To What Extent Does This Explain Stalin's Rise To Power

‘We underestimated him’. To what extent does this explain Stalin’s rise to power?
Stalin’s rise to power was made easier by the weaknesses of his opponents, particularly through their underestimation of his political skills. However, through the consideration of Lenin’s attitude to Stalin, Trotsky’s personality clashes, Stalin’s alliance with Kamenev and Zinoviev, as well as Bukharin’s passivity, it may be argued that it was Stalin’s own manipulation and shrewdness that secured his position of power. The other members of the Politburo that were mentioned were perhaps too lenient towards Stalin, be it protecting his image or indulging in his accusations, but this speaks more for his manipulative power than for their underestimation – more often than not, it was more beneficial for them to support Stalin than to

One way Stalin was arguably underestimated was through Lenin’s endorsement of Stalin’s positions within the Party. As General Secretary, Stalin had access to over 26000 personal files of Party members, but more importantly, the position gave him the power of patronage, to promote his own supporters. For example, Molotov replaced Kamenev in 1928 as Chairman of Moscow, then purged the local government of Rightist supporters to outvote Bukharin, effectively eliminating Stalin’s opponents. It may be argued that the extensive power that Stalin had over personnel was due to Lenin’s underestimation, as even though he recognised Stalin as “…too rude…”, he did not take action to remove him from his post. Had Lenin truly believed that Stalin was a threat for his position, perhaps he would have limited Stalin’s authority. Alternatively, Stalin had always proved himself to be a loyal Leninist, and his organisation skills were indispensable for a secretary, so while Lenin was alive, it made sense to employ someone of such competence as Stalin in this role. In fact,