This is the third instalment of The Lie Of Communism. Chapter 3 picks up as World War I rages across Europe, dragging Russia deeper into a capitalist war under Tsar Nicholas II. The people are suffering, the working class is growing restless, and the foundations of the Russian Empire are beginning to crumble. Meanwhile, Lenin is campaigning for a proletarian revolution that will sweep across Europe. But he wasn't the only one fighting for change. Across Russia, workers were already taking to the streets, laying the groundwork for a revolution that would change the course of history. As the Tsar's popularity continues to fall, the mysterious Rasputin tightens his grip on the royal family, fuelling scandal and undermining what little faith remains in the monarchy. Meanwhile, protests that began with hundreds of demonstrators grow into mass movements involving hundreds of thousands. From the struggles of Russia's women workers to the history of the red revolutionary flag, we explore the people and movements that helped bring Russia to the brink of revolution. But Russia's story is part of a much larger revolutionary struggle. From the Springtime of the Peoples in Europe to the bloody uprising of the Paris Commune, the seeds of revolution had been planted long before Lenin came to power. As the February Revolution erupts and the July Days plunge Russia into further turmoil, one question remains: did Lenin create the revolution, or did he seize the opportunity to turn an uprising already in motion into a Bolshevik victory? We also travel back to the late nineteenth century to uncover the origins of Leon Trotsky. From his early life and experiences among the factory workers of Nikolayev to underground revolutionary meetings, confrontations with the police and imprisonment in Moscow, we follow his transformation from a young political radical into a committed revolutionary. His first period of exile in Siberia would test his resolve, shape his political thinking and set him on a path that would eventually lead him to Lenin. Through imprisonment, escape, exile and revolutionary writing, we uncover the experiences that helped forge the man who would become one of the most influential figures of the Russian Revolution. From the origins of his revolutionary name to his first exposure to Lenin's ideas, Trotsky's journey reveals a movement that was evolving long before the Bolsheviks seized power. The stage was set, the people were ready for change, and the revolutionary flag was flying. But were Lenin and his followers giving the people the revolution they wanted, or using their suffering to build a revolution of their own? Merch: The Truth Tank Shop https://the-truth-tank-shop.creator-spring.com Buy Me A Coffee https://buymeacoffee.com/thetruthtank Dubby (Use Code TruthTank26 For 10% Off Order) https://dubbysponsorship.goaffpro.com/shop/uthbceqq Socials: Instagram https://www.instagram.com/thetruthtank/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ThetruthTank/ Listen: Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/0P4Hcqlgc6kCG0bYyAS2Su Apple https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-truth-tank/id1463256905 I Heart Radio https://iheart.com/podcast/76110779 Amazon https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/791410e2-fa17-43e7-84db-6c81325f4203 Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrhX1ZqvZx_xM59bk-tRa6Q Castbox https://castbox.fm/channel/The-Truth-Tank-id5627421?country=us https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Revolution_of_1905 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris_Commune https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grigori_Rasputin https://www.britannica.com/biography/Grigory-Yefimovich-Rasputin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_Trotsky https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_Revolution https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_Days https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_flag_(politics) Trotsky, Leon. My Life: An Attempt at an Autobiography. Originally published 1929. Reprint edition, Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, Inc., 2007.
