Beat Shipley!
In his own estimation, the School’s greatest expert on Russian history is Andrew Sebag (Sp?) Shipley. But he does not know much. Show him up by being first to answer the following questions. Just reply (‘Comment’) giving your answers and your name and form.
The leaders of the Bolsheviks in October 1917 were Lenin, Trotsky, Stalin (yes!), Zinoviev, Kamenev and Sverdlov.
1. Which of these six leaders were Jewish?
2. Two of them were closely related, by marriage; what was the connection?
3. Lenin’s famous disguise when he fled to Finland in 1917 owed much to one of the other leaders; which one shaved Lenin’s beard off?
Sebag (Sp?) doesn’t know. Do you? Spectacular prize for the winner.
RCS
I think, Sir, given your own questions to me on the depth of my knowledge, and your remarks at parents evening, its not just in my estimation.
and for answers 1. is Trotsky, who was born as Leon Bronstein (his patronymic escapes me)
2 is Kamenev and Trotsky
3 is Stalin. He also housed him for an night whilst his escape was planned.
sorry if i’ve ruined your competition.
Ironically I am actually reading a Simon Sebag Montefiore book at the moment.
I regret my son is not as clever as he thinks he is. The answer to 1 is all of them apart from Stalin (Lenin’s maternal antecedents were Jewish, which I believe makes him Jewish), while I think for question 2 you wanted to know the relationship between Kamenev and Trotsky, which is that they were brothers-in-law.
Is a question which encourages students to single out one of the six leaders of the revolution for special attention because of his ethnicity (especially considering he was Jewish) really appropriate for a multicultural school such as Haberdashers?
I will contact the Head of History accordingly.