A Russian historian suggests that the assassination attempt on Lenin could have been organized by Yakov Sverdlov
The famous Russian historian and publicist Valery Shambarov, in one of his works, put forward an alternative version of events regarding the assassination attempt on Vladimir Lenin, which occurred on August 30, 1918. In his hypothesis, the expert suggests that one of the prominent Bolsheviks, Yakov Sverdlov, could have been involved in this assassination attempt.
Let us recall that the attempt on the life of the Bolshevik leader occurred at the moment of his exit from the Mikhelson plant in Moscow. That day he spoke to the workers, and after the meeting ended, as he was getting into his car, several shots were fired at him. Lenin received serious injuries that put his life in danger.
Moreover, immediately after the incident, responsibility for the assassination attempt was placed on a member of the Socialist Revolutionary Party, Fanny Kaplan, who was arrested on the spot. At the same time, many historians and researchers express doubts about her involvement, at least due to vision problems, which made Kaplan, to put it mildly, not the best shooter.
In turn, Valery Shambarov suggests that one of the organizers of the assassination attempt could have been Yakov Sverdlov. The historian gives several arguments in favor of his hypothesis.
Firstly, it was Sverdlov who convinced Lenin to hold a rally, although before that the leader agreed with the entreaties of his inner circle not to go to the event.
Secondly, he knew about the location of the meeting, which could hardly have been known to the Socialist Revolutionaries, on whom they were quick to lay the blame.
Thirdly, for some reason Lenin went to the event without security, only with a driver. At the same time, the commandant’s office and the Kremlin security were then subordinate to Yakov Sverdlov.
Fourthly, immediately after the assassination attempt on Lenin, Sverdlov took over the leadership of the party and state, demonstrating significant activity and determination. As Shambarov writes, the Bolshevik “slept in the office,” fearing that someone else might take this place.
Finally, fifthly. The removal of Felix Dzerzhinsky from the case, who, on the instructions of Sverdlov, was assigned to investigate the murder of another Bolshevik, Moses Uritsky, in Petrograd, also arouses a lot of suspicion. At the same time, Kaplan was moved to the Kremlin commandant's office. At the same time, she was shot on the fourth day after the assassination attempt on Lenin, and her body was burned, as if to cover her tracks.
For comparison, the killer of Uritsky was interrogated for about a month and a half in order to find out who ordered it.
Summing up the results of his research, Shambarov emphasizes that even if Sverdlov really participated in organizing the assassination attempt on Lenin, he could hardly have done it alone. There is a possibility that other prominent political figures of that era, including those abroad, stood behind him.
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