Candide Charkviani
Encyclopedia
Candide Charkviani was Georgian
party and government official, First secretary of the Communist Party
of Georgia from 1938-1952. [1]
region of Georgia
, Charkviani graduated from Kutaisi
Gymnasium and Tbilisi
Engineering Institute. He began his career working for several publications, including major Georgian newspapers [1]
Charkviani rose to the position of First Secretary of the Georgian SSR through support of Joseph Stalin
. Yet Charkviani’s promotion was met with strong reluctance from Lavrenti Beria, who had been planning to find a replacement for this position amongst his own protégés. However, Stalin made the choice in favour of the young Charkviani (then 32) [2]
, 12th century Georgian poet. On August 31, 1938 he was elected the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia. He remained in this post until April 1952 [2]
Kikodze is illustrative of the tensions existing between Charkviani and Beria’s people who worked in the Georgian Intelligence Services. He cites an example when, after the Second World War
, supposedly on Beria’s orders, who had a personal grudge against Kikodze, Beria’s protégés in the Georgian NKVD fabricated charges against him accusing him of having links with the Nazi Germany
. Kikodze writes that through the interference of Charkviani, the charges against him were lifted (pp 48–50) [3]
. The original plan supported by Stalin was to build the facility within the boundaries of the capital city Tbilisi. It was on the insistence of Charkviani, who gave priority to environmental considerations, that the plan was altered and eventually, the new town of Rustavi was built along the large scale metallurgical plant [2]. Other projects included the Automobile Plant in Kutaisi (the second largest city in Georgia), man-made water reservoir (“The Tbilisi Sea
”), Tbilisi Subway (Metro) which despite many artificially caused delays was ultimately completed in 1965, as well as dozens of small-scale hydro power stations in various provinces [2].
The complexities of the period were largely due to the Second World War and post-war reconstruction. Charkviani was highly instrumental in organizing the production of weaponry and heavy military equipment (fighter planes, etc.) in Georgia. Throughout World War II Georgia also supplied to the front large amounts of agricultural products. During this period the production increased significantly [2].
As early as 1941 on Charkviani’s initiative after overcoming serious hurdles erected by certain high-ranking Moscow bureaucrats, it became possible to establish Academy of Sciences of Georgia, which later on came to control a few dozen Research Centers [2].
“During his rule Candide Charkviani initiated profound changes that further transformed the Georgian republic altogether,” writes Kikodze (p. 46) and emphasizes the success of Charkviani in reinforcing Georgian national identity: “[Apart from developing the Georgian economy at an unprecedented pace] these changes... contributed to the eradication of old provincial isolation within Georgia and strengthened one common national identity [among Georgians]” (pp. 46–47) [3] (Kikodze, G. (1954, published in 1989), Notes of a Contemporary, Mnatobi, Issue 1, Tbilisi, Georgia).
(1952), a conspiracy aimed against Lavrenti Beria's protégés in Georgia. For years historians erroneously thought that Candide Charkviani was Mingrelian and that he was punished because of his links with Beria. However, the newly opened archives in Georgia provide evidence that Charkviani, who was Lechkhumian (from the Lechkhumi
region of Georgia) and not Mingrelian or Svan, was accused because he allegedly failed to “detect and repress the criminal nationalist ring of counter revolutionaries within the ranks of the Georgian Communist Party” [2]. Moreover, it has emerged that Charkviani’s relations with Beria had never been smooth and that Beria tolerated Charkviani only because the latter was supported by Stalin [1].
As a result of Mingrelian Affair, in April 1952 Charkviani was demoted to a minor position at the Central Committee in Moscow. Immediately following Stalin’s death, all Beria’s clients who suffered during the Mingrelian Affair were restored. Yet Charkviani, on Beria’s orders, was separated from his family and moved to Central Asia where in 1953-1958 he managed a state construction company in Tashkent
. In 1958 he was finally allowed to return to Georgia.
Charkviani is the author of 40 research papers and monographs pertaining to wine-making, development of electrical energy sector and other field of economy. He also translated German poetry into Georgian, including poems by Heinrich Heine
and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
[1].
His complete book of memoirs was published in 2004.
Candide Charkviani was married to Tamar Jaoshvili, an ophthalmologist, for 60 years. They had three sons: Merab, Giorgi and Gela. Today one of his sons Gela Charkviani
is the Georgian ambassador to the United Kingdom
and Ireland
. Candide Charkviani’s grandson is Irakli Charkviani
, an influential Georgian musician and writer.
