January 13, 1847 - Sergei Nechayev
His significance lies less in any single act than in the doctrine he left behind — the Revolutionary Catechism, a text arguing that a revolutionary must subordinate all morality, loyalty, and human feeling to the cause. The murder of Ivan Ivanov, a fellow conspirator deemed insufficiently compliant, was carried out as a practical demonstration of those principles. Nechaev's methods repelled even committed radicals of his era, yet his framework for total ideological dedication would echo through revolutionary movements for generations.
From Wikipedia
Sergei Gennadiyevich Nechaev (Russian: Сергей Геннадиевич Нечаев; 2 October [O.S. 20 September] 1847 – 3 December [O.S. 21 November] 1882) was a Russian communist, part of the Russian nihilist movement, known for his single-minded pursuit of revolution by any means necessary, including revolutionary terror.
Nechaev fled Russia in 1869 after having been involved in the murder of a former comrade (Ivan Ivanov), who disagreed with some actions of Nechaevites. Complicated relationships with fellow revolutionaries caused him to be expelled from the International Workingmen's Association. Arrested in Switzerland in 1872, he was extradited back to Russia, where he received a twenty-year sentence and died in prison.
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