The Seventh World Congress of the

Communist International The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern and also known as the Third International, was a political international which existed from 1919 to 1943 and advocated world communism. Emerging from the collapse of the Second Internationa ...

(Comintern) was a multinational conference held in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

from July 25 through August 20, 1935 by delegated representatives of ruling and non-ruling communist parties from around the world and invited guests representing other political and

organized labor The labour movement is the collective organisation of working people to further their shared political and economic interests. It consists of the trade union or labour union movement, as well as political parties of labour. It can be considere ...

organizations. The gathering was attended by 513 delegates, of whom 371 were accorded full voting rights, representing 65 Comintern member parties as well as 19 sympathizing parties. The gathering is best remembered for its endorsement of a Popular Front of

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

and non-communist forces against the growing menace of

fascism Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hie ...

in Europe, paving the way for advocacy of

collective security Collective security is arrangement between states in which the institution accepts that an attack on one state is the concern of all and merits a collective response to threats by all. Collective security was a key principle underpinning the Lea ...

between the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and the various capitalist states of Europe. This marked a dramatic reversal of the Comintern's previous orientation towards

class warfare ''Class Warfare'' is a book of collected interviews with Noam Chomsky conducted by David Barsamian. It was first published in the United States by Common Courage Press, and in the United Kingdom by Pluto Press, in 1996. Publishing history The ...

endorsed by the 6th World Congress of 1928, the aggressive line of the so-called "

Third Period The Third Period is an ideological concept adopted by the Communist International (Comintern) at its Sixth World Congress, held in Moscow in the summer of 1928. It set policy until reversed when the Nazis took over Germany in 1933. The Cominte ...

History

Background

Throughout the early 1930s the Soviet Union's

People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics () was founded on 6 July 1923. It had three names during its existence: People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs (1923–1946), Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1946–1991) ...

, headed by

Maxim Litvinov Maxim Maximovich Litvinov (; born Meir Henoch Wallach-Finkelstein; 17 July 1876 – 31 December 1951) was a Russian Empire, Russian revolutionary and prominent Soviet Union, Soviet statesman and diplomat who served as Ministry of Foreign Aff ...

, had pursued a policy of attempting to win a broad international agreement to bring about military disarmament. This initiative had clearly reached a terminal impasse from the

Nazi seizure of power The rise to power of Adolf Hitler, dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919, when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He quickly rose t ...

in January 1933, however, with the new political reality writ large by the October 1933 departure of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

from the

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

disarmament negotiations.E.H. Carr, ''Twilight of the Comintern, 1930-1935.'' New York: Pantheon Books, 1982; pg. 147. Still, there was little motion among the world communist movement towards construction of a broader

united front A united front is an alliance of groups against their common enemies, figuratively evoking unification of previously separate geographic fronts or unification of previously separate armies into a front. The name often refers to a political and/ ...

with the socialist movement and their affiliated trade unions, with the Comintern continuing to train its rhetorical guns on the

social democratic Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

movement, which was held to have sabotaged the effort of the

Communist Party of Germany The Communist Party of Germany (, ; KPD ) was a major Far-left politics, far-left political party in the Weimar Republic during the interwar period, German resistance to Nazism, underground resistance movement in Nazi Germany, and minor party ...

to wage battle against fascism by propagating what the communists characterized as its "anti-Marxist theory of a 'peaceful,' 'democratic' road to socialism" among the German workers' movement. There were some within the communist movement who began feeling their way to a new more collaborative orientation, however. The February 1934 Uprising of

Socialists Socialism is an economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes the economic, political, and socia ...

against right wing forces in

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and movement towards cooperation between Socialists and Communists in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in fighting a nascent fascist movement there convinced Bulgarian Communist

Georgi Dimitrov Georgi Dimitrov Mihaylov (; ) also known as Georgiy Mihaylovich Dimitrov (; 18 June 1882 – 2 July 1949), was a Bulgarian communist politician who served as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party from 1933 t ...

