legion of Irish republicans in Egypt. Weren’t the Turks the more obvious threat in that region?
Still, a colorful, engaging and well-researched work.
March 10, 2022
Catherine Merridale, grande specialista di storia russa, ha scritto una eccellente ed avvincente opera che ricostruisce con esattezza il mitico viaggio di Lenin nel 1917 da Zurigo, dove era in esilio, alla Pietrogrado in fermento per la rivoluzione e le dimissioni dello Zar. La Merridale ha anche lo sguardo elegante di una romanziera e porta così il lettore anche dentro le tensioni sociali, le cospirazioni politiche e gli intrighi spionistici stranieri. Nel 1917 molto c’era in ballo. Francia ed Inghilterra soprattutto avevano l’interesse che la Russia rispettasse i patti e continuasse la guerra contro la Germania e al contrario la Germania vedeva di buon grado lo scoppio ella rivoluzione e la nascita dei Soviet e, attraverso trame occulte, fomentava il malcontento tra le truppe e i contadini russi in mondo da costringerli ad una pace separata. Tutti gli attori in campo conoscevano bene l’importanza del viaggio di Lenin, ma forse non immaginarono mai che cosa sarebbe successo di là in poi. I tedeschi riuscirono con grande abilità nell’impresa di accordare (questo è il termine esatto, secondo le richieste di Lenin stesso) un vagone piombato come unità extraterritoriale al leader russo e permettere l’attraversamento della Germania per questo viaggio: 13 giorni, 3500 Km. attraverso Germania, Svezia, Lapponia, Finlandia. I servizi segreti inglesi e francesi ovviamente sapevano tutto e ipotizzarono di fermare Lenin in Svezia o al confine con la Finlandia, ma una serie di coincidenze impedirono l’avverarsi dell’ipotesi. E il Dopo ormai è Storia. La scrittrice, grazie anche alla apertura degli archivi sovietici è riuscita a ricostruire le tante attività di personaggi storici menscevichi e bolscevichi che si muovevano nella Pietrogrado dell’epoca sia prima dell’arrivo di Lenin sia dopo. E a corredare il volume di fotografie molto interessanti. Opera molto interessante che sollecita il lettore ad approfondire di più e a porsi delle domande le cui risposte fino ad oggi non si sono ancora trovate sui libri di storia.
June 11, 2021
Ausgezeichnetes Zeitpanorama, in dessen Zentrum die Reise der Gruppe russischer Revolutionäre um Lenin in einem verplombten Eisenbahnwagen von Zürich nach Petrograd steht. Catherine Merridale gelingt es, die unterschiedlichen Interessen der Kriegsparteien und die Handlungen ihrer Diplomaten und Agenten spannend zu erzählen.
April 26, 2017
A book on a trip that changed the fate of a country, as well as the whole world order subsequently. Would desrve the highest mark of 5 star if there were more staff on Lenin himself and less on unexplained British angle of the story. German side I would understand, afterwards, they payed for this journey, but British?! The author must be British I guess. The book is entertaining and accessible even if you know very little about history. For the more setious study, read smth about the revolution and Lenin himselv.
Lenin is still inside mausoleum, although there are talks again of burying him. There is a sad joke in Russia, that we will be forever cursed until they finally bury this horrible man. I would personally spit on his grave, as the one man who contributed so much to the horror we still live in. In Mosvow live on one of the street named after member of Lenin's family ( Ul'yanov real name), close to the prospect named after the tyrant himself. One day I still hope that these streets would be renamed, as I consider this terrorist to deserve nothing but contempt. The statues are numerous and ugly as he was, hopefully would be torn down. Someday..
Lenin is still inside mausoleum, although there are talks again of burying him. There is a sad joke in Russia, that we will be forever cursed until they finally bury this horrible man. I would personally spit on his grave, as the one man who contributed so much to the horror we still live in. In Mosvow live on one of the street named after member of Lenin's family ( Ul'yanov real name), close to the prospect named after the tyrant himself. One day I still hope that these streets would be renamed, as I consider this terrorist to deserve nothing but contempt. The statues are numerous and ugly as he was, hopefully would be torn down. Someday..
