Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1924 and of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1924.

Under his administration, Russia, and later the Soviet Union, became a one-party socialist state governed by the Communist Party. Ideologically a Marxist, his development of the ideology is known as Leninism.

Widely considered one of the most significant and influential figures of the 20th century, Lenin was the posthumous subject of a pervasive personality cult within the Soviet Union until its dissolution in 1991. He became an ideological figurehead behind Marxism–Leninism and a prominent influence over the international communist movement. A controversial and highly divisive historical figure, Lenin is viewed by his supporters as a champion of socialism and the working class. Meanwhile, Lenin's critics accuse him of establishing a totalitarian dictatorship which oversaw mass killings and political repression.

Born in Simbirsk, Russian Empire (now Ulyanovsk, Russia), Lenin studied law at Kazan University but was expelled after participating in protests against the Tsarist government. He moved to Saint Petersburg, where he became involved in revolutionary politics. In 1895, he was arrested and exiled to Siberia. He escaped in 1900 and fled to Switzerland, where he met and married Nadezhda Krupskaya.

Lenin returned to Russia in 1905, during the First Russian Revolution. He was arrested and exiled again, but he continued to write and organize revolutionary activity. In 1917, the First World War led to the collapse of the Tsarist government. Lenin returned to Russia and led the Bolshevik Party in the October Revolution, which overthrew the Provisional Government and established the Soviet Union.

Lenin served as the first leader of the Soviet Union. He died in 1924, and was succeeded by Joseph Stalin. Lenin's legacy is still debated today. His supporters praise him as a champion of socialism and the working class, while his critics accuse him of establishing a totalitarian dictatorship.
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