21 January 2024 marks the centenary of the death of the man of whom Ferdinand Peroutka wrote that "he entered the body of time like a sharp iron spike". Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, the architect of the Bolshevik coup in Russia, imprinted his fixed ideas on a state that gradually transformed itself into a world power under the name of the Soviet Union, to the misfortune of hundreds of millions. In a debate that recalls Lenin's personality and times, a trio of guests will reflect on the causes and effects of the Bolshevik Revolution. What role did it play in the Russian historical narrative and in the history of the world? How is Lenin's "work" perceived in contemporary Russia? Why has Lenin received criticism from Vladimir Putin? We will touch upon these and other questions with historian Daniela Kolenovskaya, political geographer Mikhail Romantsov and journalist Libor Dvorak. The debate will be moderated by David Svoboda.
We cordially invite you to the Václav Havel Library on 29 January 2024 at 7 pm.
The picture shows the unveiling of the statue of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin in 1972. The monument was created by sculptors Ludvík and Božena Kodym and architect Josef Polák. The statue stood in the drummer part of the former October Revolution Square, today's Victory Square, until 1990 (source: www.bubenec.eu)