July 28, 2021
In April, 1917 when the first Russian Revolution forced Tsar Nicholas II to abdicate, Europe was still in the midst of World War I. The Allies wanted Russia to stay in the war fighting, Tsar or no Tsar, but the Germans desperately wanted the country to withdraw so they would be fighting a war on a single front. But that was not going to happen as long as the Provisional Government of Alexander Kerensky was in power
The Germans best hope was with the leader of the Bolsheviks, Vladimir Lenin. But Lenin was in Zurich and would have to cross the whole of Germany to return to Russia. Everyone who had taken modern European history knows that the Germans provided Lenin with passage across their country in a sealed train so he could lead the second Bolshevik Revolution and end Russia’s participation in the war. But howe this happened and how Lenin became convinced that the only way the Russian Revolution would be successful was by masking a deal with his country’s deadliest enemy is the stuff that great novels of espionage are made. This was a super read that held my interest from the first page to the last.
The Germans best hope was with the leader of the Bolsheviks, Vladimir Lenin. But Lenin was in Zurich and would have to cross the whole of Germany to return to Russia. Everyone who had taken modern European history knows that the Germans provided Lenin with passage across their country in a sealed train so he could lead the second Bolshevik Revolution and end Russia’s participation in the war. But howe this happened and how Lenin became convinced that the only way the Russian Revolution would be successful was by masking a deal with his country’s deadliest enemy is the stuff that great novels of espionage are made. This was a super read that held my interest from the first page to the last.
June 2, 2018
Book received from NetGalley.
This is the first book I've read on Vladimir Lenin, and I learned quite a bit from it. I admit I'm a huge fan of history on royalty so the Russian history I focused on was the various monarchs of the country. I knew the basics about Lenin and the change to Communism because of high school history classes, I took one focused on an overview of Russian history. So I had no clue what it took to bring Lenin out of exile and into Russia to take over governance of the country, especially since we were still involved in World War I at the time. I also didn't know multiple members of the Allied forces were trying to decide if it would be a good chance to take out someone, Lenin, who they felt would be detrimental to their war effort. Parts of it were slow and lost my interest, but the rest of it made up for those few pages.
This is the first book I've read on Vladimir Lenin, and I learned quite a bit from it. I admit I'm a huge fan of history on royalty so the Russian history I focused on was the various monarchs of the country. I knew the basics about Lenin and the change to Communism because of high school history classes, I took one focused on an overview of Russian history. So I had no clue what it took to bring Lenin out of exile and into Russia to take over governance of the country, especially since we were still involved in World War I at the time. I also didn't know multiple members of the Allied forces were trying to decide if it would be a good chance to take out someone, Lenin, who they felt would be detrimental to their war effort. Parts of it were slow and lost my interest, but the rest of it made up for those few pages.
May 23, 2017
Fascinating but I don't feel I got as much from it as promised. Definitely worth a read but for general history of the period rather than for a biography of Lenin himself.
May 27, 2017
2.5 stars. Interesting history, but stylistically weak and maligned with that classic historian error of cramming in too many facts.
July 15, 2021
Almost reads like fiction! Really enthralling depiction of the single most consequential voyage of the 20th century.
July 17, 2021
Моя оценка 3.5. Не знаю, что не так с этой книгой - вроде ж все интересно и правильно, но читалось тяжеловато и скучновато. В общем, поработала бы я над ней напильником - и над стилем изложения, и над структурой. Но было о чем подумать и на что взглянуть под новым углом.
February 12, 2020
The title of the book is rather misleading as it is not a Lenin's biography but rather a history of the early days of the October Revolution. The author explains the squabbles in revolutionary circles and what it took to convince German government to allow the passage of the sealed train through its
territory. In the early pages Catherine Marridale retraces the journey that shook world. Personal impressions of the journey and author's visits to Soviet Union/Russia enrich the story. They make this history book much more readable. Way too much time is spent describing the views on Russia of the British diplomatic corps and intelligence services.
German government supported the enemies of their enemy (tsarist Russia) and allowed the Bolsheviks to return to Russia from Zurich. Furthermore, they supported Bolsheviks financially in the early days of the revolution. Lenin's coconspirators funnelled these funds through middlemen in Germany and Sweden. The antiwar atmosphere in Petrograd was one of the key causes of the revolution and establishing the Provisional Government. Lenin convinced other Bolsheviks that no collaboration with the Provisional Government should happen and manage to convince the revolutionaries, even though his ideas were initially disregarded.
