10 Political Rivalries That Played Out Like Hollywood Dramas (6 of 6)

Joseph Stalin vs. Leon Trotsky

Few feuds between political rivals ended with such ruthlessness as that of Stalin and Trotsky. After Lenin’s death in 1924, both men vied for control of the Soviet Union. Trotsky was the intellectual architect behind the revolution, but was outmaneuvered by Stalin’s political prowess. Their rivalry defined Soviet politics, as well as demonstrated how power struggles within a revolution can prove dangerous, even fatal.