Fyodor Kulakov
Encyclopedia
Fyodor Davydovich Kulakov (4 February 1918 in Lgovskiy, Penza Oblast
, Russian SFSR
– 17 July 1978 in Moscow
, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
) was a Soviet
-Russian statesman during the Cold War
.
Kulakov served as Stavropol
First Secretary from 1960 until 1964, immediately following Nikita Khrushchev
's ouster. During his First Secretaryship in Stavropol, Kulakov met Mikhail Gorbachev
; Kulakov would go on to become Gorbachev's mentor, and when he left his Stavropol First Secretaryship to enter national politics, Gorbachev took over his former office. Kulakov was elected to several important seats in the 1960s. In 1971 he was elected to the Political Bureau (Politburo). He would go on to become a leading figure of Soviet leadership, and impressed Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev
to such an extent that commentators believed that Kulakov would become Brezhnev's successor. Such an event never materialised, however, as Kulakov died in 1978, four years before Brezhnev.
family in Penza Oblast
. Like his parents, Kulakov studied and graduated as an agronomist
. In 1938 Kulakov started work in a sugar combine, and attended an Agricultural Institute, from which he graduated in 1941. In 1940 he became a member of the All-Union Communist Party (bolsheviks) and became a leading figure in the local Komsomol
regional committee. Kalukov was later appointed to the position of Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Regional Party Committee of the Penza Oblast. In Penza, Kulakov became a close companion of future Soviet leader Konstantin Chernenko
. He advanced through the Soviet hierarchy quickly and in 1955 he became Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
(RSFSR), eventually being promoted to Minister of Grain Products. In 1960 he was appointed to First Secretary of the Stavropol
Regional Party Committee. During his tenure as Stavropol First Secretary he appointed Mikhail Gorbachev
to the provincial level of the party apparatus—a promotion which would prove to be crucial. In 1964 he left his office in Stavropol to pursue national politics; Gorbachev took over his former office as First Secretary. Throughout his tenure in Moscow
, Kulakov remained a loyal client of Mikhail Suslov
.
In 1964 Kulakov was brought to Moscow to become the Head of the Agricultural Department of the Central Committee
(CC). Eleven months later, Kulakov was appointed to the post of Central Committee Secretary for Agriculture. He was elected to the Central Committee in 1964, and to a seat in the Secretariat in September 1965. Gorbachev would often consult with Kulakov, as their closeness helped Gorbachev establish friendly relations with KGB
chairman Yuri Andropov
. At the 24th Party Congress Kulakov became a Political Bureau (Politburo) member without serving a term as candidate member. It is believed that Kulakov greatly impressed Leonid Brezhnev
due to his achievements in agriculture
and politics. Three other young Politburo members, Volodymyr Shcherbytsky
, Alexander Shelepin
and Dmitry Polyansky
, were all believed to have a future in the Council of Ministers, while First World
commentators speculated that Kulakov's future was more in line with political and executive work at the top level of leadership. Kulakov was one of four who had a seat in both the Secretariat and Politburo; the others were Brezhnev, Suslov, and Andrei Kirilenko
. In his later years, Kulakov had become one of Kirilenko's "counterweights" in the Central Committee.
While Brezhnev never had a clear heir apparent, Kulakov was seen as a likely successor due to his age. His most notable competitors, Kirilenko and Suslov, were older than Brezhnev and therefore not seen as likely candidates. Despite this widespread belief, in the prestige order voted by the Supreme Soviet in 1975, Kulakov was ranked seventh. During the latter part of his life, Kulakov's relations with Brezhnev, Chernenko, and other leading officials seemed to have shifted in tone, leading Kulakov to be excluded from the 1978 Central Committee plenum on Agriculture. It has been presumed that Kulakov had shifted his allegiance from Chernenko's faction to that of Kirilenko and Andropov. Another incident was that Kulakov had argued with Gorbachev before his death.
. Anonymous sources state that Andropov may have had been involved in the deaths of Kulakov in 1978, and Pyotr Masherov
in 1980. According to Fyodor Morgun, a politician of Soviet
and Ukrainian descent, Kulakov seemed worried just days before his death. Some believe that Kulakov may have committed suicide. According to Mikhail Gorbachev, no members of the Politburo cancelled or interrupted their holidays when hearing the news of Kulakov's death. His successor to the office of Secretary for Agriculture was his former protégé, Gorbachev. Kulakov was buried at the Kremlin Wall Necropolis
. While all Politburo members were obliged by protocol to attend a fellow Politburo member's funeral, none of those who had allegiance to Chernenko and Brezhnev did so. Those who had sworn allegiance to Kirilenko and Andropov were present, including such prominent figures as Arvīds Pelše
, Kirill Mazurov
, Andrei Gromyko
, and Dmitriy Ustinov
. Kirilenko served as the funeral's chief eulogist.
Penza Oblast
-External links:* *...
, Russian SFSR
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
– 17 July 1978 in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
) was a Soviet
Soviet people
Soviet people or Soviet nation was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union. Initially used as a nonspecific reference to the Soviet population, it was eventually declared to be a "new historical, social and international unity of people".-Nationality politics in early Soviet...
