The Ghosts of Politics V: Vladimir Lenin

We travel from talking about the political ghosts of the United Kingdom and two of its former colonies to talking about the political ones of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republic.

What better spirit to discuss than that of the USSR's first real leader, Vladimir Lenin?

Unlike most ghosts, the first sighting actually took place before Lenin was dead. Early in the morning on October 19, 1923, a guard overheard a phone conversation between a duty officer, and one of Lenin's administrators. The duty officer was asking why Lenin had come to the Kremlin by himself, with none of his body guards. When he contacted Gorki- Lenin's residence, he was informed that the great leader was still there. At this time, Lenin was gravely ill. The sighting took place three months before Lenin passed away.

As you can imagine, Lenin's entourage were quite confused by this report of Lenin being at the Kremlin that night. Marxism-Leninism dictates that spirits do not exist. There were, however, several who saw the ghost of Vladimir Lenin walking Red Square that night. This sighting forced the authorities to make up an official report stating that his last visit to Moscow was October 19, 1923.

At the time, many people did not believe the "official" reports- and many still don't. Historian, and writer, Alexander Gorbovski was told of the overheard conversation through a former courier that had stopped by the guard house that night for tea. Gorbovski, after researching the reports, and the memoirs of Nadezhda Krupskaya (Lenin's wife), and Lenin's bodyguard- Alexander Balmas, states that their are too many differences in stories between them. In Krupskaya's journals, she wrote that they'd gotten to the Kremlin earlier, stayed the night, and went back to Gorki early on the morning of the 19th, but Balmas' says that Lenin spent the whole of the 19th riding around town, and visiting the Agricultural Exhibition.

How could Lenin be riding around Moscow if he'd left for home early that morning? Another question is, why did Lenin even make the trip to Moscow in the first place. Many doubt he would've simply to walk the halls of the Kremlin, and have a nap... especially when he was ill. Also, despite his state of health at the time, the "ghost" was reported to move quickly and energeticly- which did not fit in with the fact that Lenin was suffering from paralysis of his left leg and arm. In fact, it was reported that Lenin climbed the stairs to his apartment and study, and went to the Council of People's Commissars, then he also went for a stroll in the courtyard of the Kremlin. A group of cadets even greeted Lenin, and reported him not having the walking stick he needed to walk about at the time.

And what about witness reports of his walking around with no bodyguards? There were too many questions connected with the "official" version of the incident. Many feel that the ghost was a harbinger of Lenin's death... and a portent of his spirit remaining behind.

After Lenin's death, Sergei Kuleshov, another historian happened to be having lunch with a friend who introduced him to a KGB colonel. The colonel told Kuleshov about the strange sounds, and footsteps often heard in Lenin's old apartment at the Kremlin. The sounds have been described as furniture moving around. The old apartment had been locked and sealed- and had a round the clock watch by guards.

It is also claimed that Sergei Filatov- Boris Yeltsin's Chief of President's Staff heard the same noises coming from Lenin's study late at night. A journalist for the Komsomolskaya Pravda, Alexander Gamov, wrote that the occurances took place in 1993, during the summer. The 2005 article about the story said that Filatov's office was right below the Lenin apartment. While working late one night, the Chief of President's Staff heard the floorboards above him creaking- as if under the footsteps of a nervous person pacing. Filatov ignored the sounds, and continued working. After hearing the footsteps several times, he asked the security detail what was going on in the sealed apartment. He was informed that nobody was up there, and that the room, which is open to tourists during the day, was locked up every night.

He told the guards to check again. They conducted a complete inspection of the apartment and study, and found nobody. Filatov, stopped being worried, but also stopped working late... just in case...

A report by Igor Vinokurov, cochairman of the Commission for the Study of the Mysterious Phenomena, claimed that a student of the Moscow State University saw Lenin's spirit walking at Oktyabrskaya Square in Moscow. The report states that Lenin's ghost was quite clear- clear enough for the student to make out his facial features and famous beard. As if noticing that it was being observed, the apparition "stepped back into his monument and disappeared."