Left Opposition
Encyclopedia
The Left Opposition was a faction within the Bolshevik Party from 1923 to 1927, headed de facto
by Leon Trotsky
. The Left Opposition formed as part of the power struggle within the party leadership that began with the Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin
's illness and intensified with his death in January 1924. Originally, the battle lines were drawn between Trotsky and his supporters who signed The Declaration of 46
in October 1923, on the one hand, and a triumvirate
(known by its Russian name troika) of Comintern
chairman Grigory Zinoviev
, Communist Party General Secretary Joseph Stalin
and Politburo
chairman Lev Kamenev
on the other hand. The troika was supported by the leading party theoretician and Pravda
editor Nikolai Bukharin
and by Sovnarkom Chairman (prime minister) Alexei Rykov
, who would later be branded the Right Opposition
by Stalin. Trotsky and his supporters were joined by the Group of Democratic Centralism
.
The first confrontation between the Left Opposition and the troika occurred in October 1923 – January 1924, first secretly and then, from early December on, openly. The troika won decisively at the XIIIth Party Conference in January 1924 and its victory was reaffirmed at the XIIIth Party Congress in June 1924. The second confrontation took place in October–December 1924 during the so-called "Literary Discussion" and ended with the removal of Trotsky from his ministerial post on 6 January 1925.
With Trotsky largely marginalized, Kamenev and Zinoviev had a falling out with Stalin in early 1925. They formed the New Opposition, but were defeated by Stalin, who was again supported by Bukharin and Rykov, at the XIVth Party Congress in December 1925. After their defeat, Zinoviev and Kamenev joined forces with Trotsky's Left Opposition in what became known as the United Opposition
. In July–October 1926, the United Opposition lost out to Stalin, and its leaders were expelled from the ruling Politburo. In October 1927, the last Opposition members were expelled from the Communist Party Central Committee, and in November 1927 Trotsky and Zinoviev were expelled from the Party itself. In December 1927, the XVth Party Congress declared Left Opposition and Trotskyist views to be incompatible with Party membership and expelled all leading oppositionists from the Party.
After the expulsion by the XVth Congress, Zinoviev, Kamenev and their supporters surrendered to Stalin, "admitted their mistakes" and were readmitted to the Communist Party in 1928, although they never regained their former influence and eventually perished in the Great Purge
. Trotsky and his supporters, on the other hand, refused to bow to Stalin and were exiled to remote areas of the Soviet Union in early 1928. Trotsky was eventually expelled from the country in February 1929. His supporters remained in exile, but their resolve began to waver in 1929 as Stalin turned against Bukharin and Rykov and adopted the policy of collectivization, which appeared to be close to the policies that the Left Opposition advocated earlier. The Left Opposition attempted to field opposition candidates against the official Communist Party candidates in the 1929 elections
, but to no avail. Most (but not all) prominent Left Opposition members recanted between 1929 and 1934, but perished during the Great Purge of the mid-late 1930s along with the oppositionists who remained unrepentant.
In the meantime, Trotsky founded the International Left Opposition in 1930. It was meant to be an opposition group within the Comintern, but members of the Comintern were immediately expelled as soon as they joined (or were suspected of joining) the ILO. The ILO therefore concluded that opposing Stalinism
from within the communist organizations controlled by Stalin's supporters had become impossible, so new organizations had to be formed. In 1933, the ILO was renamed the International Communist League
(ICL), which formed the basis of the Fourth International
, founded in Paris in 1938.
See the article on the Fourth International
for the history of the Left Opposition after 1933.
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
by Leon Trotsky
Leon Trotsky
Leon Trotsky , born Lev Davidovich Bronshtein, was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and theorist, Soviet politician, and the founder and first leader of the Red Army....
. The Left Opposition formed as part of the power struggle within the party leadership that began with the Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and communist politician who led the October Revolution of 1917. As leader of the Bolsheviks, he headed the Soviet state during its initial years , as it fought to establish control of Russia in the Russian Civil War and worked to create a...
's illness and intensified with his death in January 1924. Originally, the battle lines were drawn between Trotsky and his supporters who signed The Declaration of 46
The Declaration of 46
The Declaration of 46 was a secret letter sent by a group of 46 leading Soviet communists to the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party on 15 October 1923...
in October 1923, on the one hand, and a triumvirate
Triumvirate
A triumvirate is a political regime dominated by three powerful individuals, each a triumvir . The arrangement can be formal or informal, and though the three are usually equal on paper, in reality this is rarely the case...
