The Trials, 1935-1938
In the 1930s, there was a growing opposition towards me and I, understandably, felt threatened. Violence soon broke out with the assassination of my dear friend Sergei Kirov, a prominent Bolshevik leader in the Soviet Union who rose through the Communist Party ranks to become head of the Party organisation in Leningrad. Kirov was shot and killed on 1st December 1934 by a gunman at his offices in Saint Petersburg. I have heard rumours saying that I and the NKVD organised Kirov's murder but I prefer not to comment on that. However, my comrade had to be avenged so I began the Purges, though I prefer to refer to them as 'the trials' as it sounds less violent. I gave each man within the Communist Party the chance to prove his innocence and loyalty towards their great leader. Anybody suspected of disloyalty or treason was murdered, sent to prison camps, or put on public show trials at which they pleaded guilty to crimes that they said themselves they could not have committed but I did not believe them. My aim was to cleanse Russia of the Old Bolsheviks, the 'murderers' and opponents. Leon Trotsky, a Russian revolutionary and politician, and the founder and first leader of the Red Army, was another issue which had to be dealt with. Even after his exile to Mexico, he continued to criticise me and create problems for me. Fortunately, he was assassinated on the 20th August 1940 by a fatal blow to the head in Mexico which could not possibly have been planned by me.
You, fellow comrade, may have judged my reaction towards the Bolsheviks as being a little harsh but I am sure you appreciate the supreme efforts I have made to preserve the USSR as a powerful and glorious state.
You, fellow comrade, may have judged my reaction towards the Bolsheviks as being a little harsh but I am sure you appreciate the supreme efforts I have made to preserve the USSR as a powerful and glorious state.
Sergei Kirov Leon Trotsky