The Sins and Legacy of Vladimir Lenin

His crimes shaped the twentieth century

A photograph of Vladimir Lenin by Pavel Semyonovich Zhukov, 1920 (Wikimedia Commons)

Joseph Stalin is the first name we associate with the Soviet Union, and this is understandable. Under his rule, millions of Soviet citizens were imprisoned, tortured, and exterminated. Aside from the Second World War, there was nothing positive about Stalin’s leadership.

But before Stalin rose to power, the Soviet Union was led by another man: Vladimir Lenin. As a radical revolutionary, Lenin laid the foundations for other dictators throughout the twentieth century. His brand of Marxism was the blueprint for some of the darkest regimes in human history.

Marxist Visionary

In May 1887, Lenin’s brother, Alexander, was sentenced to death by the government for plotting to kill the Tsar of Russia. Lenin had been very close to Alexander, and he was heartbroken by his death.

Alexander’s revolutionary outlook came from his fixation with Karl Marx, the famous political theorist. Lenin, who was hungry for revenge, started to read Marx shortly after his brother’s death. He soon became obsessed with Marxism, and by the end of the year, he only had one ambition: revolution.

According to Marx, working-class citizens were oppressed by the capitalist system. They were mistreated and underpaid…