“Trotsky could have become the number two man in the government, with full official status, but he stubbornly refused the post of Lenin’s deputy. When he decided to fight, to appeal to the “party rank and file”, the train had already left”.Antonov-Ovseenko, Anton (1983). The time of Stalin--portrait of a tyranny. New York : Harper & Row. p. 24. ISBN978-0-06-039027-3.
"Stalin threatened to produce another woman who would swear that she, not Krupskaya, was Lenin's true wife if she dared to publish Lenin's "Last testament". Noonan, Norma C.; Nechemias, Carol R. (September 30, 2001). Encyclopedia of Russian Women's Movements. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 150. ISBN978-0-313-30438-5.