-Russian statesman during the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
Kulakov served as Stavropol
Stavropol Krai
Stavropol Krai is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Stavropol. Population: -Geography:Stavropol Krai encompasses the central part of the Fore-Caucasus and most of the northern slopes of Caucasus Major...
First Secretary from 1960 until 1964, immediately following Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
's ouster. During his First Secretaryship in Stavropol, Kulakov met Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
; Kulakov would go on to become Gorbachev's mentor, and when he left his Stavropol First Secretaryship to enter national politics, Gorbachev took over his former office. Kulakov was elected to several important seats in the 1960s. In 1971 he was elected to the Political Bureau (Politburo). He would go on to become a leading figure of Soviet leadership, and impressed Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev – 10 November 1982) was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , presiding over the country from 1964 until his death in 1982. His eighteen-year term as General Secretary was second only to that of Joseph Stalin in...
to such an extent that commentators believed that Kulakov would become Brezhnev's successor. Such an event never materialised, however, as Kulakov died in 1978, four years before Brezhnev.
Career
Kulakov was born in 1918 to a peasantPeasant
A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...
family in Penza Oblast
Penza Oblast
-External links:* *...
. Like his parents, Kulakov studied and graduated as an agronomist
Agronomist
An agronomist is a scientist who specializes in agronomy, which is the science of utilizing plants for food, fuel, feed, and fiber. An agronomist is an expert in agricultural and allied sciences, with the exception veterinary sciences.Agronomists deal with interactions between plants, soils, and...
. In 1938 Kulakov started work in a sugar combine, and attended an Agricultural Institute, from which he graduated in 1941. In 1940 he became a member of the All-Union Communist Party (bolsheviks) and became a leading figure in the local Komsomol
Komsomol
The Communist Union of Youth , usually known as Komsomol , was the youth division of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The Komsomol in its earliest form was established in urban centers in 1918. During the early years, it was a Russian organization, known as the Russian Communist Union of...
regional committee. Kalukov was later appointed to the position of Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Regional Party Committee of the Penza Oblast. In Penza, Kulakov became a close companion of future Soviet leader Konstantin Chernenko
Konstantin Chernenko
Konstantin Ustinovich Chernenko was a Soviet politician and the fifth General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. He led the Soviet Union from 13 February 1984 until his death thirteen months later, on 10 March 1985...
. He advanced through the Soviet hierarchy quickly and in 1955 he became Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
(RSFSR), eventually being promoted to Minister of Grain Products. In 1960 he was appointed to First Secretary of the Stavropol
Stavropol Krai
Stavropol Krai is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Stavropol. Population: -Geography:Stavropol Krai encompasses the central part of the Fore-Caucasus and most of the northern slopes of Caucasus Major...
Regional Party Committee. During his tenure as Stavropol First Secretary he appointed Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
to the provincial level of the party apparatus—a promotion which would prove to be crucial. In 1964 he left his office in Stavropol to pursue national politics; Gorbachev took over his former office as First Secretary. Throughout his tenure in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, Kulakov remained a loyal client of Mikhail Suslov
Mikhail Suslov
Mikhail Andreyevich Suslov was a Soviet statesman during the Cold War. He served as Second Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1965, and as unofficial Chief Ideologue of the Party until his death in 1982. Suslov was responsible for party democracy and the separation of power...
.
In 1964 Kulakov was brought to Moscow to become the Head of the Agricultural Department of the Central Committee
Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , abbreviated in Russian as ЦК, "Tse-ka", earlier was also called as the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party ...
(CC). Eleven months later, Kulakov was appointed to the post of Central Committee Secretary for Agriculture. He was elected to the Central Committee in 1964, and to a seat in the Secretariat in September 1965. Gorbachev would often consult with Kulakov, as their closeness helped Gorbachev establish friendly relations with KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
chairman Yuri Andropov
Yuri Andropov
Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov was a Soviet politician and the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 12 November 1982 until his death fifteen months later.-Early life:...
. At the 24th Party Congress Kulakov became a Political Bureau (Politburo) member without serving a term as candidate member. It is believed that Kulakov greatly impressed Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev – 10 November 1982) was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , presiding over the country from 1964 until his death in 1982. His eighteen-year term as General Secretary was second only to that of Joseph Stalin in...
due to his achievements in agriculture
Agriculture of the Soviet Union
Agriculture in the Soviet Union was organized into a system of state and collective farms, known as sovkhozes and kolkhozes, respectively. Organized on a large scale and relatively highly mechanized, the Soviet Union was one of the world's leading producers of cereals, although bad harvests ...
and politics. Three other young Politburo members, Volodymyr Shcherbytsky
Volodymyr Shcherbytsky
Volodymyr Vasylyovych Shcherbytsky was a Ukrainian and Soviet politician. He was a leader of the Communist Party of Ukraine from 1972 to 1989....
