Lev Zadov
Encyclopedia
Lev Nikolaevich Zadov April 11, 1893 - September 25, 1938, Kiev
was chief of military intelligence of the Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of Ukraine
, later Cheka
operative. Born Lev Zadov, he changed his last name to Zinkovsky.
Veselaya. About 1898-1900 his family fell on hard times and moved to Yuzovka
, where his father found work as a coachman. Lev Zadov graduated Jewish elementary school there and started to work as manual labourer at mill, later at Yuzovka Metallurgical Works.
group before 1912. He participated in several armed robberies (then-popular way for anarchist groups to finance their activities), as well as distributed propaganda pamphlets. He had been arrested and convicted in 1913 for robbery of a post office
and sentenced to 8 years of penal labour
.
in February 1917. He was elected member of the city Soviet in Yuzovka soon after that. Zadov had been instrumental in organizing anarchist paramilitary force in Yuzovka and joined the Red Army
in Spring 1918 with this group. His junior brother Daniel had been member of the force too. Zadov quickly rose through the ranks and became deputy regiment commander. Zadov's regiment fought advancing German Army and Tsentralna Rada
forces, but had been defeated and withdrew toward Tsaritsyn
. Zadov brothers defected the Red Army there and returned to Ukraine to join anarchists.
's guerillas
in August 1918 and quickly became chief of military intelligence of Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of Ukraine. According to numerous eyewitnesses, he was member of Makhno's inner circle and friend of Makhno's wife. Zadov credited with personally saving Makhno's life several times during skirmishes with Red forces. August 28, 1921 Zadov organized escape of remnants of Makhnovist guerilla forces to Romania
. Romanian security services recruited him and his brother in 1924 to join anti-Soviet underground group to be sent to Soviet Union
.
. Worked in OGPU office in Odessa
. Daniel Zadov (Zotov) became OGPU operative in Tiraspol
. Zadov had been instrumental in annihilation of several Anti-Soviet militant groups. He is credited with running one of most successful Soviet intelligence operations against Romania and had been awarded personal gilded weapon for "successful fight against counter-revolution". Zadov brothers were arrested during the Great Purge
in September, 1937 and accused of collaboration with Romanian security services. Trial of Zadov brothers occurred September 25, 1938 and lasted only 15 minutes. Both Lev and Daniel were convicted of "collaboration with foreign secret services". They were executed by firing squad September 25, 1938.
. Vadim Zinkovsky retired from the Soviet Army
a colonel
in 1977.
's "The Road to Calvary" novels as ruthless but cowardly killer, who participates in numerous atrocities against civilians but shies away from battle engagements. Phrases "Hide your teeth or I'll swing them out" and "I'm Leva Zadov, I'll speak and you'll fear" attributed to him by Tolstoy, became part of the Russian slang
. It is proven today that Tolstoy used biased pamphlet published in 1924 in Kiev
for his information on Zadov.
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
was chief of military intelligence of the Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of Ukraine
Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of Ukraine
The Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of Ukraine , popularly called Makhnovshchina, less correctly Makhnovchina, and also known as the Black Army, was an anarchist army formed largely of Ukrainian and Crimean peasants and workers under the command of the famous anarchist Nestor Makhno during the...
, later Cheka
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
operative. Born Lev Zadov, he changed his last name to Zinkovsky.
Early years
Lev Zadov was born in Russian Jewish agricultural colonyJewish agricultural colonies in the Russian Empire
Jewish agricultural colonies in the Russian Empire were first established in Kherson Governorate in 1806. The Ukase of December 9, 1804 allowed Jews for the first time in Russia to purchase land for farming settlements . Jews were provided exemption from military service, tax abatements, and...
Veselaya. About 1898-1900 his family fell on hard times and moved to Yuzovka
Donetsk
Donetsk , is a large city in eastern Ukraine on the Kalmius river. Administratively, it is a center of Donetsk Oblast, while historically, it is the unofficial capital and largest city of the economic and cultural Donets Basin region...
, where his father found work as a coachman. Lev Zadov graduated Jewish elementary school there and started to work as manual labourer at mill, later at Yuzovka Metallurgical Works.