, a leading figure in the Communist International that the Comintern's hostility towards joint action between Communists and Socialists was ill-considered.Jonathan Haslam, ''The Soviet Union and the Struggle for Collective Security in Europe, 1933-39.'' New York: St. Martin's Press, 1984; pg. 54. Dimitrov made his triumphant return to Moscow in April 1934 following acquittal in the Reichstag Fire trial determined to change the Comintern's fundamental strategy from one of antagonistic opposition to

social democracy Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

to one of cooperation in a joint struggle. Preparations for a 7th World Congress of the Comintern began in Moscow late in 1934, with the

Executive Committee of the Communist International The Executive Committee of the Communist International, commonly known by its acronym, ECCI (Russian acronym ИККИ - for ), was the governing authority of the Comintern between the World Congresses of that body. The ECCI, established by the Fo ...

(ECCI) establishing a commission to draft programmatic resolutions for that body.Carr, ''Twilight of the Comintern,'' pg. 148. This body was divided between Dimitrov and others advocating a move towards a "general democratic, anti-Fascist" orientation and hardliners who continued to argue that the battle against fascism was inseparable from the task of overthrowing the

bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and aristocracy. They are traditionally contrasted wi ...

, implying a simultaneous fight against the fascist right and the reformist constitutionalist and socialist movements. With no rapid agreement forthcoming, on March 8, 1935, the scheduled opening of the 7th Congress was moved back to the end of July. It would be the exigencies of Soviet foreign policy which ultimately shaped the Comintern's orientation, when on May 2, 1935, the two countries most concerned about the implications of growing German militarism — France and the Soviet Union — concluded the

Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance The Franco-Soviet Treaty of Mutual Assistance was a bilateral treaty between France and the Soviet Union with the aim of enveloping Nazi Germany in 1935 to reduce the threat from Central Europe. It was pursued by Maxim Litvinov, the Soviet forei ...

, a mutual aid pact in which each promised to come to the other's defense in the event that aggression violating the

Covenant of the League of Nations The Covenant of the League of Nations was the charter of the League of Nations. It was signed on 28 June 1919 as Part I of the Treaty of Versailles, and became effective together with the rest of the Treaty on 10 January 1920. Creation Early ...

was suffered.Carr, ''Twilight of the Comintern,'' pg. 150. Shortly thereafter, two days of consultations in Moscow between French

Foreign Minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

Pierre Laval Pierre Jean Marie Laval (; 28 June 1883 – 15 October 1945) was a French politician. He served as Prime Minister of France three times: 1931–1932 and 1935–1936 during the Third Republic (France), Third Republic, and 1942–1944 during Vich ...

and Soviet chiefs

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

, Viacheslav Molotov, and Maxim Litvinov helped to solemnify the agreement through a joint communique in which the parties agreed "not to allow their means of national defense to weaken in any respect" and which recognized France's right to "maintain her armed forces at a level consonant with her security". The May 1935 treaty and formal communique between France and the USSR tilted the scale decisively towards a new Comintern policy for the Communist Parties of the world, casting aside the old

line of "class against class" for the overthrow of the bourgeoisie in favor of a new policy of ''

realpolitik ''Realpolitik'' ( ; ) is the approach of conducting diplomatic or political policies based primarily on considerations of given circumstances and factors, rather than strictly following ideological, moral, or ethical premises. In this respect, ...

,'' defending the Russian revolution by supporting mutual defense agreements between the USSR and various capitalist states. Further marking this shift in the international political line of the Comintern was the appointment of Popular Front adherent Georgi Dimitrov as new head of the Communist International. The stage was therefore set for the belated convocation of the Comintern's 7th World Congress.

