Moscow under Lenin

by Alfred Rosmer, Ian H. Birchall (Translator), Tamara Deutscher (Introduction)

English, French (translation)

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Russian Revolution, Russia

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1953

Reviews

[Marc Lichtman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this many years ago, and I’m sure I would enjoy rereading it. It was then published with an introduction by Tamara Deutscher and was called ‘Moscow Under Lenin.’ This is now published with a new introduction and new title by the translator. I can’t say anything about the introduction, since I haven’t read it, but the book itself is a wonderful personal and political account of what the Russian Revolution was in the early years, when it looked like world revolution was on the agenda!

Alfred Rosmer had come to communism from the French syndicalist movement, which had stood up to the pro-World-War-I chauvinism better than the left wing of the Socialist Party, which is where most of the young French Communist Party came from. He played a major role in that party, and as a representative to the Communist International. He was a close friend of Leon Trotsky during those years, and became a supporter of the Left Opposition, which Trotsky led, which tried to keep the revolution on a Leninist track. For Trotsky’s best account of the Stalinist degeneration, see The Revolution Betrayed: What Is the Soviet Union and Where Is It Going?.

Later Trotsky had some disagreements with Rosmer, some of which Rosmer was right about, but I think Trotsky also felt that youth had to lead the way. Their political differences weren’t totally overcome, but their friendship was renewed when Rosmer came to Mexico to serve as part of the commission led by philosopher John Dewey, which found Trotsky not guilty of the charges against him in the infamous Moscow Trials (see The Case of Leon Trotsky: Report of Hearings on the Charges Made against Him in the Moscow Trials and ‘Not Guilty: Findings of the 1937 Commission Chaired by John Dewey Investigating the Charges Against Leon Trotsky in the Moscow Trials.

There was nothing inevitable about the Stalinist degeneration, and in fact it never happened in Cuba, despite an attempt at a Stalinist takeover (see Dynamics of the Cuban Revolution: A Marxist Appreciation by former secretary to Trotsky Joseph Hansen, and Selected Speeches of Fidel Castro. There are many books about Cuba worth reading, but I will just name another two: Cuba and Angola: Fighting for Africa’s Freedom and Our Own, and [book:Women in Cuba: The Making of a Revolution within the Revolution|.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This wonderful, sad memoir charts four years in Moscow from 1920 to 1923.

Before the world war, Rosmer was a leading French syndicalist. Like many other syndicalists and anarchists, he responded to 1917 by joining the international communist movement, and went to Russia to participate in the Third International.

The book captures the excitement of this period, and the ultimate disappointment. Early in the book, when Rosmer finally reaches the Russian border through the blockade, he and the other delegates run to the guard shack and have a party on the soil of revolution.

Sadness: Toward the end of the book, in 1923, Rosmer goes to visit his old friend Zinoviev. As he is leaving Zinoviev's house, he sees Bukharin, Kamenev, and Stalin coming in -- Rosmer unintentionally saw a secret meeting of the Polibureau members who were conspiring to isolate Trotsky and end democracy in the party. Stalin would later have all the other attendees of that secret meeting killed, after they did his dirty work.

Even if you've read a lot on the history of the revolution, there are two reasons to check this book out:

1) It talks a lot about the anarchists and syndicalists who became communists after 1917, and why they did so. For those interested in left unity today, there are some useful lessons here.

2) Rosmer participated in the formation of the Red International of Labor Unions, and he reports the closely the debate on the unions in the early communist movement--especially whether radicals should set up their own unions, or work in the existing unions. These debates helped shape the early policy of the Trade Union Educational League in the US, and the National Minority Movement in Britain. Very interesting.

Plus Rosmer spends lots of time hanging out with Lenin, Trotsky, Zinoviev, Shlyapnikov, Kollontai, and more.

[Tiarnán · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent first-hand account of post-revolutionary Moscow and the early years of the Comintern. Rosmer vividly portrays the tensions between the Bolsheviks and western communists, while still defending the best aspects of the early Third International as an internationalist and idealistic project, which sought to codify and distill the lessons of the October Revolution for its western supporters.

