E I w a:
1. Composition.
2. Manifesto and Brizon (the Brizon incident)...14
3. "Theses" and statement of the Italians15
ISB and the "ultimatum" of the Ital- ( "Incident" R1.
ians + Germans
J 4 and 3 in the commission "voting" "compromise"...
6. 5. Result (a small step forward, 1]
< in general a step in place
[ fluctuations.
JJ
5. 6. Italians: / Treves and Co.
| 17
< Germans with Haase and Co. /
I Martov and Axelrod.
J
1 The German delegation included: from the "opposition group" —
Adolf Hoffmann, Georg Herrmann, Anna Schubert, Hermann Fleissner; from the "International" group —
Bertha Thalheimer and Ernst Meyer; from the Bremen left radicals — Paul Frölich.
Internationale — the "International" group — a revolutionary organization
of German left social democrats; formed at the beginning
of the world imperialist war, later became known as the group
"Spartacus". At the end of 1918 - beginning of 1919, the Spartacists created the Communist Party of Germany.
I. S. D. — "Internationale Sozialisten Deutschlands" ("International
Socialists of Germany") — a group of German left social democrats, which arose during the years of the world imperialist war; in 1915
joined the Zimmerwald Left. The group did not have broad
ties with the masses and soon disintegrated.
2 The French delegation at the conference was represented by: deputies-
Longuetists P. Brizon, A. Blanc, J. Raffin-Dugens (Raffin-Dugens) and the left syndicalist A. Guilbeaux.
A. Blanc and J. Raffin-Dugens left at the beginning of the conference.
"Left Frenchman" - A. Guilbeaux.
Pierre Brizon - French socialist, publicist. In 1910– 1919 - Member of the Chamber of Deputies. During the world imperialist
war, he stood on centrist-pacifist positions, was one of the leaders of the French right Zimmerwaldists.
3 The Italian delegation at the conference:
Vittorio Emanuele
Modigliani, Odino Morgari, Camillo Prampolini (Prampolini), Elia Muzatti, Enrico Dugoni, Constan-
tine Lazzari, Giacinto Menotti Serrati.
4 The Swiss delegation included: Charles Naine, Ernest
Paul Graber, Friedrich (Fritz) Platten, Ernst Nobs (Nobs), Agnes Robmann.
5 Serb - Triša Kaclerović - a prominent figure in the Yugoslav and international communist movement. At the Zimmerwald and
Kienthal conferences, he took a position close to Lenin's.
with Portuguese - Edmondo Peluso - Italian socialist, émi-
grant; from 1898 to 1913 he was at different times in socialist and social-democratic parties of different countries. At the Kienthal conference
he was a delegate from the Socialist Party of Portugal.
7 I. S. K. — Internationale
Sozialistische
Kommission — International
Socialist Commission. Delegates from I. S. K. at the Kienthal
conference were its chairman Robert Grimm and secretary
Angelica Balabanova, who held a centrist position.
8 S.-r. - Socialist-Revolutionaries. From the SRs at the conference
were: M. A. Natanson (Bobrov) and two delegates under the pseudonyms Savelyev
and Vlasov.
9 The representatives of the OC at the conference were L. Martov and P. B. Ak-
selrod. The Bolsheviks, on behalf of the Central Committee of the RSDLP, protested against the recognition
of the mandates of Martov and Axelrod, because the organizations of the Mensheviks,
represented by these delegates, stood on the ground of social-chauvinism.
ma. However, the credentials committee headed by Grimm rejected this
protest.
10 P. P. S. - PPS - Polish Socialist Party. A dele- gate from the PPS to the conference was P. L. Lapinsky (Ya. Levinson), one
of the leaders of the PPS-"Left".
11 P. S. D. - Polish social democracy - Social Democracy
of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania (SDKPiL).
From the Main Board of the SDKPiL, the conference delegate was
Adolf Warski, who supported the Left on some issues.
The Regional Board of the SDKPiL at the conference was represented by Karl
Radek, M. G. Vronsky and V. Stein-Krayevsky (Dombrovsky), who were members
of the Zimmerwald Left.
12 The representatives of the Central Committee of the RSDLP at the conference were V. I. Lenin,
I. F. Armand and G. E. Zinoviev.
13 Z. L. — Zimmerwalder Linke — Zimmerwald Left.
14 Manifesto - adopted by the Kienthal conference an appeal
"To the peoples being devastated and killed."
