Death and state funeral of Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Lenin died at 18:50 EET on Monday, the 21st of January 1924. He was fifty-three years old when he passed away in Gorki after falling into a coma. The official cause of death recorded by doctors was an incurable disease of the blood vessels. This medical decline had been building for months before that final moment. A commission from the Central Committee of the RCP(b) took charge of organizing his funeral immediately.
On the 23rd of January, workers transported Lenin's coffin by train from Gorki to Moscow. The body rested inside the Hall of Columns within the House of the Unions for three days. Crowds gathered outside while freezing temperatures gripped the city. Tens of thousands attended the viewing despite the bitter cold. On the 27th of January, the body moved to Red Square accompanied by martial music.
Leon Trotsky remained absent from the funeral proceedings as he convalesced in the Caucasus region. Stalin sent a telegram with a false date to Trotsky who was undergoing medical treatment there. Boris Bazhanov later corroborated this account stating Stalin was true to himself during the deception. French historian Pierre Broue cited Moscow archives showing correspondence between Stalin and Nestor Lakoba. These documents proved Stalin kept Trotsky in Sukhumi specifically to exclude him from the event.
Against the protestations of Nadezhda Krupskaya, Lenin's widow, officials embalmed the body for long-term display. The commander of the Moscow Garrison issued an order placing a guard of honour at the mausoleum. This unit became colloquially known as the Number One Sentry. During the embalming process, doctors removed Lenin's brain for study. An institute established in 1925 dissected it revealing severe sclerosis within the organ.
Boris Bazhanov reported that Stalin was jubilant over Lenin's death while publicly putting on a mask of grief. In his office during the first days after the passing, Stalin appeared in a good mood and beaming before secretaries. He made insincere speeches at meetings while swearing pathos to remain true to Lenin. Old Bolshevik Grigory Sokolnikov recalled Stalin making disparaging remarks about the leader who could not die like a real leader.
After the events of the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis, the guard of honour disbanded from Red Square. In 2018, Russian MP Vladimir Petrov suggested burying Lenin's body by 2024. He argued the state spent too much money housing the remains in the mausoleum. Petrov proposed replacing the preserved corpse with a wax or rubber model instead. That proposal did not take place despite the financial argument presented.
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Common questions
When did Vladimir Lenin die?
Vladimir Lenin died at 18:50 EET on Monday, the 21st of January 1924. He was fifty-three years old when he passed away in Gorki after falling into a coma.
Where is Vladimir Lenin's body displayed?
The body rests inside the Hall of Columns within the House of the Unions for three days before moving to Red Square. A guard of honour known as the Number One Sentry stands at the mausoleum where officials embalmed the body for long-term display.
Why was Leon Trotsky absent from Vladimir Lenin's funeral?
Leon Trotsky remained absent from the funeral proceedings as he convalesced in the Caucasus region. Stalin sent a telegram with a false date to Trotsky who was undergoing medical treatment there and kept him in Sukhumi specifically to exclude him from the event.
What happened to Vladimir Lenin's brain after his death?
Doctors removed Lenin's brain during the embalming process for study. An institute established in 1925 dissected it revealing severe sclerosis within the organ.
How did Joseph Stalin react to Vladimir Lenin's death privately?
Boris Bazhanov reported that Stalin was jubilant over Lenin's death while publicly putting on a mask of grief. He appeared in a good mood and beaming before secretaries in his office during the first days after the passing.