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It's January 27, 1924, on a bitterly cold afternoon in Moscow.

Thousands have flocked to Red Square to pay their respects to Vladimir Lenin, the former leader of the Communist Party and the hero of the Russian

Revolution. As Lenin's coffin is carried toward the Kremlin, mourners crane their necks to

catch a glimpse of the solemn procession. Six men in fur caps and overcoats carry Lenin's

open casket through the snow. Among them is the General Secretary of the Communist Party,

Joseph Stalin. At 44 years old, Stalin is the main contender to succeed Lenin as the leader of the

Soviet Union. It's a job he's coveted since he first joined the revolutionary movement at the age of

just 25. But Stalin faces stiff competition in the struggle for power,

including from his fellow pallbearers,

all Communist Party officials who are hoping to secure the top job.

As the funeral procession enters the Kremlin building,

a vast portrait of the dead leader watches over the congregation.

Stalin feels the ice clinging to his mustache start to melt as they proceed through the

cavernous hall. With a grunt of effort, the pallbearers placed the coffin down onto a marble plinth.

Then Stalin and the other communist officials stand back while Lenin's widow

stepped forward and looks down at the embalmed body of her late husband. As Mrs. Lenin fights to

hold back tears, Stalin glances across the stony faces of the other pallbearers, his rivals in the race

to succeed Lenin. These men appear undivided, united in grief over their

...