, Alexander Shelepin
Alexander Shelepin
Alexander Nikolayevich Shelepin was a Soviet state security officer and party statesman. He was a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and its Politburo and was the head of the KGB from 25 December 1958 to 13 November 1961.Shelepin was born in Voronezh...
and Dmitry Polyansky
Dmitry Polyansky
Note: There is also a Russian triathlete with the same name, transliterated also as Dmitry Polyanski.Dmitry Stepanovich Polyansky , – Moscow, 8 October 2001) was a Soviet-Russian statesman who was First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union from 1965 to 1973...
, were all believed to have a future in the Council of Ministers, while First World
First World
The concept of the First World first originated during the Cold War, where it was used to describe countries that were aligned with the United States. These countries were democratic and capitalistic. After the fall of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, the term "First World" took on a...
commentators speculated that Kulakov's future was more in line with political and executive work at the top level of leadership. Kulakov was one of four who had a seat in both the Secretariat and Politburo; the others were Brezhnev, Suslov, and Andrei Kirilenko
Andrei Kirilenko (politician)
Andrei Pavlovich Kirilenko was a Soviet statesman from the start to the end of the Cold War. In 1906, Kirilenko was born in Alexeyevka, Belgorod Oblast, Russian Empire, to a Russian working class family. He graduated in the 1920s from a local vocational school, and again in the mid-to-late 1930s...
. In his later years, Kulakov had become one of Kirilenko's "counterweights" in the Central Committee.
While Brezhnev never had a clear heir apparent, Kulakov was seen as a likely successor due to his age. His most notable competitors, Kirilenko and Suslov, were older than Brezhnev and therefore not seen as likely candidates. Despite this widespread belief, in the prestige order voted by the Supreme Soviet in 1975, Kulakov was ranked seventh. During the latter part of his life, Kulakov's relations with Brezhnev, Chernenko, and other leading officials seemed to have shifted in tone, leading Kulakov to be excluded from the 1978 Central Committee plenum on Agriculture. It has been presumed that Kulakov had shifted his allegiance from Chernenko's faction to that of Kirilenko and Andropov. Another incident was that Kulakov had argued with Gorbachev before his death.
Death
The most commonly assumed cause of Kulakov's death is natural causes, but there exist other theories as well. During Brezhnev's later term, according to some, Brezhnev was living in fear of Yuri AndropovYuri Andropov
Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov was a Soviet politician and the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 12 November 1982 until his death fifteen months later.-Early life:...
. Anonymous sources state that Andropov may have had been involved in the deaths of Kulakov in 1978, and Pyotr Masherov
Pyotr Masherov
Pyotr Mironovich Masherov , - October 4, 1980) was the first secretary of Belarusian committee of the Communist Party of Soviet Union and a communist leader of Soviet Belarus.- Overview :...
in 1980. According to Fyodor Morgun, a politician of Soviet
Soviet people
Soviet people or Soviet nation was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union. Initially used as a nonspecific reference to the Soviet population, it was eventually declared to be a "new historical, social and international unity of people".-Nationality politics in early Soviet...
and Ukrainian descent, Kulakov seemed worried just days before his death. Some believe that Kulakov may have committed suicide. According to Mikhail Gorbachev, no members of the Politburo cancelled or interrupted their holidays when hearing the news of Kulakov's death. His successor to the office of Secretary for Agriculture was his former protégé, Gorbachev. Kulakov was buried at the Kremlin Wall Necropolis
Kremlin Wall Necropolis
Burials in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis in Moscow began in November 1917, when 240 pro-Bolshevik victims of the October Revolution were buried in mass graves on Red Square. It is centered on both sides of Lenin's Mausoleum, initially built in wood in 1924 and rebuilt in granite in 1929–1930...
. While all Politburo members were obliged by protocol to attend a fellow Politburo member's funeral, none of those who had allegiance to Chernenko and Brezhnev did so. Those who had sworn allegiance to Kirilenko and Andropov were present, including such prominent figures as Arvīds Pelše
Arvids Pelše
Arvīds Pelše ; , Iecava, Bauska District, Latvia – May 29, 1983, Moscow) was a politician and functionary in the Soviet Union, an historian in his profession- Career :...
, Kirill Mazurov
Kirill Mazurov
Kirill Trofimovich Mazurov was a Belarusian Soviet politician.-Political career:...
, Andrei Gromyko
Andrei Gromyko
Andrei Andreyevich Gromyko was a Soviet statesman during the Cold War. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet . Gromyko was responsible for many top decisions on Soviet foreign policy until he retired in 1987. In the West he was given the...
, and Dmitriy Ustinov
Dmitriy Ustinov
Dmitriy Feodorovich Ustinov was Minister of Defense of the Soviet Union from 1976 until his death.-Early life:Dimitry Feodorovich Ustinov was born in a working-class family in Samara. During the civil war, when hunger became intolerable, his sick father went to Samarkand, leaving Dimitry as head...
. Kirilenko served as the funeral's chief eulogist.
External links
- Kulakov, Fyodor Davidovich (in Russian)