Leon Trotsky

Who Was He?

Born November 7, 1879 in Kirovohrad, Ukraine.

Full name: Lev Davidovich Bronshtein. He was a writer, a communist, a leader in the 1917 Russian

Revolution, a peoples commissar, and the head of the Red

Army.

What Was He A Part Of?

He joined Social Democratic Party, which split into two factions.

Became member of the Menshevik (minority) faction.

There, he developed his theory of permanent revolution.

His Introduction to Marxism

Marxism: the political, economic, and social, theories of Karl Marx including the belief that the struggle between social classes is a major force in history and that there will eventually be a society where there are no classes. Trotsky skipped to school to talk with political exiles and he read many illegal books. He met people who had revolutionary ideas, which led to the development of his own.

The 1917 Russian Revolution

He lead the communist faction.

He became a war commissioner.

He eventually joined the Bolshevik (majority) party and became an ally of Vladimir Lenin, leader of the new Soviet government.

Trotsky became second to Lenin.

Peoples Commissar
He became a peoples commissar for his new role in government. He was responsible for negotiating a peace treaty with Russia so that they wouldnt participate in World War I. This led to him becoming a commissar of the army and navy after he resigned his position.

The Red Army

After becoming the commissar of the army and navy, Trotsky raised a powerful new army, which was called the Red Army. Red Army: early beneficiary of two ongoing sources of strength for communist Russia; a willingness to use people of humble background, but great ability and an ability to inspire mass loyalty in the name of a brighter communist future. Recruited able generals and masses of loyal conscripts. Red Army fought and won against White Russian forces in the civil war, which kept the Bolshevik regime alive.

Tension With Joseph Stalin

When Lenins health started deteriorating, the people started questioning who his successor would be. Trotsky seemed to be a good choice because of his success. However, Trotsky was very arrogant, grating him very few friends. His Jewish background went against him. Once Lenin died, a man named Joseph Stalin came and politically outmaneuvered Trotsky. This led to Trotskys downfall and exile out of the country.

Exile
Trotsky was first exiled to Alma-Ata, which is now Almaty, Kazakhstan. Soon after, he was banned from the entire Soviet Union. He continued writing books, articles, and memoirs regarding revolutionary ideas. He also criticized Stalin, which caused him to name Trotsky a conspirator in taking him out of power. Throughout the years that followed, Trotsky lived in Turkey, France, Norway. He eventually ended up in Mexico, where he spent his final days.

His Death
Trotsky escaped the first assassination attempt by Stalin on May 24, 1940. On August 20, 1940, Ramon Mercader murdered Trotsky with an ice pick. A day later, Trotsky died due to his injuries at the age of 60. Mercador assassinated Trotsky by the orders of Joseph Stalin.