Leon Trotsky

Reproduction of the original. The publishing house Megali specialises in reproducing historical works in large print to make reading easier for people with impaired vision.

Reproduction of the original. The publishing house Megali specialises in reproducing historical works in large print to make reading easier for people with impaired vision.

"Our times again are rich in memoirs, perhaps richer than ever before. It is because there is much to tell. The more dramatic and rich in change the epoch, the more intense the interest in current history. The art of landscape-painting could never have been born in the Sahara. The "crossing" of two epochs, as at present, gives rise to a desire to look back at yesterday, already far away, through the eyes of its active participants. That is the reason for the enormous growth in the literature of reminiscence since the days of the last war. Perhaps it will justify the present volume as well." "The very fact of its coming into the world is due to the pause in the author's active political life. One of the unforeseen, though not accidental, stops in my life has proved to be Constantinople. Here I am camping - but not for the first time - and patiently waiting for what is to follow. The life of a revolutionary would be quite impossible without a certain amount of "fatalism." In one way or another, the Constantinople interval has proved the most appropriate moment for me to look back before circumstances allow me to move forward."

The Russian Revolution of 1917 can be regarded as the greatest event in human history. For the first time, millions of workers and peasants took political power into their own hands, sweeping aside the despotic rule of the capitalists and landlords, and setting out to create a socialist world order based upon the rule of the Soviet of Workers', Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies. Capitalism had broken at its weakest link. The Russian Revolution heralded the beginning of the world revolution, inspiring the hopes and dreams of millions. Notwithstanding the terrible backwardness of Russia, the new Socialist Soviet Republic represented a decisive threat to the world capitalist order. It struck terror in the ruling classes everywhere, which rightly regarded it as a threat to their power and privileges. Leon Trotsky History of these events is a masterpiece. It was the first time that a scientific history of a great event has been written by a man who played a dominant part in it. Together with Lenin, he led the Bolshevik Revolution, and lived throughout its stormy events. However, this book is not simply a dramatic narrative, but a profound analysis of the inner forces of the Revolution. It remains by far the best account of the Russian Revolution today. This volume spans from the February Revolution to the prelude of the 'July Days', as well as the economic and political background of Russia before the Revolution. Also featured in this edition is Alan Woods introduction to the series.

A Marxist revolutionary and political thinker named Leon Trotsky authored the book "Dictatorship Vs. Democracy" in 1937. Trotsky's writings and articles collected in this volume analyses the political climate in the Soviet Union, the emergence of fascism in Europe, and the conflict between democracy and autocracy. According to Trotsky, Joseph Stalin's rule over the Soviet Union resulted in its transformation into a totalitarian dictatorship. Stalin's installation of an oppressive dictatorship and betrayal of the principles of the Russian Revolution are criticized by Trotsky. He also talks on the danger of fascism and how crucial it is to protect democracy against it. The Soviet Union banned the book because it was so divisive. Stalin finally ordered Trotsky's exile and murder in 1940. "Dictatorship Vs Democracy" is nevertheless an important contribution to Marxist theory and a crucial document in the history of the Soviet Union despite its contentious character.

Leon Trotsky's Writings on Britain span one of the most tumultuous periods in British history. The first decades of the 20th century were a time of crisis on all fronts for British capitalism. The country was rapidly sinking to a second-rate position among the world powers. Violent eruptions of class struggle shook capitalist rule to its very foundations. Amidst all this, the Marxists were striving to build a mass revolutionary party as the precondition of capitalism's overthrow. These writings were intended to assist the communists of the time to achieve their historic task. The same task is posed before us once more today. The thread of history is being re-tied, and Britain is once more moving towards revolutionary crises. This collection is indispensable for the Marxists who must rise to face this challenge. Trotsky has a profound affinity for his subject, which he brings to bear on a remarkable range of questions: from the history, psychology, philosophy and morality of the British ruling class; to Britain's revolutionary traditions going back to Chartism and the English Revolution; to the 1926 General Strike, and the questions of revolutionary strategy and tactics that the Marxists faced in the stormy decade of the 1930s. This book includes all three volumes in a single edition, and features a new introduction by Rob Sewell, author of Chartist Revolution and In the Cause of Labour: A History of British Trade Unionism.

‘…the free development of each is the condition for the free development of all.’ The Modern South African Edition of the Communist Manifesto Includes: Leon Trotsky’s Afrikaans Introduction to the 1937 edition with an English translation. Neville Alexander’s 2002 Introduction in isiZulu and English to the isiZulu translation of The Communist Manifesto. A new isiZulu translation of The Communist Manifesto. Jeremy Cronin’s Introduction to this edition. As the first in the new series RADICAL PASTS, RADICAL FUTURES, this edition of The Communist Manifesto is a vantage point from where to view the lives, work and creativity of ordinary South Africans in the years 1937, 2002 & 2022, and a prompt to visit and re-visit Marx & Engels’ urgent text.

Deze autobiografie is een toegankelijke kennismaking met een opmerkelijk revolutionair en zijn opvattingen. Het is een uitermate politiek boek, wat niet verrassend is gezien de rol van politieke activiteit in het leven van Lev Dadidovitsj Bronstein, alias Leon Trotski (1879-1940). Ondanks de omvang van het boek is het een goed vertrekpunt voor lezers die Trotski willen leren kennen. Trotski is een begenadigd schrijver die vlot leest en regelmatig verrast met scherpe vergelijkingen, beelden of one-liners. Trotski schreef 'Mijn Leven' in politieke ballingschap. Hij had liever niet de tijd gehad om deze autobiografie te schrijven, maar de opgang van de stalinistische bureaucratie in de Sovjet-Unie leidde eerst tot isolement, vervolgens interne ballingschap en tenslotte uitwijzing. 'Mijn Leven' is niet geschreven omdat er nu eenmaal tijd voor was, dit boek is een polemiek en een verdediging van Oktober 1917 door n van de hoofdrolspelers in die revolutie. Deze editie bevat een bijlage door de Franse revolutionair Alfred Rosmer over het leven en werk van Trotski nadat hij dit boek had geschreven.