[Illustration: A few of a party of nineteen ecclesiastics shot at Yuriev on January 1, 1918--amongst them Bishop Platon (1)--before their removal to the anatomical theatre at Yuriev University. [_See p. 118._] THE RED TERROR IN RUSSIA BY SERGEY PETROVICH MELGOUNOV [Illustration] WITH FIFTEEN PHOTOGRAPHS 1925 LONDON & TORONTO J. M. DENT & SONS LTD. The original edition of _The Red Terror in Russia_ from which this book has been translated was published by Messrs. Vataga of Berlin in 1924. _All rights reserved_ PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN TO THE READER Although, for good and sufficient reasons, the translator who has carefully and conscientiously rendered the bulk of this work into English desires to remain anonymous, certain passages in the work have been translated by myself, and the sheets of the manuscript as a whole entrusted to my hands for revision. Hence, if any shortcomings in the rendering should be discerned (as doubtless they will be), they may be ascribed to my fault alone. For the rest, I would ask the reader to remember, when passages in the present tense are met with, that most of this work was written during the years 1923 and 1924. C. J. HOGARTH. PREFACE Sergey Petrovich Melgounov, author of this work, was born on December 25, 1879. The son of the well-known historian of the name, he is also a direct descendant of the Freemason who became prominent during the reign of Catherine the Great.