Conference of the Extended Editorial Board of Proletary[1]
June 8–17 (21–80), 1909
Contents
[1] Conference of the extended editorial board of “Proletary” was held in Paris on June 8-17 (21-30), 1909 and was attended by nine members of the Bolshevik Centre (elected by tile Bolshevik section of the Fifth [London] Congress of the R.S.D.L.P. in 1907) headed by Lenin, and representatives of the St. Petersburg, Moscow Regional and Urals organisations.
The Conference was called to discuss the conduct of the otzovists and ultimatumists. It dealt with the following questions: (1) otzovism and ultimatumism; (2) god-building tendencies among the Social-Democrats; (3) the attitude to Duma activities among the other fields of Party work; (4) the tasks of the Bolsheviks in the Party; (5) the Party school being set up abroad (on Capri); (6) agitation for a Bolshevik congress or a Bolshevik conference separate from the Party; (7) the breakaway of Comrade Maximov; and other questions.
The Conference was guided by Lenin, who delivered speeches on all the principal questions of the agenda. Otzovism and ultimatumism were represented and defended at the Conference by A. Bogdanov (Maximov) and V. Shantser (Marat). Kamenev, Zinoviev, Rykov, and Tomsky took a conciliatory stand.
The Conference condemned otzovism and ultimatumism, which were qualified as “liquidationism from the left”. Bogdanov, the guiding spirit of otzovism and ultimatumism, was expelled from the ranks of the Bolsheviks. The Conference also condemned god-building and decided to combat it vigorously and expose its anti-Marxist nature.
The headings to Lenin’s speeches published in this volume have been given by the Institute of Marxism-Leninism.