A century has passed since the Russian Revolution of 7-8 November 1917 (although it is commonly known as the October Revolution, that is because it took place on 25-26 October under the Julian calendar then in use in Russia). Perhaps uncomfortable about promoting discussion of the idea of governments being overthrown by force, the Kremlin is not organising any commemorative events.
Vladimir Lenin's influence has waned over the past 100 years but his image remains on monuments built across the former Soviet Union as part of a cult of personality. Many memorials have been toppled since the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1991 but others remain, reflecting a debate in Russia about his legacy.
A bas-relief depicting Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin is seen on the dam wall at Kirov Reservoir in Talas region, western KyrgyzstanShamil Zhumatov/ReutersTrees spell out the word 'Lenin' in a forest near the town of Ivanava in Belarus. Different sorts of trees was planted in 1970 on the hundredth anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Lenin, founder of the Soviet UnionSergei Gapon/AFPA worker washes a statue of Vladimir Lenin in front of the House of Soviets in Saint PetersburgOlga Maltseva/AFPA damaged monument to Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin lies in an abandoned area outside Tbilisi, GeorgiaDavid Mdzinarishvili/ReutersA statue of Lenin stands outside the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, which will host seven Fifa World Cup football matches including the finalMladen Antonov/AFPA bust of Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin at Ploshchad Ilyicha metro station in MoscowSergei Karpukhin/ReutersPeople stand in front of a mosaic depicting former Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin at Biblioteka Imeni Lenina metro station in MoscowLucy Nicholson/ReutersPeople walk under a mosaic of former Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin at Komsomolskaya metro station in MoscowLucy Nicholson/ReutersPeople gather in front of artwork depicting Lenin at Novokuznetskaya metro station in MoscowSergei Karpukhin/ReutersA couple kisses in front of a mosaic depicting Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin at Kievskaya metro station in MoscowGrigory Dukor/ReutersConstruction workers are seen inside Cosmos (Space) Pavilion under reconstruction at the Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy in Moscow. During the restoration works, the coat of arms of the USSR, the 15 former Soviet republics and the emblems of the sectors of the economy were found at the base of the dome of the pavilion behind panelsMaxim Shemetov/ReutersA sculpture of Vladimir Lenin stands in front of the administration building of the Vasileostrovsky district of Saint PetersburgMladen Antonov/AFPA monument to the Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin is seen in Minsk, BelarusVasily Fedosenko/ReutersThe Russian state flag flies near a monument to Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin in Bakhchysarai, CrimeaPavel Rebrov/ReutersA monument to Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin stands in the settlement of Kovylnoye in the Razdolnensky district of CrimeaPavel Rebrov/ReutersA detail of a monument to Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin is seen in the settlement of Ordzhonikidze, near Feodosia, CrimeaPavel Rebrov/ReutersA monument to Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin stands at a park of the Siberian town of Uzhur in Krasnoyarsk regionIlya Naymushin/ReutersA mosaic panel with a portrait of Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin is seen at the Krasnoyarsk hydro electric power station on the Yenisei River outside the Siberian city of KrasnoyarskIlya Naymushin/ReutersA couple kiss in front of a residential building with the Soviet Order of Lenin on top in VolgogradMaxim Shemetov/ReutersA statue of Vladimir Lenin stands in the middle of a children's amusement park in SochiAlexander Nemenov/AFPA monument to Vladimir Lenin stands in Nizhny NovgorodMladen Antonov/AFPA statue of Vladimir Lenin is seen in the town of Chekhov, some 65km outside MoscowYuri Kadobnov/AFPA statue of the founder of the Soviet Union is seen at the Lenin Memorial museum in UlyanovskVaily Maximov/AFPA portrait of Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin is seen outside an abandoned building in the 30km (19-mile) exclusion zone around the Chernobyl nuclear reactor in the abandoned village of Orevichi, BelarusVasily Fedosenko/Reuters
Lenin was born in 1870 and became one of the 20th century's most important leaders as the revolution inspired by Karl Marx transformed Russia and influenced Socialists around the world for decades. As the first leader of the one-party communist state, Lenin redistributed land and nationalised industry and banks in a bid to champion the working class. He also used violence on a wide scale to crush perceived opponents of his Marxist ideology.
When he died in 1924, Soviet authorities displayed his body in a mausoleum in Moscow's Red Square where it lies to this day.
On 30 October 2017, Russia's other great Vladimir – President Putin – inaugurated a monument to the victims of Stalinist purges. Nearly 700,000 people were executed during the Great Terror of 1937-38, according to conservative official estimates. Vladimir Putin told human rights activists he hoped the centenary of the Revolution would allow society to draw a line under the tumultuous events of 1917 and to accept Russia's history – "with great victories and tragic pages".