Not necessarily the best introduction to the topic as it assumes prior knowledge. Also, it focuses on the fairly narrow section of the events and mostly follows the actions by Bolsheviks. The book terminates with Lenin taking power. The epilogue is an honest assessment of the failures of the revolution to deliver its promises. It describes the grim fate of the majority of the early supporters of the revolution. Definitely not a hagiography of Lenin.
territory. In the early pages Catherine Marridale retraces the journey that shook world. Personal impressions of the journey and author's visits to Soviet Union/Russia enrich the story. They make this history book much more readable. Way too much time is spent describing the views on Russia of the British diplomatic corps and intelligence services.
German government supported the enemies of their enemy (tsarist Russia) and allowed the Bolsheviks to return to Russia from Zurich. Furthermore, they supported Bolsheviks financially in the early days of the revolution. Lenin's coconspirators funnelled these funds through middlemen in Germany and Sweden. The antiwar atmosphere in Petrograd was one of the key causes of the revolution and establishing the Provisional Government. Lenin convinced other Bolsheviks that no collaboration with the Provisional Government should happen and manage to convince the revolutionaries, even though his ideas were initially disregarded.
Not necessarily the best introduction to the topic as it assumes prior knowledge. Also, it focuses on the fairly narrow section of the events and mostly follows the actions by Bolsheviks. The book terminates with Lenin taking power. The epilogue is an honest assessment of the failures of the revolution to deliver its promises. It describes the grim fate of the majority of the early supporters of the revolution. Definitely not a hagiography of Lenin.
September 8, 2018
Crossing several borders in my reading of this book, I went from annoyed, to tolerant, to intrigued, to impressed by Catherine Merridale’s account of the events between the February and October Revolutions.
I will try to break that down as follows…
Initially, I was irritated or annoyed by the way she started out focusing on the British. If you follow the footnotes, you notice that many are simply book and page number of the same book at first. That felt repetitive. And, I got the impression that she was displaying a bit of the stereotypical arrogance of the Brits in focusing on British spies. It came across as if she were trying too hard to place her own countrymen into scenes where they had little to do with the chain of events. But, I powered through that.
Then I realized that she was beginning with the British spies because that was perhaps her (and the worlds’) lens of perspective on the events that were taking place, due to a lack of primary source documents. Because of her chatty style, which seemed to take the slow train to get to any point, I suspected a bit too much conjecture and a subjective view that wouldn’t be substantiated or trustworthy, but biased. I chose to tolerate her perspective, assuming I would at least get a view from people of that time period, as they saw Lenin. That was true.
Eventually, I realized from the footnotes that she did have an extensive amount of research, and that explained the meticulous repetition in the documentation. But, she demonstrated a willingness to point to both heroics and shortcomings of actors on every side of the story. I only realized this much later.
Finally, her perceptive outtake on the events that took place in the end were impressive. She made many astute observations and judgements of Lenin, the Russian people, Germany, and the world today from what took place. She has a way of looking at even the body of Lenin in the Red Square as a metaphor of Russia that impressed me. I am glad I read the book, because I gained quite a bit from her viewpoint.
But, what about the train? I’ve seen different opinions in the reviews, but I felt like in the long run the reader does see Lenin on the train, over time. The way Merridale ‘rides the rails’ so to speak for such a long distance between references to the actual train ride can make the reader feel as if she is off the track. Some would even prefer she left out the beginning chapters on British espionage that take so long to get to the beginning of the train ride. But, the way she recounted the events, coming back to the train throughout the book at different points, gave me the feeling of following Lenin’s journey. And, she wrote with a style that made me feel the movement of the train and the group on the trip. It made me realize the fact that the train was basically weaponized with the revolutionary ideas of Lenin, and he was cannon shot across Germany and Sweden, across the border at Haparanda and Tornio into Finland and down to Petrograd in Russia where he lit the fuse of history in what would be a violent bloodbath as bad as the War that he was protesting, if on a smaller scale.
I read this with Kindle whispersync and enjoyed the narration, though I think this might have been even better with the author narrating. I’d like to have heard her voice. This was my stop in Germany for my Journey Around the World in 80 Books Challenge, and part of my collection of TBR books on train journeys. I learned a great deal about both Russia and Germany here, and a bit about Britain’s espionage. My next stop is Switzerland, where I have a good book from Mark Twain. But, I’m already looking forward to getting to Russia, where I will be moving a bit ahead in time to the Cold War with a Russian spy-thriller. Oh, but that’s still a couple dozen books away.
