Bloc of Rightists and Trotskyites

Bloc of Rightists and Trotskyites was the official designation for a group of twenty-one prominent Old Bolsheviks and former high-ranking officials tried in the third and most prominent Moscow Show Trial in March 1938. The trial, formally known as the Trial of the Twenty-One, represented the culmination of Joseph Stalin's Great Purge, targeting perceived rivals from both the Right Opposition and followers of Leon Trotsky. It resulted in the execution of most defendants, including leading figures like Nikolai Bukharin and Aleksei Rykov, and served to eliminate the last major alternative leadership groups within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

Background and Formation

The alleged conspiracy was a construct of the NKVD under Nikolai Yezhov, designed to amalgamate disparate opposition currents into a single, monstrous plot. It conceptually merged the historical Left Opposition led by the exiled Leon Trotsky with the defeated Right Opposition associated with Nikolai Bukharin. This fusion was politically expedient for Joseph Stalin, as it portrayed all former intraparty dissent, whether from the left or right, as part of a unified, treasonous front. The charges built upon previous purge trials, such as the Trial of the Sixteen and the Trial of the Seventeen, weaving their defendants into a broader narrative of conspiracy. The formation of this "bloc" was entirely fictitious, fabricated through forced confessions obtained under duress and physical torture during prolonged interrogations at places like the Lubyanka Building.

The Moscow Trials

The trial was held at the October Hall of the House of the Unions in Moscow from March 2 to 13, 1938. It was presided over by the military judges of the Supreme Court of the Soviet Union, including Vasily Ulrikh. The state prosecutor was Andrey Vyshinsky, whose vitriolic speeches and theory of "proof by confession" defined the proceedings. The trial was a public spectacle, covered by Soviet press and observed by foreign diplomats and journalists. Unlike earlier show trials, some defendants, like former Commissar for Foreign Affairs Nikolai Krestinsky, initially recanted their pre-trial confessions, only to reaffirm them under intense pressure. The proceedings meticulously staged the confession of elaborate crimes, creating a public narrative of a vast conspiracy threatening the Soviet state.

Key Figures and Accusations

The most prominent defendants were former pillars of the Bolshevik revolution. Nikolai Bukharin, once called the "favorite of the whole party," was accused of leading the bloc and plotting the assassination of Joseph Stalin and other leaders like Vyacheslav Molotov. Former Premier Aleksei Rykov and former Comintern head Christian Rakovsky were also key accused. A notable defendant was Genrikh Yagoda, the former head of the NKVD who had overseen the early purges, now accused of poisoning his successor's predecessor and plotting treason. The charges were fantastical in scope, alleging espionage for multiple foreign powers including Nazi Germany, the Empire of Japan, and Great Britain, sabotage of the Soviet economy, the murder of Sergei Kirov, and planning the dismemberment of the USSR in favor of Nazi Germany.

International Reaction

International response was mixed but increasingly skeptical. While some foreign observers and sympathetic intellectuals initially gave credence to the trials, others were horrified. The Dewey Commission, organized by American philosopher John Dewey and led by figures like Suzanne La Follette, investigated the charges against Leon Trotsky and concluded the trials were a frame-up. Western newspapers like the New York Times provided extensive coverage, often relaying the official Soviet narrative but also reporting on the evident coercion. The trials deeply divided the international left, contributing to disillusionment among some members of Western Communist parties and fueling criticism from anti-Stalinist socialists and Trotskyists.

Historical Assessment and Legacy

Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the opening of archives, the trial has been universally condemned by historians as a judicial murder and a complete fabrication. All defendants were posthumously rehabilitated by the Supreme Court of the USSR in 1988 during glasnost. The trial cemented Joseph Stalin's absolute control, destroying the last generation of revolutionary leaders who could challenge his authority. It stands as a stark symbol of the terror and paranoia of the Great Purge, illustrating the use of show trials as a tool of totalitarian rule. The event remains a central case study in the mechanics of Stalinism, political repression, and the corruption of legal systems for state terror.

Category:Show trials in the Soviet Union Category:1938 in the Soviet Union Category:Moscow Trials Category:Great Purge