Professional activity of former members of the united opposition in the 1930s (on the example of biographies of the Bolsheviks who signed the “Declaration of 83”

Abstract

The object of this research is the collective fate of former members of the united opposition (Bolshevik-Leninist faction) in the 1930s. This topic is rarely covered by the researchers and remains poorly studied. The subject of this article is the peculiarities of professional career of the oppositionists reestablished in the ranks of the Communist Party. The group under review is the members of the All Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), who in May 1927 signed the “Declaration of 83”. Comparative analysis of the available biographical records on the signers of the “Declaration of 83” allow determining the spheres of professional activity of the former Bolshevik-Leninists. The author enlists the spheres of their activity, indicating the number of employed capitulated factionists therein, as well as positions held by them, enterprises and institutions they worked at during this period. The conducted research demonstrates that the highest concentration of capitulated oppositionists was in the industrial sector, while professional spheres, such as science, trade, etc., are noticeably behind. At the same time, former Bolshevik-Leninists often mastered new types of activities. Most of them were appointed as chief executives, which the author explains with shortage of personnel committed to the Communist ideas who possessed organizational experience. The novelty of this research consists in the statement that the returned to the All Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) supporters of Trotskyism and Zinovievism), despite their demotion, were actively engaged in Stalin's modernization. They were appointed with executive positions and included into the ruling elite (although holding a special “niche” therein).