(known by its Russian name troika) of Comintern
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
chairman Grigory Zinoviev
Grigory Zinoviev
Grigory Yevseevich Zinoviev , born Ovsei-Gershon Aronovich Radomyslsky Apfelbaum , was a Bolshevik revolutionary and a Soviet Communist politician...
, Communist Party General Secretary Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
and Politburo
Politburo
Politburo , literally "Political Bureau [of the Central Committee]," is the executive committee for a number of communist political parties.-Marxist-Leninist states:...
chairman Lev Kamenev
Lev Kamenev
Lev Borisovich Kamenev , born Rozenfeld , was a Bolshevik revolutionary and a prominent Soviet politician. He was briefly head of state of the new republic in 1917, and from 1923-24 the acting Premier in the last year of Lenin's life....
on the other hand. The troika was supported by the leading party theoretician and Pravda
Pravda
Pravda was a leading newspaper of the Soviet Union and an official organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Party between 1912 and 1991....
editor Nikolai Bukharin
Nikolai Bukharin
Nikolai Ivanovich Bukharin , was a Russian Marxist, Bolshevik revolutionary, and Soviet politician. He was a member of the Politburo and Central Committee , chairman of the Communist International , and the editor in chief of Pravda , the journal Bolshevik , Izvestia , and the Great Soviet...
and by Sovnarkom Chairman (prime minister) Alexei Rykov
Alexei Rykov
Aleksei Ivanovich Rykov was a Russian Bolshevik revolutionary and a Soviet politician most prominent as Premier of Russia and the Soviet Union from 1924–29 and 1924–30 respectively....
, who would later be branded the Right Opposition
Right Opposition
The Right Opposition was the name given to the tendency made up of Nikolai Bukharin, Alexei Rykov, Mikhail Tomsky and their supporters within the Soviet Union in the late 1920s...
by Stalin. Trotsky and his supporters were joined by the Group of Democratic Centralism
Group of Democratic Centralism
The Group of Democratic Centralism, sometimes called the Group of 15, the Decists, or the Decemists, was a dissenting faction within the Soviet Communist Party in the early 1920s.The Group was formed in March 1919 at the 8th Party Congress...
.
The first confrontation between the Left Opposition and the troika occurred in October 1923 – January 1924, first secretly and then, from early December on, openly. The troika won decisively at the XIIIth Party Conference in January 1924 and its victory was reaffirmed at the XIIIth Party Congress in June 1924. The second confrontation took place in October–December 1924 during the so-called "Literary Discussion" and ended with the removal of Trotsky from his ministerial post on 6 January 1925.
With Trotsky largely marginalized, Kamenev and Zinoviev had a falling out with Stalin in early 1925. They formed the New Opposition, but were defeated by Stalin, who was again supported by Bukharin and Rykov, at the XIVth Party Congress in December 1925. After their defeat, Zinoviev and Kamenev joined forces with Trotsky's Left Opposition in what became known as the United Opposition
United Opposition
The United Opposition was a group formed in the All-Union Communist Party in 1926 by Leon Trotsky, Lev Kamenev and Grigory Zinoviev in opposition to Joseph Stalin...
. In July–October 1926, the United Opposition lost out to Stalin, and its leaders were expelled from the ruling Politburo. In October 1927, the last Opposition members were expelled from the Communist Party Central Committee, and in November 1927 Trotsky and Zinoviev were expelled from the Party itself. In December 1927, the XVth Party Congress declared Left Opposition and Trotskyist views to be incompatible with Party membership and expelled all leading oppositionists from the Party.
After the expulsion by the XVth Congress, Zinoviev, Kamenev and their supporters surrendered to Stalin, "admitted their mistakes" and were readmitted to the Communist Party in 1928, although they never regained their former influence and eventually perished in the Great Purge
Great Purge
The Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938...
. Trotsky and his supporters, on the other hand, refused to bow to Stalin and were exiled to remote areas of the Soviet Union in early 1928. Trotsky was eventually expelled from the country in February 1929. His supporters remained in exile, but their resolve began to waver in 1929 as Stalin turned against Bukharin and Rykov and adopted the policy of collectivization, which appeared to be close to the policies that the Left Opposition advocated earlier. The Left Opposition attempted to field opposition candidates against the official Communist Party candidates in the 1929 elections
Soviet Union legislative election, 1929
In 1929, elections were held to the Congress of Soviets of the Soviet Union.The elections were noteworthy for their rowdiness and elements of political opposition...
