Vladimir Lenin is known for introducing communism to Russia. Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov was born in Simbirsk, Russia on 22 April 1870. His father, who "opened up about 400 schools and oversaw the education of over 20,000 pupils," died when Lenin was only sixteen years old. In 1887, Lenin's brother Alexander, "a brilliant academic enrolled at Saint Petersburg University," was caught with a bomb and arrested then executed on May 8, 1887, by hanging, as were four other co-conspirators. In August of that year Vladimir entered Law School but was later expelled for his involvement in a student protest. Eventually Lenin was able to return and graduate.
Lenin's 'political' involvement led to his sentence in 1897... living in a hut in the Northern Wastelands of Siberia. Devoted follower Nadezhda Krupskaya joined Lenin in 1898, being transferred from her prison cell of two years, in the cold harshness of Siberia. She had claimed to be Lenin’s fiancé. Lenin and Nadezhda were subsequently married on July 10th, 1898, in a Siberian Church. "Lenin set to work translating vast tracts of Socialist literature. Lenin took his time to painstakingly prepare full interpretations from English and other European languages directly into the Russian dialect."
In 1900 the couple returned from exile, eventually settling in Germany and continued with 'Marxist' political activities. After learning of 'Bloody Sunday' protests of January 1905, "Lenin returned to Russia where he implored the Bolsheviks to capitalize upon the unrest and use it to spark a larger revolution in which Marxist ideals could be implemented... he passed out pamphlets that encouraged violence against authority figures. The radical tracts he distributed were shockingly blunt in their advice, with Lenin giving detailed instructions on how to kill police officers, and generally guided the reader on a variety of ways to cause mayhem and harm."
1917 proved a pivotal year for Lenin. On "February 23rd, 1917, a mass of enraged and desperate Russians filled the streets of St. Petersburg demanding change... their desire to overthrow the Tsarist regime... Fearing that he would soon be thrown out of office by an angry, uncontrollable mob, Tsar Nicholas II decided to beat them to the punch by abdicating." Lenin soon took the position as Chairman of this council, the supreme authority in Russia. WWI proved another time of endless action for Lenin, including the elimination of the members of the Romanov royal family.
By 1921 anti-communism uprisings spread throughout "Siberia, Tambov, Kronstandt, and other vast swathes of Russian territory." In April of that year, Lenin instituted the 'New Economic Policy' which was "an astonishing reversal of communist policy, and even allowed limited private enterprise, giving peasant farmers the opportunity to sell their own produce for profit."
Lenin's health declined, which included debilitating strokes, leaving him paralyzed on his right side. He died on January 21, 1924, with his wife Krupskaya by his side.
These brief biographies can help the reader in their decision to pursue the topic at hand with more lengthy academic works.
- Excerpt:
Lenin began to write lengthy essays and propaganda tracts that encouraged the common soldiers of all the nations involved to rebel. He attempted to turn the war into one of class conflict, hoping that the poor, who were being forced to fight the battles of the rich, would decide to turn their weapons back on the capitalist class.
- Vladimir Lenin quotes from this work:
“Give us a child for 8 years and it will be a Bolshevik forever.”
“Freedom in capitalist society always remains about the same as it was in ancient Greek republics: Freedom for slave owners.”
“There are no morals in politics; there is only expedience. A scoundrel may be of use to us just because he is a scoundrel.”
“A revolution is impossible without a revolutionary situation; furthermore, not every revolutionary situation leads to revolution.”
“One man with a gun can control 100 without one.”
“The best way to destroy the capitalist system is to debauch the currency.”
“While the State exists, there can be no freedom; when there is freedom there will be no State.”
“The oppressed are allowed once every few years to decide which particular representatives of the oppressing class are to represent and repress them.”
“A lie told often enough becomes the truth.”