Georgian people
The Georgians are an ethnic group that have originated in Georgia, where they constitute a majority of the population. Large Georgian communities are also present throughout Russia, European Union, United States, and South America....
party and government official, First secretary of the Communist Party
Georgian Communist party
Georgia was incorporated into the Soviet Union as the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic after 25 February 1921 when the Red Army entered its capital Tbilisi and installed a communist government led by Georgian Bolshevik Filipp Makharadze. After the 1924 August Uprising in Georgia the country was...
of Georgia from 1938-1952. [1]
Early life
Born in Tsageri, LechkhumiLechkhumi
Lechkhumi is a historic province in northwestern Georgia which comprises the area along the middle basin of the Rioni and Tskhenistskali and also the Lajanuri river valley. Now part of the Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti region, it corresponds roughly to the present day Tsageri district as well...
region of Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
, Charkviani graduated from Kutaisi
Kutaisi
Kutaisi is Georgia's second largest city and the capital of the western region of Imereti. It is 221 km to the west of Tbilisi.-Geography:...
Gymnasium and Tbilisi
Tbilisi
Tbilisi is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Mt'k'vari River. The name is derived from an early Georgian form T'pilisi and it was officially known as Tiflis until 1936...
Engineering Institute. He began his career working for several publications, including major Georgian newspapers [1]
Charkviani rose to the position of First Secretary of the Georgian SSR through support of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
. Yet Charkviani’s promotion was met with strong reluctance from Lavrenti Beria, who had been planning to find a replacement for this position amongst his own protégés. However, Stalin made the choice in favour of the young Charkviani (then 32) [2]
Stalin's choice 1937-38
Stalin first learned of Charkviani by reading his articles in the Georgian newspapers. Stalin was appreciative of Charkviani’s literary talent [4] so he encouraged the promotion of the youth. In 1937 Charkviani was appointed Head of the Department of Education and Culture at the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia. In September of the same year he assumed his duties as First Secretary of Georgia's Writer's Union. In this post he made a major contribution to the preparation of an important literary event – the commemoration of the 750th anniversary of the "Knight in the Panther's Skin", a classic poem by Shota RustaveliShota Rustaveli
Shota Rustaveli was a Georgian poet of the 12th century, and one of the greatest contributors to Georgian literature. He is author of "The Knight in the Panther's Skin" , the Georgian national epic poem....
, 12th century Georgian poet. On August 31, 1938 he was elected the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia. He remained in this post until April 1952 [2]
Character
Geronti Kikodze, a prominent 20th century Georgian literary critic and thinker, in his memoirs secretly written in 1954, while providing harsh criticism of the Communist regime and its leaders, distinguishes Candide Charkviani for his humane qualities and strong administrative skills: “Charkviani did not lack compassion, he was not easily convinced by informers, and overall, he was a balanced and modest man. In general, Charkviani was rather rational in handling the affairs of the republic.” (p. 46)[3]Kikodze is illustrative of the tensions existing between Charkviani and Beria’s people who worked in the Georgian Intelligence Services. He cites an example when, after the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, supposedly on Beria’s orders, who had a personal grudge against Kikodze, Beria’s protégés in the Georgian NKVD fabricated charges against him accusing him of having links with the Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. Kikodze writes that through the interference of Charkviani, the charges against him were lifted (pp 48–50) [3]
Georgian achievements 1938-1950
Charkviani presided over the rapid industrialization of Georgia. On his initiative in the post-war years several major projects were implemented despite the resistance on the part of various officials in Moscow bureaucracy. Among them were the Rustavi Metal Works and the town of RustaviRustavi
Rustavi is a city in the southeast of Georgia, in the province of Kvemo Kartli, situated southeast of the capital Tbilisi. It stands on the Mtkvari River at...
. The original plan supported by Stalin was to build the facility within the boundaries of the capital city Tbilisi. It was on the insistence of Charkviani, who gave priority to environmental considerations, that the plan was altered and eventually, the new town of Rustavi was built along the large scale metallurgical plant [2]. Other projects included the Automobile Plant in Kutaisi (the second largest city in Georgia), man-made water reservoir (“The Tbilisi Sea
Tbilisi sea
The Tbilisi sea or Tbilisi reservoir is an artificial lake in the vicinity of Tbilisi that serves as a reservoir. The lake has a length of 8.75 km and a width of 2.85 km. It was opened in 1953 and has become a popular recreation spot. It is planned to develop the Tbilisi sea into a recreational...
”), Tbilisi Subway (Metro) which despite many artificially caused delays was ultimately completed in 1965, as well as dozens of small-scale hydro power stations in various provinces [2].
