Vladimir Lenin (The Many Nations of North America)

1870 – 1948

Born in Russia, Lenin (Born Vladimir Ulyanov) would become a prestigious lawyer in his native Russia, fighting for worker’s rights. When arrested in 1895 for anti-Tsarist activities, he was forever exiled from Russia on pain of death. Lenin spent the next fifteen years in Britain, becoming a popular Marxist and Union figure. A personal meeting between Lenin and the then Home Secretary Winston Churchill after the Tonypandy Riots on the steps of Old Bailey was memorable for the fact a crowd of people had to keep the two apart. The brawl polarised view as Lenin being a man who fought for worker’s rights and Churchill who fought against them and would lead to a fierce rivalry between the two for the rest of their lives.

Up until 1920, Lenin was a very influential figure in the British Unions, even going as far as to be considered a candidate for the Labour Party in the 1918 elections though the chance was turned down. When in 1919, several popular reforms considering the power of Unions were passed in Parliament, Lenin realised that the Revolution he longed for would be impossible. Finalising the organisation of the British Socialist Party (Which go onto winning five seats in the 1922 elections) Lenin emigrated to the United States of America, believing that the moribund system and lack of rights for blacks and workers would make Socialist Revolution inevitable.

Arriving at the beginning of an economic boom made Lenin feel slightly stupid as he was unable to make much of an affect. Though he was able to sway several local political parties into more Socialist thinking during his stay in Vermont, Lenin was unable to form mass appeal like he had done in Britain. It was only after the Wall Street Crash that Lenin was able to gain support on mass with the American population.

Setting up shop in Michigan, Lenin watched as the USA and CSA fell into chaos and civil war. Due to the uncertainty and general fear, Lenin found he was able to gain major support for a Socialist state throughout the 1930’s… until the 1936 GLC Senate elections. The commercial interests who really ran the Confederation balked at the idea of a Socialist member of the Senate with popular support. Using the Police system, the Powers That Be have Lenin accused of fermenting rebellion against the state. Lenin narrowly escapes after being tipped off from a sympathetic source and flees across the GLC, his escape becoming legendary in the American psyche as he avoids GLC Police by the skin of his teeth on numerous occasions.

After a six month ordeal where he had to flee from the State of Deseret after the Mormon State denounces his teachings as blasphemous, Lenin finally arrives in Pacifica, exhausted and depressed. After years of seeing his dreams of a utopian Socialist State come to nought, Lenin gives up his work in the Unions and became a philosophy lecturer at Seattle University. His memoirs, published in 1943 as World War Two finished, became an International sensation. Only in his native Russia were the writings repressed though they were spread throughout the political underground rapidly.

The day before his death, Lenin gave his final lecture at Seattle University. While his previous lectures had a somewhat cynical and hopeless tone to them, Lenin felt strangely buoyant as he had been informed the Socialist Party had recently won a further twelve seats in the British elections. He encouraged the packed lecture hall to “Push for Revolution, lead the proletariat against those that suppress them and always, always press on for Socialism!” The lecture ended with a standing ovation by all present as the last words ever spoken by Lenin in public echoed in their heads.

Lenin left the University to his modest apartment in Seattle. He died in his sleep later that night and was later interned at Cavalry Cemetery in Seattle, his funeral was attended by various intelligentsias, leading socialists and received a surprisingly large bouquet from Winston Churchill. Admittedly the bouquet was in the shape of Old Bailey but Churchill always insisted that the two’s rivalry had calmed down after the injustice suffered by Lenin in 1936 and they had corresponded on political matters throughout the last few years. On Lenin’s headstone, the epitaph “I Have Done What Needs to be Done.” Was written to mutual agreement.