MIA : Early American Marxism : The Communist International [Comintern] (1919-1930) Officials

ORGANIZATIONAL OFFICIALS

 

The First Congress of the Comintern [March 2-6, 1919] did not elect an Executive Committee. The President of the Comintern was Grigorii Zinoviev. Operations of the organization were also headed by a series of Secretaries: (1) Angelica Balabanova; (2) Ian Berzin; (3) V.V. Vorovsky; and (4) Karl Radek.

The Executive Committee was a constantly changing body which was attended at various times by the followng:

CHINA: Liao Chao (China).

FINLAND: Sirola.

FRANCE: Jacques Sadoul.

HOLLAND: S.J. Rutgers.

HUNGARY: Rudas.

KOREA: Pak.

LATVIA: Stuchka.

NORWAY: Friis.

POLAND: Markhlevsky.

RUSSIA: Angelica Balabanova, Ian Berzin, Nikolai Bukharin, Klinger, V.V. Vorovsky, and Grigorii Zinoviev.

SWEDEN: Kilborn, Grimlund.

UNITED STATES: John Reed (CLP) and John Anderson [Kristap Beika] (CPA).

YUGOSLAVIA: Milkich.

 

The President of the Comintern remained Grigorii Zinoviev. The Second Congress of the Comintern [July 19-Aug. 7, 1920] elected a full Executive Committee consisting of the following:

AUSTRIA: Steinhardt.

BULGARIA: Shablin.

CZECHOSLOVAKIA: Gula.

FAR EAST [KOREA]: Pak.

FINLAND: Manner.

FRANCE: Alfred Rosmer.

GEORGIA: Tskhakaya.

GERMANY: Member: Meyer. Candidates: Levi.

GREAT BRITAIN: Quelch.

HOLLAND: Wijnkoop, Jansen.

HUNGARY: Rudniansky.

ITALY: Member: Serrati. Candidates: Cesare.

JAVA: Maring.

LATVIA: Candidate: Stuchka.

NEAR EAST [PERSIA]: Sultan-Zade.

POLAND: Karl Radek.

RUSSIA: Members: N.I. Bukharin, Kobetsky, Karl Radek, Mikhail Tomsky, Grigorii Zinoviev. Candidates: Ian Berzin, V.I. Lenin, Pavlovich, I. Stalin, L.D. Trotsky, Tsiperovich.

SCANDINAVIA [NORWAY]: Friis.

UNITED STATES: John Reed (UCP); Nicholas Hourwich [Gurvich] (CPA).

YUGOSLAVIA: Milkich.

* YOUTH: Shatskin

 

This Executive Committee elected a "Small Bureau” consisting of: Bukharin, Kobetsky, Meyer, Rudniansky, and Zinoviev. This inner circle was later englarged to nine with the addition of Bela Kun (Hungary), Rosmer, Koenen, and Radek.

 

The Third Congress of the Comintern [June 22-Aug. 12, 1921] did not elect its Executive Committee, instead determining that the Russian Party should be allowed 5 delegates, the 4 parties with 40 votes at the conventions should send 2 delegates, and the 14 other parties with more than 20 votes should send one delegate. Other parties were to have a consultative voice on the committee. The President remained Grigorii Zinoviev.

The ECCI was consistuted as follows immediately after the Third Congress:

AUSTRIA: Koritschoner.

BELGIUM: Van Overstraaten.

BULGARIA: Popov. (Replaced by Jordanov).

CZECHOSLOVAKIA: Burian, Kreibich. (Replaced by Neurath and Smeral).

FINLAND: Sirola. (Replaced by Manner and Kuusinen).

FRANCE: Souvarine. (Replaced by LeiciaguŽ and Henriet).

GERMANY: Heckert, Fršlich. (Replaced by Eberlein and Zetkin).

GREAT BRITAIN: Tom Bell.

HOLLAND: Jansen.

ITALY: Terracini. (Replaced by Ambroggi).

LATVIA: Stuchka.

NORWAY: Scheflo.

POLAND: Glinsky. (Replaced by Prukhniak).

ROMANIA: Bodulescu.

RUSSIA: Bukharin, Lenin, Radek, Trotsky, Zinoviev.

SPAIN: Merino-Gracia.

SWEDEN: Kilbom.

SWITZERLAND: Arnold. (Replaced by Humbert-Droz).

UKRAINE: Shumsky.

UNITED STATES: Oscar Tyverovsky ["Baldwin"] (Replaced by Max Bedacht ["Marshall"]; then L.E. Katterfeld ["Carr"]; then James P. Cannon ["Cook"]).

YUGOSLAVIA: Markovich.

* YOUTH: MŸnzenberg, Lekai. (Replaced by SchŸller).

 

Subsequently added to the body were JAPAN: Sen Katayama and PROFINTERN: A. Lozovsky.

 

The Consultative Members of ECCI at the time of the Third Congress included:

ARMENIA: Kassian.

AZERBAIJAN: Mussabekov.

CHINA: Chan.

