The Trial of the Twenty-One, is considered the most famous of the trials because of the people involved. The defendants were considered Bloc of Rightists and Trotskyites. Bukharin and Yagoda were prominent defendants in the trial. By having Yagoda, former head of the NKVD, on trial, it shows how the purge was starting to consume old members of the NKVD and supporters of Stalin. Yagoda pleaded with Stalin to spare his life but Stalin did not listen. Bukharin who was known worldwide as a known Marxist was also a main defendant in the trial. It was a surprise to have Bukharin on trial because he was such a supporter of communism. He was not tortured however, he did confess with the other members of the defendants. All but three were spared and put to prison and the rest were executed. The trail had on the whole been a success for Stalin. With the trials over, Stalin was satisfied with himself because he had basically eliminated all the old Bolshevik leaders except for himself and Trotsky (although he is later assassinated).