, but to no avail. Most (but not all) prominent Left Opposition members recanted between 1929 and 1934, but perished during the Great Purge of the mid-late 1930s along with the oppositionists who remained unrepentant.
In the meantime, Trotsky founded the International Left Opposition in 1930. It was meant to be an opposition group within the Comintern, but members of the Comintern were immediately expelled as soon as they joined (or were suspected of joining) the ILO. The ILO therefore concluded that opposing Stalinism
Stalinism
Stalinism refers to the ideology that Joseph Stalin conceived and implemented in the Soviet Union, and is generally considered a branch of Marxist–Leninist ideology but considered by some historians to be a significant deviation from this philosophy...
from within the communist organizations controlled by Stalin's supporters had become impossible, so new organizations had to be formed. In 1933, the ILO was renamed the International Communist League
International Communist League
The International Communist League can refer to several Trotskyist political parties:*The Left Opposition, led by Trotsky from 1933 until 1936*The International-Communist League, a short-lived alliance of British groups in the mid-1970s...
(ICL), which formed the basis of the Fourth International
Fourth International
The Fourth International is the communist international organisation consisting of followers of Leon Trotsky , with the declared dedicated goal of helping the working class bring about socialism...
, founded in Paris in 1938.
See the article on the Fourth International
Fourth International
The Fourth International is the communist international organisation consisting of followers of Leon Trotsky , with the declared dedicated goal of helping the working class bring about socialism...
for the history of the Left Opposition after 1933.
Leading members of the Left Opposition
- Leon TrotskyLeon TrotskyLeon Trotsky , born Lev Davidovich Bronshtein, was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and theorist, Soviet politician, and the founder and first leader of the Red Army....
(Lev Davidovich Bronstein) (1879–1940), People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, founder and commander of the Red ArmyRed ArmyThe Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
and People's Commissar of War during the Russian Civil WarRussian Civil WarThe Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
, and de-facto leader of the Left Opposition. Expelled from the USSR in 1928, he went on to found the Fourth InternationalFourth InternationalThe Fourth International is the communist international organisation consisting of followers of Leon Trotsky , with the declared dedicated goal of helping the working class bring about socialism...
. Murdered by a Soviet agent. - Alexander Beloborodov (1891–1938).
- Mikhail Boguslavsky (1886–1937).
- Andrei BubnovAndrei BubnovAndrei Sergeyevich Bubnov was a Bolshevik revolutionary leader in Russia, and member of the Left Opposition.-Biography:...
(1883–1940), signed the Declaration of the 46 in October 1923, but defected to Stalin soon thereafter. Later head of the Communist Party organization within the Red Army and then People Commissar (minister) of Education. Expelled from the Party Central Committee in November 1937, arrested and perished in the Great PurgeGreat PurgeThe Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938...
. - Chen DuxiuChen DuxiuChen Duxiu played many different roles in Chinese history. He was a leading figure in the anti-imperial Xinhai Revolution and the May Fourth Movement for Science and Democracy. Along with Li Dazhao, Chen was a co-founder of the Chinese Communist Party in 1921. He was its first General Secretary....
(1879–1942): founder of the Chinese Communist Party, from which he was expelled in 1927, and went on to found the Chinese Left Opposition - Yakov Drobnis (1890–1937).
- Adolph JoffeAdolph JoffeAdolph Abramovich Joffe was a Communist revolutionary, a Bolshevik politician and a Soviet diplomat of Karaim descent.-Revolutionary career:...
(1883–1927). - Iosif Kosior (1893–1937).
- Nikolai KrestinskyNikolai KrestinskyNikolay Nikolayevich Krestinsky was a Russian Bolshevik revolutionary and Soviet politician.-Origins:Krestinsky was born in the town of Mogilev, in what is now Mahilyow Voblast of Belarus. According to Russian archivist A. B. Roginsky, Krestinsky was of ethnic Russian origin...
(1883–1938). - Sergei Mrachkovsky (1883–1936).
- Nikolai MuralovNikolai MuralovNikolay Ivanovich Muralov was a Bolshevik revolutionary leader in Russia, and member of the Left Opposition.Muralov was one of the few old Bolsheviks who, like Alexey Rykov and Alexander Shlyapnikov, participated directly and actively in the 1905 Revolution....