DENMARK: Jurgensen.

ESTONIA: Pšgelmann.

GEORGIA: Tskhakaya.

GREECE: Dimitros.

ICELAND: Valenius.

INDIA: M.N. Roy.

KOREA: Khananchen.

LITHUANIA: Angareitis.

LUXEMBURG: Jansen.

PERSIA: Sultan-Zade.

SOUTH AFRICA: Johns. (Replaced by Banting).

TURKEY: Salikh.

 

Subsequently added to the consultative members were AUSTRALIA: Earsman and SOUTH AMERICA: Penelon.

 

This Executive Committee elected a 8 member Presidium consisting of: Bukharin (Russia), Gennari (Italy), Heckert (Germany), Humbert-Droz (Switzerland), Kun (Hungary), Radek (Poland), Souvarine (France), and Zinoviev (Russia).

 

The First Enlarged Plenum of ECCI [Feb. 21-March 4, 1922] elected a new 8 member ECCI Presidium consisting of:

Members: Bukharin (Russia), Brandler (Germany), Katterfeld (USA), Kreibich (Czechoslovakia), Radek (Russia), Souvarine (France), Terracini (Italy), and Zinoviev (Russia).

Candidates: Valetsky (Poland) and Kuusinen (Finland).

 


 

The Second Enlarged Plenum of ECCI [June 7-11, 1922] elected a ECCI Presidium consisting of:

Members: N.I. Bukharin (Russia), Brandler (Germany), Gramsci (Italy), Jordanov (Bulgaria), Radek (Russia), Smeral (Czechoslovakia), Souvarine (France), and Zinoviev (Russia).

Additional Members without Votes: Jilek (Czechoslovakia) and LeiciaguŽ (France).

Candidates: James P. Cannon (USA) and Otto Kuusinen (Finland).

 


 

The Fourth Congress of the Comintern [Nov. 5-Dec. 5, 1922] elected the following ECCI, which was nominated as a single list by the Presidium and voted on en bloc:

PRESIDENT: Grigorii Zinoviev (Russia).

AUSTRALIA: Garden.

BALKANS: Member: Vasil Kolarov (Bulgaria), Candidate: Makkavei.

CZECHOSLOVAKIA: Members: Neurath, Smeral. Candidate: Muna.

EASTERN COUNTRIES: Members: Sen Katayama (Japan), Safarov. Candidate: M.N. Roy (India).

FINLAND: Otto Kuusinen.

FRANCE: Members: Frossard, Souvarine. Candidate: Duret.

GERMANY: Members: Hšrnle, Clara Zetkin. Candidate: Bšttcher.

GREAT BRITAIN: Member: McManus. Candidate: Newbold.

ITALY: Members: Gennari, Gramsci. Candidate: Bordiga.

POLAND: Prukhniak.

RUSSIA: Members: N.I. Bukharin, Karl Radek. Candidates: V.I. Lenin, Lev Trotsky.

SCANDINAVIA: Hšglund, Scheflo.

SOUTH AFRICA: Andrews.

SOUTH AMERICA: Stirner.

UNITED STATES: Member: L.E. Katterfeld. Candidate: C.E. Ruthenberg.

* YOUTH: SchŸller, Shatskin.

 

There was a 12 member Presidium, consisting of :

Members: Bukharin (Russia), Gennari (Italy), Katayama (Japan), Kolarov (Bulgaria), Kuusinen (Finland), MacManus (Great Britain), Radek (Russia), Shatskin (Russia?), Smeral (Czechoslovakia), Souvarine (France), Zetkin (Germany), Zinoviev (Russia).

Candidates: Hšrnle (Germany), Gramsci (Italy), Neurath (Czechoslovakia).

 

There was also a 5 member Secretariat, consisting of :

Members: Kolarov (Bulgaria), Kuusinen (Finland), Piatnitsky (Russia), Rakosi (Hungary), and Stoecker (Germany).

 

The Third Enlarged Plenum of ECCI [June 12-23, 1923] elected a 13 member ECCI Presidium consisting of:

Members: N.I. Bukharin (Russia), Sen Katayama (Japan), Vasil Kolarov (Bulgaria), Otto Kuusinen (Finland), Arthur MacManus (Great Britain), Neurath (Czechoslovakia), Karl Radek (Poland), Shatskin (Russia?), Boris Souvarine (France), Terracini (Italy), Clara Zetkin (Germany), Grigorii Zinoviev (Russia) plus one representative of the Scandinavian countries.

 

There was also a 3 member Secretariat with 3 deputy members, consisting of :

Members: Kolarov (Bulgaria), Neurath (Czechoslovakia), Osip Piatnitsky.

Deputies: Brand (country?), Otto Kuusinen (Finland), Matyas Rakosi (Hungary).

 

There is some disagreement about the composition of the Secretariat at this point, with one source giving its make-up as:

 

Sources: Jane Degras (ed.): The Communist International, 1919-1943: Documents. In Three Volumes. (London: Oxford University Press, 1956). v. 1, pp. 453-455.