Leon Trotsky (/ˈtrɒtski/; Russian: Лев Дави́дович Тро́цкий; pronounced [ˈlʲɛf ˈtrotskʲɪj]; born Lev Davidovich Bronshtein; 7 November [O.S. 26 October] 1879 – 21 August 1940) was a Marxist revolutionary and theorist, Soviet politician, and the founder and first leader of the Red Army.Trotsky initially supported the Menshevik Internationalists faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party.