(1877–1937), a hero of the Civil War, once Deputy People's Commissar of Agriculture. - Valerian Obolensky (also known as N. Osinsky) (1887–1938), one of the leaders of the Group of Democratic CentralismGroup of Democratic CentralismThe Group of Democratic Centralism, sometimes called the Group of 15, the Decists, or the Decemists, was a dissenting faction within the Soviet Communist Party in the early 1920s.The Group was formed in March 1919 at the 8th Party Congress...
. - Georgy OppokovGeorgy OppokovGeorgy Ippolitovich Oppokov was a prominent Bolshevik, he was a Left Communist and subsequently a member of the Left Opposition and People's Commissar for Justice....
(also known as A. Lomov) (1888–1937). - Yevgeni PreobrazhenskyYevgeni PreobrazhenskyYevgeni Alekseyevich Preobrazhensky was an Old Bolshevik, an economist and a member of the Central Committee of the Bolshevik faction and, its successor, the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.-Life:...
(1886–1937), the economic theoretician of the Left Opposition, the author of The New Economics. - Georgy PyatakovGeorgy PyatakovGeorgy Leonidovich Pyatakov was a Bolshevik revolutionary leader during the Russian Revolution, and member of the Left Opposition.Pyatakov was born August 6, 1890 in the settlement of the Mariinsky sugar factory which was owned by his father, an ethnic Russian, Leonid Timofeyevich Pyatakov.He...
(1890–1937). - Karl RadekKarl RadekKarl Bernhardovic Radek was a socialist active in the Polish and German movements before World War I and an international Communist leader after the Russian Revolution....
(1885–1939). - Christian RakovskyChristian RakovskyChristian Rakovsky was a Bulgarian socialist revolutionary, a Bolshevik politician and Soviet diplomat; he was also noted as a journalist, physician, and essayist...
(1873–1941). - Timofei SapronovTimofei SapronovTimofei Vladimirovich Sapronov was a Russian revolutionary, Old Bolshevik and socialist militant.Whilst working as a house painter Sapronov joined the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1912. He was active during the Russian Revolution and Russian Civil War in the...
(1887–1939?), one of the leaders of the Group of Democratic Centralism. - Victor SergeVictor SergeVictor Serge , born Victor Lvovich Kibalchich , was a Russian revolutionary and writer. Originally an anarchist, he joined the Bolsheviks five months after arriving in Petrograd in January 1919 and later worked for the Comintern as a journalist, editor and translator...
(1890–1947), went into exile. - Ivar SmilgaIvar SmilgaIvar Tenisovich Smilga , was a Bolshevik revolutionary leader in, and member of the Left Opposition in the Soviet Union.Ivar was born around Valmiera in the Governorate of Livonia , as the son of a forester killed by Russian Government troops in 1906 during the last stage of the Russian...
(Ivar Tenisovich Smilga) (1892–1937), chairman of the Regional Committee of the Soviets in FinlandFinlandFinland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
in 1917, chairman of Tsentrobalt, Central Committee of the Baltic FleetBaltic FleetThe Twice Red Banner Baltic Fleet - is the Russian Navy's presence in the Baltic Sea. In previous historical periods, it has been part of the navy of Imperial Russia and later the Soviet Union. The Fleet gained the 'Twice Red Banner' appellation during the Soviet period, indicating two awards of...
, 1917–1918). - Ivan Nikitich SmirnovIvan Nikitich SmirnovIvan Nikitich Smirnov was a Communist Party activist.In 1899, Smirnov joined the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party and became a Bolshevik. He led his party activity in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Vyshniy Volochok, Rostov, Kharkov, and Tomsk. Smirnov was subject to repeated arrests...
(1881–1936). - Vladimir Smirnov (1887–1937), one of the leaders of the Group of Democratic Centralism.
- Lev Sosnovsky (1886–1937), a journalist.
See also
- Dewey CommissionDewey CommissionThe Dewey Commission was initiated in March 1937 by the "American Committee for the Defense of Leon Trotsky." It was named after its Chairman, John Dewey...
- Anti-Stalinist leftAnti-Stalinist leftThe anti-Stalinist left is an element of left-wing politics that is critical of Joseph Stalin's policies and the political system that developed in the Soviet Union under his rule...
- International Bureau of Revolutionary Youth OrganizationsInternational Bureau of Revolutionary Youth OrganizationsInternational Bureau of Revolutionary Youth Organizations was an international organization of socialist youth, formed in 1934...