At the ninth session of the conference on April 26 (new style), the
text of the manifesto was discussed. A commission of five people was instructed to edit
the manifesto. Brizon, fearing that a too left-wing mani-
festo would be adopted, said that he would not be able to sign it. Brizon was explained that his
signature under the manifesto was not mandatory, since he does not have an official
mandate.
"The Brizon Incident" - Lenin probably means Brizon's speech at the evening session on April 26, when he attacked the delegates with such rude attacks who demanded that the French opposition refuse to vote for credits, that the session had to be interrupted.
15 "Theses" - a resolution unanimously adopted by the conference on the attitude of the proletariat to the question of peace.
The Italian delegation stated that it approved the resolution, since it facilitates the struggle against the war, but made a reservation in which it pointed out the pessimistic nature of the statements about future relations between states, the too categorical rejection of the means by which the proletariat could try to make these relations less acute, expressed the opinion that the theses do not sufficiently take into account specific issues that concern the current war and the coming peace.
Serrati and Lazzari did not sign this statement.
16 The question of the attitude to the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau of the Second International (ISB) caused the most acute clashes between the right and left wings of the conference. The commission included to prepare a resolution on this issue: Lenin, Schubert, Nän, Thalheimer, Axelrod, Lazzari, Barsky. The "Commission of Seven" came to a unanimous opinion. Two draft resolutions were presented to the conference. The right-wing majority of the commission (Lazzari, Nän, Schubert, Axelrod) proposed to take part in the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau; the left-wing minority (Lenin, Barsky, Thalheimer) stated that it was necessary to demand not the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau, but its final debunking in the eyes of the workers of all countries, and that through revolutionary struggle against war and imperialism it was necessary to create the ideological and organizational prerequisites for preparing a new International.
Platten spoke in support of the left-wing draft, stating that the International Socialist Bureau could no longer be revived, and reported that the board of the Swiss party had already refused a request from The Hague as to whether the Swiss would participate in the meeting of the International Socialist Bureau, and that Huysmans had declared Swiss Social Democracy outside the framework of the old International. Serrati, who spoke after Platten, reproached the Swiss party for giving a negative answer to the letter from the International Socialist Bureau; Grimm hastened to disavow Platten's message, stating that the Swiss party would participate in the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau (Lenin apparently had this episode in mind when referring to Platten's "incident").
In the course of the unfolding debates, six draft resolutions were submitted on this issue: from the right-wing majority, the left-wing minority, Hoffmann, Lapinsky, Axelrod, and Serrati. Before submitting the drafts to the commission, Barsky proposed to vote first - for or against the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau.
Lenin proposed to hold the vote on a broader basis: for the majority resolution or for the minority resolution. The Bolshevik delegation introduced another proposal: in the event of the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau, to convene an expanded International Socialist Commission to coordinate the tactics of the Zimmerwaldists.
The supporters of the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau refused to discuss these proposals. Hoffmann objected in an ultimatum tone to any preliminary vote. The Italian delegation stated that if the conference decided to refuse to participate in the meeting of the International Socialist Bureau, the Italians would immediately go home.
The Zimmerwald Left behaved quite differently. It stated that it would not present an ultimatum and refuse to submit to the decision of the majority of the conference. At the same time, the left-wing delegates demanded that the submitted resolutions be voted on.
The right-wing majority, counting on a preponderance of votes in the commission, did not want to fix the opinions of the delegates by a preliminary vote, which would clearly reveal the forces of supporters and opponents of rapprochement with the social-chauvinists.
Nevertheless, at the insistence of the left, a preliminary vote was held on all projects: the resolution of the majority of the commission received 10 votes, the left-wing minority - 12, Hoffmann (for the unconditional convocation of the International Socialist Bureau) - 2, the compromise resolution of Lapinsky - 15, the resolution of Serrati and Modigliani (close to the draft of the right-wing majority) - 10, the additional resolution of the Bolsheviks - 19.
After the preliminary vote, Lenin proposed to replenish the commission to develop a general resolution. Lapinsky, Zinoviev, Serrati, and Nobs were included in the commission.
At the meeting of the commission, Lenin, Thalheimer, Zinoviev, and Nobs submitted a statement for the record, in which they emphasized the difference of their point of view regarding the expediency of demanding the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau and stated that they agreed to accept the Lapinsky resolution as a basis. The willingness of the Zimmerwald Left to compromise made it possible to adopt an agreed resolution based on the Lapinsky and Modigliani projects, as well as the additional resolution of the Bolsheviks, and thereby prevent the disruption of the conference.
