Was Stalins closeness to Lenin the main factor contributing to his rise to power in Russia?
Explain your answer. Stalin’s closeness to Lenin was not the main factor contributing to his rise to power in Russia. In fact, Stalin was not close to Lenin at all! In the years leading to Lenin’s death, Stalin stayed as close to Lenin as possible, trying his best to create an image of a close bond between the two in hopes that he would be named the successor. To make this close bond seem much more believable, Stalin was known to have doctored photographs to show how close & friendly they were. For example, a very popular photograph of the two showed them sitting next to each other, smiling happily. This picture would have displayed that the two were on close & good terms, possibly the best of friends. However, if one were to look closely, they would soon notice that the chairs they were sitting on appear to be different & very obviously, from a different scene altogether. Stalin and Lenin Although Lenin has tolerated Stalin’s presence, he was very clear that the main reason Stalin was