[Ollie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s been a hundred years and there’s still so much to learn from the Russian Revolution. I’ve read several accounts of the events (including Trotsky’s hefty 100+ page book), and I still feel like I haven’t quite gotten a hang of what exactly was happening after the Bolsheviks took power.

Alfred Rosmer was a former French Syndicalist who was present for much of the hoopla which followed the October revolution and has felt compelled to recreate the events as he saw them. He assures us that his memory is impeccable, but that itself should worry the reader.

Lenin’s Moscow is incredibly easy and at times even a very fun read. Rosmer writes about the events that he saw in Russia from 1920-1922 in laymen’s terms and frequently tells his story like a traveller, meeting new people, old friends, and visiting new places. Unfortunately, there’s also a fair amount of bureaucracy, as the Soviets have organized meeting after meeting and congress after congress to discuss tactics, rally support, to bicker and dispute, to fight the leftist tendencies within the party and the trade unions, and figure out the sorry state of the French communist party. At times I found it hard to follow what exactly what was being discussed and that’s because Rosmer jumps all over the place and omits certain important details or backstories which would help us understand the topic. His narrative ends with Lenin’s death and how that basically brought the death of the Communist party.

At any rate, Lenin’s Moscow was a very enjoyable read and provided insight on what daily life was like for some of the more elite members of Soviet Russia. It contains valuable information for both casual fans of the subject and hardcore scholars.

[Evi Routoula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Περιγραφή των πολιτικών εξελίξεων στη Ρωσία από το 1920 έως το 1923. Ο Αλφρέντ Ροσμέρ, Γάλλος κομμουνιστής, προσωπικός φίλος του Τρότσκι, βρέθηκε στη Μόσχα αρκετές φορές στη διάρκεια αυτών των ετών και έλαβε μέρος στα συνέδρια της Κομμουνιστικής Διεθνούς. Μας διηγείται για πρόσωπα και πράγματα εκείνης της εποχής. Η συμπάθεια του συγγραφέα για τον Λένιν είναι εμφανής, όπως εμφανέσταστη είναι και η αντιπάθειά του για το ολοκληρωτικό καθεστώς που ακολούθησε δυστυχώς μετά τον θάνατο του μεγάλου ηγέτη. Η αφήγησή του είναι ενδιαφέρουσα, κάτι σαν ημερολόγιο και μας δίνει πολλές πληροφορίες. Το βιβλίο συνοδεύεται από φωτογραφικό υλικό και σύντομα βιογραφικά όλων των εμπλεκόμενων.

[Nathan Fisher]

Didn't get a lot out of this — a lot of the memoirs of contemporaries are obviously marred by the significant political feuds, of course, but this one feels particularly dry and over-rehearsed.

[Soph Nova · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved this memoir about post 1917 internationalist politics from someone in the trenches

[Joe Xtarr · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book left a lot to be desired. Rosmer has an obvious affection for Lenin, and never misses an opportunity to lay down a thick layer of praise for him. Even where he could be critical, he keeps it soft and apologetic. His account is highly biased. I happen to dislike Lenin for several reasons, but I was hoping to gain something from this book. Instead, it reads like a drab diary, and doesn't deliver anything that I would consider inspirational or insightful. Rosmer spends a lot of pages describing his time traveling, and almost as much effort on the comintern activities. He painted a beautiful image of the Trotsky train and Russian hor d'oeuvres, though. I guess that's interesting...

[Keir · Rating 3 out of 5]

French former Syndicalist Rosermer chronicles some of the most crucial years of the development of the Russian Revolution through telling his own involvement in it. The problem with this approach is that Rosmer was somewhat peripheral to key events, and comes to blindly rely on the version of events put forward by his personal friend Trotsky. Consequently his argument, that Stalinism in no way naturally followed from Leninism, is a little unconvincing. The tale is none the less a fairly interesting read, with many personal details and observations that add colour to the account.