As a result of the vote, with 21 votes against one, with several abstentions, the conference adopted a compromise resolution on the International Socialist Bureau, which called for "exposing the true intentions of nationalistic socialism," but left open the question of the convocation of the International Socialist Bureau.
V. I. Lenin pointed out on the eve of the Kienthal Conference that "Kautsky, Haase et al. in Germany, Longuet, Pressemane et al. in France, the majority of leaders in England, Axelrod, Martov and Chkheidze & Co. in Russia, Treves et al. in Italy" are pursuing "a policy that is most harmful and dangerous to the working class." This, Lenin emphasized, "are people who in words pass themselves off as 'internationalists,' but in fact embellish the imperialist war by applying to it the idea of 'defense of the fatherland' and strengthen the domination over the working-class movement of the social-chauvinists who have betrayed socialism by preaching 'unity' with them" (Complete Works, vol. 27, p. 461).
26058
FOR THE RUSSIAN BUREAU OF THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE
AND THE PETERSBURG COMMITTEE OF THE RSDLP
[Later than May 7, 1916]
For the Bureau and PC 1
Dear friends! The lack of news from you and proper correspondence with you greatly distresses us.
The internationalist behavior of the Russian workers, of our party, despite all the abyss of lies spread by Martov and other friends of Chkheidze abroad, is becoming increasingly known in Europe.
The significance of the struggle against the war in Piter is very great. The PC and the Bureau still remain the model - this cannot be hidden by any lie. The behavior of the Gvozdevites 2 and Chkheidze & Co. is outrageous and hypocritical (Martov's latest protest in "Our Voice" 3 is a clear diversion, since Martov continues to defend the same social-patriots Chkheidze and Chkhenkeli 4).
On behalf of all the Zimmerwald Left, a warm greeting to the Piter workers. Even opponents of our party are forced to recognize their great role.
In the struggle against Vandervelde 5, Plekhanov, Kautsky and Co., who will restore the rotten International, the role of the PC and our party is very great. Do not forget this in difficult moments of life.
If there is the slightest opportunity, it is necessary to try to speak and publish also legally: something can be said; it is possible and necessary to condemn "Our Voice" and Chkheidze also legally. The main thing is still proper correspondence with us. We implore you to establish this, sparing no effort, 2-3 hours a month for each, this is not much, this can and should be devoted to correspondence.
Warm greetings and best wishes.
Yours, Lenin
If the signature is careless [cut it off].
1 The Russian Bureau of the Central Committee of the RSDLP was created at the VI (Prague) All-Russian Conference of the RSDLP in January 1912.
2 Gvozdevites - named after K. A. Gvozdev.
K. A. Gvozdev - a Menshevik liquidator. During the years of the world imperialist war - a social-chauvinist, chairman of the working group of the Central Military-Industrial Committee.
3 Apparently, we are talking about the "Open Letter" published on April 24 (O.S.) 1916 in No. 13 of the newspaper "Our Voice".
"Our Voice" is a legal Menshevik newspaper, published in Samara in 1915-1916, took a social-chauvinistic position.
4 A. I. Chkhenkeli - Social Democrat, Menshevik. Deputy of the IV State Duma. During the world imperialist war - a centrist.
Emile Vandervelde - leader of the Belgian Labor Party, chairman of the International Socialist Bureau of the Second International, took an extremely opportunistic position. During the world imperialist war, a social-chauvinist, was a member of the bourgeois government, held various ministerial posts.

FROM THE EDITORS TO THE ARTICLE BY STRANNIK
"FROM THE ARMY (FACTS AND ECHOES)"1
[Later than July 23, 1916]
From the Editors. In printing the article by Comrade Strannik, which we consider very valuable, since it carefully collects facts and indications that do not appear in the legal press, we had to shorten some places. These abbreviations refer, according to the author's wish, exclusively to non-military paragraphs and are marked, at his request, with ellipses.
Strannik - V. Yu. Fridolin - joined the RSDLP in 1904. During the years of reaction, he withdrew from political activity. In 1910-1917 he lived in emigration. During the period of the world imperialist war, he collaborated in the Menshevik-Trotskyist newspaper "Our Word"; spoke with articles against the war.
The article "From the Army (Facts and Echoes)" was intended for the "Collection of 'Social Democrat'", but was not printed.