Ash heap of history

The expression ash heap of history (or often dustbin of history) was coined by Leon Trotsky in response to the Mensheviks walking out of the Second Congress of Soviets, on October 25, 1917, thereby enabling the Bolsheviks to establish their dominance. Trotsky declared: "Go out where you belong—into the ash heap of history.

It has since been used in both the direct and the ironic sense in political and nonpolitical contexts.

Later, it was most notably used by Ronald Reagan in a speech to the British House of Commons on June 8th, 1982. This speech, later known simply as "The Evil Empire" is a lasting hallmark of the Reagan presidency. Reagan's speechwriter chose the expression deliberately because of its prior context. His exact phrase was: "... freedom and democracy will leave Marxism and Leninism on the ash heap of history."

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