Lev Sedov

Biography

Born with Saint-Petersbourg the February 24th 1906, he is the third child of Leon Trotsky which had two girls (Zinaïda and Nina) of a preceding union. His/her mother is Natalia Ivanovna Sedova, militant group of the Iskra (“the spark”), which will remain the partner of Trotsky until her death and of which it will have a second wire, Serioja (Serge), born two years after Lev.

Nourished with the milk of the Revolution, its preparation, its achievement and later of its defense, it shares as of childhood with his young brother (his older sisters having remained with their mother) the peregrinations of his parents, had with the requirements of the militant life, expulsions often, the internments sometimes and the material difficulties always. Of these successive residences in almost all the capitals of Europe, it will keep the practice of many languages, forgetting even Russian that his/her parents will relearn to him.

It has thus eleven years with beginning of Revolution of October and one can to think that with equality with the personality and will then have it of his/her father, relations family - the revolutionists of all countries whom he could attend -, the historical period considered worked its design of the world and its engagements. It will engage as of adolescence in the movement of Communist youth (the Komsomol) not hesitating to cheat over its age to do it.

What will not prevent the conflicts of generation suitable for many families since it will leave the family home at seventeen years to live in a community of militants as young as him. He undertakes studies of engineer and appears student shining. It Marie with a young worker in 1925, Anna Metallikova, of which he will also have a fore-mentioned son Lev him in 1926.

As of 1923, it started to militate at the sides of oppositional with the bureaucratic orientation taken by the direction of the Party in an evolution and a logic parallels with that of his/her father rather than in his wake and in 1927, it is one of the principal leaders of the Opposition unified in the rows of Komsomol.

At the time of the deportation of Leon Trotsky in 1928, it makes the choice follow it and it is with Alma-ATA that he becomes truly the collaborator of his father, fascinating charges with it the material organization with the life of the deportees and especially the organization of the bonds with the other militants exiled by Stalin. It is there that it will grind efficiently the methods of clandestinity imposed by the conditions of monitoring of the deportees.

Banished of the USSR and exiled Trotsky in Turkey, Lev follows it fascinating charges the Bulletin with it with the Opposition which during a few years still will be able to cross the borders clandestinely and to arrive to the USSR. Collaboration with the father very continues in spite of relational difficulties caused by the character edge of Trotsky, the pressures morals, physics and financial which weighs on exiled and of the private problems of order where intervene Jeanne Martin, the partner of Sedov and Zinaïda, oldest daughter of Trotsky which starts to suffer from serious psychological problems.

The key of the international situation being then in Germany, it is with Berlin that Sedov share, assuming the Directorate of Political Affairs of the German section, the drafting and the routing in the USSR of the Bulletin of the Opposition and the care to Zinaïda. All that in a context of rise of the Nazism and hostility threatening of the partisans of the direction of the Party. It is only once the consumed victory of Hitler which it will be solved to leave Germany for Paris. It will find there the section French of the partisans of Trotsky in full quarrel of people rather than of theory. It is besides this noxious atmosphere which pushed it to a little too easily make confidence with the Russians and they is at this time that joint with him, like principal collaborator and right-hand man, Mark Zborowski, agent of the Soviet secret services and besides denounced, or at least suspecté, like such by some French trotskystes.

The last - and colossal - work militant of Sedov is the organization of a true against-lawsuit of Moscow; work synthesized in “the red book of the Lawsuit of Moscow”, delivers which, according to the words of P. Broué, “remains the starting point of any solid criticism of the lawsuit of the Sixteen”. It is at this time that it becomes a target for the killers of the Soviet secret services, indicated under the name of the “Fiston” in their reports/ratios and that it escapes an attempt, probably on removal, side of Mulhouse.

Mid-January 1938, it complains about violent abdominal pains diagnosed like a beginning of Appendicite. February 8th, new crisis leads it to hospitalization in private clinic Parisian held by doctor Russian and whose many members of the personnel are Russian, which under the conditions of the medium of Russian emigrants of the time is already an imprudence and, whereas it is registered there as French engineer, it will be seen discussing in Russian with nurses and doctors. Whereas the operation, a Appendicectomie seems to be unrolled normally, it will be found delirious and digressing in the corridors and will express sudden and unexplained accesses of fever. A second operation will be tried which he will not survive. The debate is not yet closed to know which incompetence of the surgeon who operated it or of the Soviet secret services killed Sedov; the opening of the Soviet files shows that many agents allotted the merit of its disappearance, another certainty is that it was tracked of very near, and since years, by the killers.

It is buried with the Parisian Cimetière of Thiais.

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