A Study of What Leon Trotsky Was Able to Accomplish in His Lifetime

Introduction

A Soviet politician, revolutionist, and theorist, Leon Trotsky, born as Lev Davidovich Bronstein on 7 October, was born in a small village by the name of Yanovka in Ukraine. He was the fifth child to his prosperous Russian-Jewish parents, David and Anna Bronstein, who were not religious. Mossei Spentzer, an uncle of Lev, had been accommodated within his home whilst recovering from an illness and took notice of Lev’s intelligence. From this point, this led to a move to Nikolayev, the southern city of Ukraine, for education. Henceforth, Trotsky eventually became heavily influenced by revolutionary ideals that were to significantly shape his life (Service, 2010).

The Formative Years

Trotsky's early life was instrumental in shaping his revolutionary mindset. His exposure to intellectuals and political thinkers in Nikolayev provided a fertile ground for his budding interest in Marxism. Trotsky's involvement with revolutionary groups during his formative years laid the foundation for his later political activities and ideologies (Volkogonov, 1996).

The 1917 Revolution and Rise to Power

It is certain that the events that took place throughout Trotsky’s time were extraordinarily significant in shaping his role. Historical figures and events that greatly contributed to the political life Trotsky had become involved in include the 1917 Revolution, the Power Struggle, the Tsarist Years, and the Final Years. Throughout these particular events that took place within this time period, Trotsky took on the challenge of adopting many pivotal roles, including becoming a communist theorist and agitator, being a leader in Russia’s October Revolution in 1917, and later the commissar of foreign affairs and of war in the Soviet Union. In the struggle for power following Vladimir Lenin’s death, however, Joseph Stalin emerged as the victor, while Trotsky was removed from all positions of superiority and power, and later exiled in 1929. He remained the leader of an anti-Stalinist opposition abroad until his assassination in 1940 by a Stalinist agent (Trotsky, 1930).

The Tsarist Years and Prelude to Revolution

Prior to the formation of the March and November Revolutions in 1917, Russia was positioned as an autocratic country ruled by Tsar Nicholas II. There was no parliament to portray people’s views, and the Tsar relied on the army and his bureaucracy to suppress dissent. All unions of workers and strikes were forbidden, and the secret police, the Cheka, targeted any form of opposition to the government. Political groups, including the Socialist Revolutionaries, the Bolsheviks, and the Mensheviks, all contributed to and sought to eventually overthrow the Tsar and later implement socialism. As a result of the overflow of discontent and rapid strikes in 1905, Nicholas II established an assembly, or Duma, and constitution. In contrast, the October Manifesto managed to please a few, and the 1906 Fundamental Laws only served to reassert Nicholas II’s autocratic position. Tsar Nicholas II dissolved the first two freely elected assemblies after they criticized his government, and the next two were docile conservative bodies that supported the government line. As a result, this actually motivated the left-wing revolutionaries more to incite revolution by violent means. In addition, Russian involvement in World War I worsened rather than benefited the circumstances and heavily contributed to the March Revolution of 1917 (Figes, 1996).

The Aftermath and Bolshevik Consolidation

The 1917 revolutions seemed to have significantly been the direct ramification of the war and the heavy burdens that Russian citizens had been forced to carry. The Tsar, Nicholas II, was forced to abdicate, and from this, the Provisional Government and the Petrograd Soviet were formed and co-existed peacefully until the elections for a Constituent Assembly could be run. On Lenin’s return from exile, he began to push for a socialist revolution. During the ‘July Days’, the Bolsheviks attempted to take advantage of a popular uprising yet failed to harness its political power. By this, the government called and sent in troops and crushed the revolt. Leading Bolsheviks were also arrested, and Lenin fled to Finland. However, the Bolsheviks made an appearance to the Provisional Government in September during the Kornilov Revolt, which allowed them to gain valuable arms, discipline, and experience (Read, 2005).

The Power Struggle and Exile

With the adjustment to power that the Bolsheviks were given, a series of reforms to consolidate their rule and establish a new-formed communist state was introduced. From this, many actions were implemented. An example to support this is the formation of a formally organized government, Sovnarkom, and Lenin was placed as Chairman. In addition, the long-promised Constituent was dissolved. The aspects involved alongside the political opposition that was oppressed created the imposition of press censorship. The secret police, known as the Cheka, was also formed in order to deal with opponents and political enemies, and the Bolshevik Party was declared the only political party that was to be held. In 1918, the Bolshevik Party became known as the Communist Party. Throughout this time, private properties were replaced with factories in productive resources, and they were placed under the dominance of elected committees of workers. Furthermore, unemployment insurance was introduced, and church property was confiscated (Pipes, 1990).

Conclusion

The Power Struggle was an event within Trotsky’s time that greatly contributed to his political role. After the following of Vladimir Lenin’s death in 1924, Trotsky competed against Joseph Stalin for the leadership of the Communist Party. In his testament, Lenin urged his comrades to remove Stalin from the position of General Secretary. As each of them vied for the audacity to hold supreme power and control, they argued over the direction the revolution should now take; Stalin’s ‘socialism in one country.’ From this, Trotsky lost in regard to wanting to claim a ‘permanent revolution.’ This eventually made Trotsky portrayed as an enemy of the Soviet Union. In 1926, Stalin established a triumvirate with members Grigory Zinoviev and Lev Kamenev to oppose Trotsky and command a majority in the Politburo. The next year, Trotsky was expelled from the Party and later exiled in 1929 (Service, 2009).

Therefore, Leon Trotsky’s political role and the events, including the 1917 Revolution, the Power Struggle, the Tsarist Years, and the Final Years that he contributed to, significantly shaped him into becoming a true and great revolutionist. This is evident through the pivotal roles that he carried out, including becoming a communist theorist and agitator, being a leader in Russia’s October Revolution in 1917, and later the commissar of foreign affairs and of war in the Soviet Union.

References

• Figes, O. (1996). A People's Tragedy: The Russian Revolution: 1891-1924. Penguin Books.
• Pipes, R. (1990). The Russian Revolution. Knopf.
• Read, C. (2005). Lenin: A Revolutionary Life. Routledge.
• Service, R. (2009). Trotsky: A Biography. Harvard University Press.
• Service, R. (2010). Lenin: A Biography. Pan Macmillan.
• Trotsky, L. (1930). My Life: An Attempt at an Autobiography. Penguin Classics.
• Volkogonov, D. (1996). Trotsky: The Eternal Revolutionary. Free Press.