The complexities of the period were largely due to the Second World War and post-war reconstruction. Charkviani was highly instrumental in organizing the production of weaponry and heavy military equipment (fighter planes, etc.) in Georgia. Throughout World War II Georgia also supplied to the front large amounts of agricultural products. During this period the production increased significantly [2].
As early as 1941 on Charkviani’s initiative after overcoming serious hurdles erected by certain high-ranking Moscow bureaucrats, it became possible to establish Academy of Sciences of Georgia, which later on came to control a few dozen Research Centers [2].
“During his rule Candide Charkviani initiated profound changes that further transformed the Georgian republic altogether,” writes Kikodze (p. 46) and emphasizes the success of Charkviani in reinforcing Georgian national identity: “[Apart from developing the Georgian economy at an unprecedented pace] these changes... contributed to the eradication of old provincial isolation within Georgia and strengthened one common national identity [among Georgians]” (pp. 46–47) [3] (Kikodze, G. (1954, published in 1989), Notes of a Contemporary, Mnatobi, Issue 1, Tbilisi, Georgia).
The Mingrelian Affair and exile 1952-58
Charkviani was accused during the Mingrelian AffairMingrelian Affair
The Mingrelian Affair, or Mingrelian Case was a series of criminal cases fabricated in 1951 and 1952 in order to accuse several members of the Georgian SSR Communist Party of Mingrelian extraction of secession and collaboration with the Western powers....
(1952), a conspiracy aimed against Lavrenti Beria's protégés in Georgia. For years historians erroneously thought that Candide Charkviani was Mingrelian and that he was punished because of his links with Beria. However, the newly opened archives in Georgia provide evidence that Charkviani, who was Lechkhumian (from the Lechkhumi
Lechkhumi
Lechkhumi is a historic province in northwestern Georgia which comprises the area along the middle basin of the Rioni and Tskhenistskali and also the Lajanuri river valley. Now part of the Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti region, it corresponds roughly to the present day Tsageri district as well...
region of Georgia) and not Mingrelian or Svan, was accused because he allegedly failed to “detect and repress the criminal nationalist ring of counter revolutionaries within the ranks of the Georgian Communist Party” [2]. Moreover, it has emerged that Charkviani’s relations with Beria had never been smooth and that Beria tolerated Charkviani only because the latter was supported by Stalin [1].
As a result of Mingrelian Affair, in April 1952 Charkviani was demoted to a minor position at the Central Committee in Moscow. Immediately following Stalin’s death, all Beria’s clients who suffered during the Mingrelian Affair were restored. Yet Charkviani, on Beria’s orders, was separated from his family and moved to Central Asia where in 1953-1958 he managed a state construction company in Tashkent
Tashkent
Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and of the Tashkent Province. The officially registered population of the city in 2008 was about 2.2 million. Unofficial sources estimate the actual population may be as much as 4.45 million.-Early Islamic History:...
. In 1958 he was finally allowed to return to Georgia.
Later years
Back in Tbilisi, Charkviani began his research work at the Institute of Economics and Law. He defended his Candidate and Doctor’s Dissertations and in 1981 was appointed the Director of the Research Institute of People’s Economy and Economic Planning where he worked until 1988 [1]Charkviani is the author of 40 research papers and monographs pertaining to wine-making, development of electrical energy sector and other field of economy. He also translated German poetry into Georgian, including poems by Heinrich Heine
Heinrich Heine
Christian Johann Heinrich Heine was one of the most significant German poets of the 19th century. He was also a journalist, essayist, and literary critic. He is best known outside Germany for his early lyric poetry, which was set to music in the form of Lieder by composers such as Robert Schumann...
and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German writer, pictorial artist, biologist, theoretical physicist, and polymath. He is considered the supreme genius of modern German literature. His works span the fields of poetry, drama, prose, philosophy, and science. His Faust has been called the greatest long...
[1].
His complete book of memoirs was published in 2004.
Candide Charkviani was married to Tamar Jaoshvili, an ophthalmologist, for 60 years. They had three sons: Merab, Giorgi and Gela. Today one of his sons Gela Charkviani
Gela Charkviani
Gela Charkviani is Georgian diplomat, educator and television personality. He is currently the Georgian ambassador to the United Kingdom and Ireland....
is the Georgian ambassador to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Candide Charkviani’s grandson is Irakli Charkviani
Irakli Charkviani
Irakli Charkviani was a Georgian poet, prose writer, and musician, lately known under his pseudonym Mefe...
, an influential Georgian musician and writer.