I will try to break that down as follows…
Initially, I was irritated or annoyed by the way she started out focusing on the British. If you follow the footnotes, you notice that many are simply book and page number of the same book at first. That felt repetitive. And, I got the impression that she was displaying a bit of the stereotypical arrogance of the Brits in focusing on British spies. It came across as if she were trying too hard to place her own countrymen into scenes where they had little to do with the chain of events. But, I powered through that.
Then I realized that she was beginning with the British spies because that was perhaps her (and the worlds’) lens of perspective on the events that were taking place, due to a lack of primary source documents. Because of her chatty style, which seemed to take the slow train to get to any point, I suspected a bit too much conjecture and a subjective view that wouldn’t be substantiated or trustworthy, but biased. I chose to tolerate her perspective, assuming I would at least get a view from people of that time period, as they saw Lenin. That was true.
Eventually, I realized from the footnotes that she did have an extensive amount of research, and that explained the meticulous repetition in the documentation. But, she demonstrated a willingness to point to both heroics and shortcomings of actors on every side of the story. I only realized this much later.
Finally, her perceptive outtake on the events that took place in the end were impressive. She made many astute observations and judgements of Lenin, the Russian people, Germany, and the world today from what took place. She has a way of looking at even the body of Lenin in the Red Square as a metaphor of Russia that impressed me. I am glad I read the book, because I gained quite a bit from her viewpoint.
But, what about the train? I’ve seen different opinions in the reviews, but I felt like in the long run the reader does see Lenin on the train, over time. The way Merridale ‘rides the rails’ so to speak for such a long distance between references to the actual train ride can make the reader feel as if she is off the track. Some would even prefer she left out the beginning chapters on British espionage that take so long to get to the beginning of the train ride. But, the way she recounted the events, coming back to the train throughout the book at different points, gave me the feeling of following Lenin’s journey. And, she wrote with a style that made me feel the movement of the train and the group on the trip. It made me realize the fact that the train was basically weaponized with the revolutionary ideas of Lenin, and he was cannon shot across Germany and Sweden, across the border at Haparanda and Tornio into Finland and down to Petrograd in Russia where he lit the fuse of history in what would be a violent bloodbath as bad as the War that he was protesting, if on a smaller scale.
I read this with Kindle whispersync and enjoyed the narration, though I think this might have been even better with the author narrating. I’d like to have heard her voice. This was my stop in Germany for my Journey Around the World in 80 Books Challenge, and part of my collection of TBR books on train journeys. I learned a great deal about both Russia and Germany here, and a bit about Britain’s espionage. My next stop is Switzerland, where I have a good book from Mark Twain. But, I’m already looking forward to getting to Russia, where I will be moving a bit ahead in time to the Cold War with a Russian spy-thriller. Oh, but that’s still a couple dozen books away.
September 1, 2018
The story of Lenin's trip from Switzerland to St. Petersburg is the stuff of legends. Merridale's book unpacks a lot of the story in a fairly coherent way. I came away with a couple of conclusions. First, the Germans may have been encouraged to move Lenin to foment problems in Russia as a result of the Zimmerman Memorandum. Second, the great powers and their diplomatic representatives were incompetent in understanding the dynamics of the forces in Russia and thus came away with very little results. It is clear that the Germans thought throwing Lenin into the uncertainties of St. Petersburg would destabilize the situation. The British Ambassador was simply out of touch with what was happening after the Czar abdicated. Third, a good number of the revolutionaries were intent on debating every issue beyond its logical conclusion - that opened a chance for a human being totally without moral bearing to move aggressively. Fourth, Lenin was a piker compared to his successor. Both spent a lot of time talking revolution but what they were really interested in was establishing an autocracy.
The end of the book does a recap about how really horrible Stalin was and why the current Russian autocracy keeps the rotting corpse of Lenin around.
This is a complex story that the author tries diligently to unpack. On the whole she does a credible job.
The end of the book does a recap about how really horrible Stalin was and why the current Russian autocracy keeps the rotting corpse of Lenin around.
This is a complex story that the author tries diligently to unpack. On the whole she does a credible job.
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