For my third stop I decided to a look at Vladimir Lenin’s grave located in Moscow. The specific location of his grave is a place called Lenin’s Mausolem. I knew traveling through 20th Century Russian Historical sites, I would encounter many great dictators and Soviets. This trip was special since I knew Lenin was a very powerful man; he shaped much of Russia and plunged the country into a new age, A Soviet age. As part of the Bolsheviks, he helped a new concept: Communism, a concept that would help peasants and workers and dissolved a class system making them equal to everyone. After the Czar abdicated, the provisional government stepped up and ruled. The provisional government was doing the best they could especially since World War I was still going on however the government and the country needed a strong leader to being them out of the war. The Soviets proved and provided better leaders, took over the provisional government and placed Lenin in charge. He ruled his people with an iron fist, putting down rebellions and strikes with his vast army. Lenin was different then many leaders, he was a Marxist and created a new government, a communist government. On top of that, when the country rebelled he sought out their reasons and changed policies to make life better. After a strike in March economically policies were changed such as allowing grains into the country side but taxing it. This helped the peasants. This is one of the reasons he was so loved, he listened to the people. His death on January 21st 1921 shook the country. A brain hemorrhage took his life at the age of of 54. He was embalmed and place on display in the Hall of Columns. Petrograd was renamed Leningrad in his honor. Joseph Stalin, the Soviet Unions next leader, would later be laid to rest beside him and then later moved to his own burial site.
While I am in awe of such a powerful man I do not want to forget all the horrible things he did to become a ruler. Hundreds of thousand of people died under his rule. While the Soviets claimed it would help the peasants and working class it did not do that. In March of 1921 when the people strikes because of starvation the Soviets declared Marshal Law leading to imprisonment and death of the people how continued to strike. Lenin lead the Soviet ( Red) army in defeating and crushing the strikers. He lead what later would be labeled as the Red Terror in which he killed anyone that could oppose him or was a threat to his regime. The way he ruled shaped how other rules would lead. Not even ten years later millions of his own people died during World War II because they were starved to death under Stalin.
Being at such a historical cite, standing at the tomb of Vladimir Lenin, has all the thoughts running through my head. I guess the whole point of this is to remember that great people and leaders shape their country in several ways. Everyone wants their leader to be seen in a good light. Lenin, was seen as a god. Lenin did do some good such as his economical policies during the 1920’s but he killed those that stood in his way, were a threat to him or lead and or participated in rebellions.
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Citations
https://www.thoughtco.com/body-of-stalin-lenins-tomb-1779977
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