Politburo And The Church, Kremlin Archives

N. Petrovsky, S.G. Petrov

Resolution of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) on the death sentence in the case of the Moscow clergy and believers. From the minutes of the meeting of the Politburo No. 6, paragraph 14 of May 11, 1922

No. 24-11

STRICTLY SECRET

14. - About the Moscow priest x.

(Suggestion] Comrade Kamenev).

Accept the following proposal comrade. Trotsky ^{^[4]} :

a) Suspend the execution of the sentence.

b) Instruct Comrade Trotsky by the evening of the 12th p. d. orientate and submit a written proposal to the Politburo ¹⁴ .

c) Instruct com. Kalinin and Smidovich to talk with Comrade Trotsky about Antonin's proposal forwarded to Comrade Kalinin ¹⁵ . SECRETARY OF THE CC

- L. 14. Typewritten copy of a later extract on the letterhead of the Central Committee of the CPSU (b) - RCP (b) of the 1930s. Under the text there are two handwritten notes: the first is "Trotsky's proposal in the [innocent] protocol" and below the second, referring to the resolution of the Politburo, protocol No. 7, item 13 of May 18, 1922 (No. 24-25).

- APRF, f. 3, op. 1, d.275, l. 18 — rev. Draft minutes of the Politburo meeting. Handwritten script on lined paper (point c in red pencil, rest in black). In the left column, the item number "14" has been changed from "13", in the right column, "13" remains . At the bottom left is a record about the mailing: "To Kamenev, Trotsky, Kalinin, Bek (a)." For the list of those present, see No. 23-46.

Notes and Comments:

Chairman of the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic with a short formulation of proposals on this item on the agenda of the Politburo meeting: “ Into the circular . I propose: a) The verdict not to be canceled b) to suspend the execution c) to instruct me ( hereinafter the illegible word is crossed out.) To navigate and make a written submission to the P [olit] Bureau ”. At the bottom, with his own hand (in an oval in blue pencil), it is written: "The deadline for tomorrow is until the evening," which dates the postscript on May 11, the time of the Politburo meeting. On l. 19 at the top is a handwritten note on the document's belonging to the proceedings of the Politburo meeting, minutes No. 6, item 14 of May 11, 1922. On l. 19ob. below is a stamp about the same.

¹⁴See # 24-13.

¹⁵Petition of Patriarch Tikhon for pardoning those convicted in the Moscow trial see No. P-123. For Trotsky's use of the urgently involved petitions of the "progressive clergy" about the same see Nos. 12-2, 24-14 - 24-19 and the Preface, p. 43-48.

Resolution of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) on the proposal of LB Kamenev to abolish the death sentence in the case of the Moscow clergy and believers. From the minutes of the meeting of the Politburo No. 6, item 18 of May 11, 1922

No. 24-12

STRICTLY SECRET

By a survey of PB members dated May 8, 22

18. On the annulment of the judgment of the Moscow Tribunal in connection with the confiscation of valuables (proposal of Comrade Kamenev).

Approve the decision of the Tribunal.

SECRETARY OF THE CC

- L. 7. Typewritten copy of a later extract on the letterhead of the Central Committee of the CPSU (b) - RCP (b) of the 1930s.

- APRF, f. 3, op. 1, d.275, l. 25. Draft minutes of the Politburo meeting. Typewritten extract of that time on the letterhead of the Central Committee of the RCP (b); signature - autograph of I. V. Stalin. Instead of the line "By poll ... from 8.Ѵ.22." the line “Extract from the minutes of the meeting of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) dated 8 / Ѵ-22, No. 6” was printed . Item number in pencil. For the list of those present, see No. 23-46.

Note by L. D. Trotsky to the Politburo of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) on the verdict of the Moscow Revolutionary Tribunal in the case of the Moscow clergy and believers. May 12,

1922

No. 24-13

C. SECRET to keep in secret

IN THE POLITBURO OF THE CEC

1. Yesterday at the meeting it became clear that the defenders had filed a cassation appeal and that in such cases there is always a delay of several days, and sometimes even several weeks, if the process took place in the provinces.

2. Yesterday we had a meeting and an assignment was given:

a) make every possible use of the present critical moment to publish an appeal on behalf of the progressive part of the clergy (I hope that tomorrow or at the latest the day after tomorrow such an appeal will appear in print and go to the provinces by radio).

b) in the meantime, divide those sentenced into two groups, both on the basis of the circumstances arising from the case, and on the basis of the responses and petitions of the loyal priests who will sign the appeal. The division into two groups is entrusted to the President of the Tribunal, Beck and Unshlicht.

I hope that tomorrow it will be possible to take stock and propose a final solution.

12 / Ѵ 22 g.

L. Trotsky

- L. 17. Typewritten original, signature - facsimile. Below is a stamp of the Secret Archives of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) with an inventory number.

[1] * So in the text, in document number P-94 Apolonia.

[2] Draft minutes No. 6 of the Politburo meeting of May 11, 1922 (APRF, f. 3, op. 1, d. 275, l. 26) contains a note by G. Ye. Zinoviev on the letterhead of the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Communist International with the date “ 9.V.22 ". This note is a response to JV Stalin's proposal to approve the death sentence in the case of the Moscow clergy and believers through a poll vote (No. 247, No. 24-8). G. Ye. Zinoviev voted as follows: “In the Politburo. If it is permissible to cast a vote in absence, then in the case of the priests I vote for the proposal of Kamenev (two). " Above is a stamp about

[3] Cipher telegram No. 15 / Sh with a request for the opinion of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) on the trial of the "Polish priests", sent by the Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Belarus V.G. Knorin on May 9, 1922, was received in Moscow on May 10 at 1 am (No. 24 -nine). After the decryption at 9 hours 50 minutes in the morning, it went to JV Stalin, who urgently discussed its content with FE Dzerzhinsky and LD Trotsky (No. 2410) to make a decision. VG Knorin's answer was given on the same May 10 by a cipher telegram with the outgoing number 2524 / Ш

(the text of the document is missing in the file) (see the note on the