Convocation

The 7th World Congress of the Communist International opened on the evening of July 25, 1935 in the Hall of Pillars of the

House of the Unions The House of the Unions (, also called ''Palace of the Unions'') is a historic building in the Tverskoy District in central Moscow, Russia. It is situated on the corner of Bolshaya Dmitrovka and Okhotny Ryad streets. History The first building ...

in Moscow.Carr, ''Twilight of the Comintern,'' pg. 403. The gathering, which was convened almost exactly seven years since the conclusion of the last Comintern World Congress, was attended by 513 delegates, of whom 371 were accorded full voting rights, representing 65 Comintern member parties as well as 19 sympathizing parties. In keeping with his personal tradition and relative lack of interest in Comintern affairs, the proceedings were not attended by All-Union Communist Party

General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

Joseph Stalin, who had by this time risen to a position of unquestioned supremacy in the Soviet firmament. Despite his absence, Stalin was lauded in a cult-like manner, with every mention of the Soviet leader's name being met by "tumultuous applause" from the gathered delegates.

Pieck's keynote report

Setting the stage for the 7th World Congress was the keynote report on the Activities of ECCI, delivered on the second day by

Wilhelm Pieck Friedrich Wilhelm Reinhold Pieck (; 3 January 1876 – 7 September 1960) was a German communist politician who served as the Leadership of East Germany, chairman of the Socialist Unity Party from 1946 to 1950 and as the only president of the Ger ...

of the Communist Party of Germany. While lauding the 1928 tactic of "class against class" which was "directed against the bloc of the Social Democrats with the bourgeoisie and aimed at destroying the bloc of the Social Democratic leaders with the bourgeoisie," Pieck nevertheless acknowledged that "a certain number of sectarian mistakes were committed." This push for ideologically pure leadership divided the workers' movement during the strike movement of the late 1920s, gaining the support of some workers while alienating others and ultimately failing owing to "clumsy and sectarian tactics." Pieck argued that with the coming of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

the bourgeoisie sought to solve its problem of a collapsing internal market and declining profits with a move towards seizure and plunder of foreign territory under the banner of fascism, with the aggression of militarist

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Manchuria Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...

and the rise of Nazi Germany said to epitomize the new trend.Pieck, "The Activities of the Executive Committee of the Communist International," pg. 26. "These preparations are simultaneously and primarily designed for the destruction of the Soviet Union, the home, the basis, and the bulwark of the proletarian revolution," Pieck declared. Pieck identified the "defeat of the German proletariat" and the rise of Nazism as the "greatest event that marked the first years of the crisis in the capitalist countries," stating that from the spring of 1932 it had "already become evident that the fascists had a considerable advantage over the Communists in the matter of mobilizing the masses. The communists had attempted to change the situation by proposing a united front with the

Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany ( , SPD ) is a social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the party's leader since the 2019 leadership election together w ...

and its associated trade union federation, the

Allgemeiner Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund The General German Trade Union Federation (, ADGB) was a confederation of German trade unions in Germany founded during the Weimar Republic. It was founded in 1919 and was initially powerful enough to organize a general strike in 1920 against a rig ...

(ADGB). This effort had been rebuffed, Pieck said, with the failure of the Social Democratic political and labor movement to join

general strike A general strike is a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large coalitions ...

s following the expulsion of socialist ministers from the government of

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

in July 1932 and the coming to power of the Hitler government in January 1933 singled out for specific criticism.Pieck, "The Activities of the Executive Committee of the Communist International," pg. 39. Omitting the fact that the Comintern's "class against class" line had been targeted directly at the Social Democrats, who had been castigated as "

social fascists Social fascism was a theory developed by the Communist International (Comintern) in the early 1930s which saw social democracy as a moderate variant of fascism. The Comintern argued that capitalism had entered a Third Period in which proletaria ...

