Lenin and the Making of the Soviet State: A Brief History with Documents (Bedford Series in History & Culture)

Vladimir Ilich Lenin (1870 – 1924) led the first successful revolt against market-based liberal democracy and founded the Soviet State in 1917, serving as the new nation’s chief architect and sole ruler for the next five years. This collection of primary sources allows readers to learn about Lenin through his own words and emphasizes Lenin’s actions rather than his ideology. Jeffrey Brooks and Georgiy Chernyavskiy have translated newly available documents that make it possible to provide a more accurate portrait of a ruthless political strategist whose actions created a new political, economic, social, and cultural system that in its heyday challenged the military, technological, and cultural might of the United States. Document headnotes, a chronology, questions for consideration, and a selected bibliography offer additional pedagogical support and encourage students to analyze the actions and beliefs of a man who transformed world history and whose legacy continues to affect social and political movements throughout the world.