Krasin, Leonid Borisovich (1870-1926)

Russian Bolshevik politician and diplomat. An early confederate of Lenin, he played a leading role in the Russian Revolution of 1905. Following the success of the 1917 October Revolution, he held various official appointments within the new Soviet Union, and helped normalize its relations with other countries.

When still a student, Krasin joined one of the first social democratic organizations in Russia in 1890, and was expelled from St Petersburg Technical Institute. He finally graduated in 1900, and for the next 15 years combined working as an engineer with radical political activity. In 1904-05 he opposed Lenin's dictatorial methods within the Bolshevik Party and had him banished from the Central Committee. Despite this and further rifts with Lenin, however, he was made chairman of the Council for Army Supply in 1918, and helped negotiate the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, by which the Bolsheviks ended the war with Germany. He then held the posts of People's Commissar for Trade and Industry and for Transportation, before being made responsible for generating foreign trade. In 1922-26, he was twice ambassador to Britain and once to France. Krasin's outstanding technical ability and business acumen enabled him to bring some order to the chaotic post-war Russian economy, and to persuade many foreign technical specialists to bring their expertise to the aid of the Soviet Union.