" in no way better than the actual fascist movement, Pieck declared that the Communists had done "everything in their power to mobilize the laboring masses for a revolutionary struggle to prevent the fascist dictatorship," only to be stymied when the Social Democrats "did not abandon their hostile attitude to the united front and the struggle." Only now, Pieck declared, had a new era been ushered in with a "turn of the Socialist workers towards a united front with the Communists."Pieck, "The Activities of the Executive Committee of the Communist International," pg. 41. A variety of factors had contributed to the new attitude of the Socialists towards the Communists, according to Pieck, including the "final and irrevocable victory of socialism in the Soviet Union" on the one hand and the brutal reality of fascist dictatorship in Germany on the other. The defense of Communism made by Dimitrov at the Leipzig trial, a general strike in France in February 1934, and armed battles against the fascists in Austria in February 1934 and in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

in October 1934 had further consolidated this trend towards interparty cooperation, Pieck declared. Consequently, Pieck noted, "United Front agreements have been reached between the Communists and Socialists in Austria, Spain, and Italy" with additional mass actions taking place between rank-and-file party members without the blessing of Socialist leaders in Great Britain, the United States,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, and

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

.Pieck, "The Activities of the Executive Committee of the Communist International," pg. 47.

Dimitrov's report on unity against fascism

After Pieck's keynote report and the extended discussion which ensued came on August 2 a second watershed report, this by Georgi Dimitrov on the task of building unity of the working class in opposition to fascism.Carr, ''Twilight of the Comintern,'' pg. 405. The appearance of Dimitrov on the platform, a great hero of the communist movement since his victory at the Leipzig trial, was met by a resounding ovation of the gathered delegates and a rousing singing of "

The Internationale "The Internationale" is an international anthem that has been adopted as the anthem of various anarchist, communist, socialist, democratic socialist, and social democratic movements. It has been a standard of the socialist movement since ...

." Dimitrov began with an analysis of fascism, which he characterized as "the open terrorist dictatorship of the most reactionary, most chauvinistic, and most imperialist elements of finance capital," intent upon wreaking organized "terrorist vengeance against the working class and the revolutionary section of the peasantry and intelligentsia."Georgi Dimitrov, "The Fascist Offensive and the Tasks of the Communist International," in ''VII Congress of the Communist International: Abridged Stenographic Report of Proceedings.'' Moscow: Foreign Languages Publishing House, 1939; pg. 126. With respect to its foreign policy, Dimitrov condemned fascism as "jingoism in its most brutal form, fomenting bestial hatred of other nations." In marked juxtaposition to the previous international communist line, which intentionally muddied the difference between "fascism" and "social fascism" in an effort to break common workers away from their social democratic political and trade union leadership, Dimitrov depicted the establishment of fascism as a definite break in the fundamental form of governance from "one state form of class domination of the bourgeoisie — bourgeois democracy — by another form — open terrorist dictatorship."Dimitrov, "The Fascist Offensive and the Tasks of the Communist International," pg. 127. Fascism's victory would suppress the "democratic liberties of the working people," curtail "the rights of parliament," and intensify repression of the revolutionary movement, Dimitrov warned.

Footnotes

External links

''The People's Front in France''
speeches delivered at the Congress by

Marcel Cachin Marcel Cachin (20 September 1869 – 12 February 1958) was a French Communist politician and editor of the daily newspaper ''L'Humanite''. Political career In 1891, Cachin joined Jules Guesde's French Workers' Party (POF). In 1905, he joine ...

Maurice Thorez Maurice Thorez (; 28 April 1900 – 11 July 1964) was a French politician and longtime leader of the French Communist Party (PCF) from 1930 until his death. He also served as Deputy Prime Minister of France from 1946 to 1947. Pre-war Thorez, ...

and

André Marty André Marty (6 November 1886 – 23 November 1956) was a leading figure in the French Communist Party (PCF) for nearly thirty years. He was also a member of the National Assembly, with some interruptions, from 1924 to 1955; Secretary of Cominte ...

.
A photograph of the Seventh World Congress of the Comintern
{{DEFAULTSORT:7th World Congress of the Comintern 1935 in politics 1935 conferences Comintern Marxism Foreign relations of the Soviet Union 1935 in the Soviet Union Events in Moscow