Early life in Paris Mark Zborowski

1 life in paris

1.1 embedding lev sedov
1.2 death of lev sedov
1.3 internal investigation trotskyists
1.4 death of trotsky

early life in paris

in 1933 penniless zborowski turned in paris wife , recruited nkvd agent leningrad émigré alexander adler. provided nkvd written background , revealed sister , 2 brothers lived in soviet union. according historian john j. dziak, nkvd had recruited him special group murdered special enemies of joseph stalin. assassinated included ignace reiss (1937), andrés nin (1937), , walter krivitsky (1941). members of group said have included leonid eitingon, nikolai vasilyevich skoblin, sergei efron, , david alfaro siqueiros, , perhaps psychoanalyst max eitingon.

embedding lev sedov

the nkvd took steps infiltrate him paris organization run leon trotsky s son lev sedov. known etienne, zborowski befriended sedov s wife, jeanne martin, , recommended him position of sedov s secretary. because of obsequious nature , untiring work, , because russian speaker in french group, etienne became indispensable sedov. served member of group s central committee, read , answered sedov s mail, edited russian language version of bulletin of opposition, stored part of trotsky archive @ home, , served sedov s deputy in absence. while etienne reported on activity of trotsky (codename old man), sedov (codename sonny), , trotskyists (codename polecats) nkvd handlers.

death of lev sedov

on february 8, 1938 overworked sedov suffered severe attack of appendicitis. etienne convinced him have operation secretly @ small private clinic run russian emigres in paris, location of etienne revealed nkvd. sedov operated on same evening , appeared, on next few days, have normal recovery. became violently ill , despite repeated blood transfusions died in great pain on february 16 @ age of thirty-two. historians differ whether or not sedov murdered nkvd , there considerable evidence support either scenario.

internal investigation trotskyists

after sedov s death, trotsky initiated investigation of etienne , entrusted matter rudolf klement, one-time aide , organizer of trotsky s fourth international. before klement complete investigation nkvd agent named ale taubman lured him apartment on left bank , murdered him of 2 other agents, turk , alexander korotkov. cut off klement s head , legs , stuffed body parts in trunk , threw seine. several days later trotskyists received typewritten letter klement accusing trotsky of collaboration adolf hitler. letter, nkvd fabrication, no doubt meant explain klement s disappearance , denounce trotsky @ same time. however, klement s headless corpse washed ashore in august 1938 , identified, scar on 1 hand, 2 trotskyists.

death of trotsky

etienne became leader of beheaded trotskyist organization in paris , continued edit bulletin of opposition, along lilia estrin dallin (codename neighbor). used skills play upon vanities of remaining trotskyists , create internal divisions within faction, isolating victor serge. in 1939 defector alexander orlov sent trotsky unsigned letter warning him nkvd agent named mark , fitting description of zborowski, had infiltrated paris organization. later regret, dallin convinced trotsky letter nkvd disinformation meant create fear within trotskyist faction. meanwhile, etienne played small significant role in plot assassinate trotsky. @ founding conference of fourth international in paris in september 1938, etienne introduced friend sylvia ageloff, american trotskyist , interpreter, ramón mercader, future assassin of trotsky. passionate mercader seduced unattractive twenty-eight-year-old woman. blindly followed him mexico , infiltrated him trotsky s household. mercader murdered trotsky striking him in skull ice-axe on august 20, 1940.