Download or read book From Stalin to Kim Il Sung written by Andreĭ Nikolaevich Lanʹkov and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 2002 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Andrei Lankov traces the formation of the North Korean state and the early years of Kim Il Sungs rule, when the future "Great Leader" and his entourage were consolidating their power base. Surveying the situation in North Korea after 1945, Lankov explores the internal composition of the ruling elite, the role of the Soviets, and the uneasy relations between various political groups. He also focuses on how in 1956 Kim Il Sung defeated the only known attempt to oust him and thereby established absolute personal rule beyond either Soviet or Chinese control.