History of Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union (1917–27) the position of People's Commissar of War before the end of the year. In 1925, Trotsky was denounced for his essay "Lessons of October," which criticized Zinoviev and Kamenev for initially opposing Lenin's plans for an insurrection in 1917. Trotsky was also denounced for his theory of permanent revolution which contradicted Stalin's position that socialism could be built in one country, Russia, without a worldwide revolution. As the prospects for a revolution in Europe, particularly Germany, became increasingly dim through the 1920s, Trotsky's theoretical position began to look increasingly pessimistic as far as the success of Russian socialism was concerned.
Secret police Secret police The term secret police (or political police) refers to intelligence, security or police agencies that engage in covert operations against a government's political opponents. Secret police organizations are characteristic of totalitarian regimes. Used to protect the political power of an individual dictator or an authoritarian regime, secret police often, but not always, operate outside the law and are used to repress dissidents and weaken the political opposition, frequently with violence. Secret police originated in 18th-century Europe after the French Revolution, when such operations were established in an effort to detect any possible conspiracies or revolutionary subversion. The peak