Anarchist underground and penal labour
Lev Zadov joined Yuzovka Metallurgical Works anarchistAnarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
group before 1912. He participated in several armed robberies (then-popular way for anarchist groups to finance their activities), as well as distributed propaganda pamphlets. He had been arrested and convicted in 1913 for robbery of a post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
and sentenced to 8 years of penal labour
Penal labour
Penal labour is a form of unfree labour in which prisoners perform work, typically manual labour. The work may be light or hard, depending on the context. Forms of sentence which involve penal labour include penal servitude and imprisonment with hard labour...
.
From February Revolution to Makhno
Lev Zadov had been released after February RevolutionFebruary Revolution
The February Revolution of 1917 was the first of two revolutions in Russia in 1917. Centered around the then capital Petrograd in March . Its immediate result was the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, the end of the Romanov dynasty, and the end of the Russian Empire...
in February 1917. He was elected member of the city Soviet in Yuzovka soon after that. Zadov had been instrumental in organizing anarchist paramilitary force in Yuzovka and joined the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in Spring 1918 with this group. His junior brother Daniel had been member of the force too. Zadov quickly rose through the ranks and became deputy regiment commander. Zadov's regiment fought advancing German Army and Tsentralna Rada
Tsentralna Rada
The Tsentralna Rada or Central Rada at first was the All-Ukrainian council that united political, public, cultural, professional organizations. Later after the All-Ukrainian National Congress that council became the revolutionary parliament of Ukraine...
forces, but had been defeated and withdrew toward Tsaritsyn
Volgograd
Volgograd , formerly called Tsaritsyn and Stalingrad is an important industrial city and the administrative center of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. It is long, north to south, situated on the western bank of the Volga River...
. Zadov brothers defected the Red Army there and returned to Ukraine to join anarchists.
Makhnovist
Lev Zadov joined Nestor MakhnoNestor Makhno
Nestor Ivanovych Makhno or simply Daddy Makhno was a Ukrainian anarcho-communist guerrilla leader turned army commander who led an independent anarchist army in Ukraine during the Russian Civil War....
's guerillas
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
in August 1918 and quickly became chief of military intelligence of Revolutionary Insurrectionary Army of Ukraine. According to numerous eyewitnesses, he was member of Makhno's inner circle and friend of Makhno's wife. Zadov credited with personally saving Makhno's life several times during skirmishes with Red forces. August 28, 1921 Zadov organized escape of remnants of Makhnovist guerilla forces to Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. Romanian security services recruited him and his brother in 1924 to join anti-Soviet underground group to be sent to 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....
.
OGPU operative
After crossing the Soviet-Romanian border Zadov surrendered to Soviet authorities and joined OGPUKGB
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...
. Worked in OGPU office in Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
. Daniel Zadov (Zotov) became OGPU operative in Tiraspol
Tiraspol
Tiraspol is the second largest city in Moldova and is the capital and administrative centre of the unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic . The city is located on the eastern bank of the Dniester River...
. Zadov had been instrumental in annihilation of several Anti-Soviet militant groups. He is credited with running one of most successful Soviet intelligence operations against Romania and had been awarded personal gilded weapon for "successful fight against counter-revolution". Zadov brothers were arrested during the Great Purge
Great Purge
The Great Purge was a series of campaigns of political repression and persecution in the Soviet Union orchestrated by Joseph Stalin from 1936 to 1938...
in September, 1937 and accused of collaboration with Romanian security services. Trial of Zadov brothers occurred September 25, 1938 and lasted only 15 minutes. Both Lev and Daniel were convicted of "collaboration with foreign secret services". They were executed by firing squad September 25, 1938.
Private life
Lev Zadov married Vera Matvienko in 1925 and had daughter Alla Zinkovskaya (born 1925) and son Vadim Zinkovsky (born 1926). Alla Zinkovskaya volunteered to join Red Army in the beginning of Soviet-German War. She had been killed in 1942 fighting in Sevastopol. Vadim joined the Red Army in 1944 (age 18) and became a commissioned officerOfficer (armed forces)
An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
. Vadim Zinkovsky retired from the Soviet Army
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
a colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
in 1977.
Cultural depiction
Lev Zadov is depicted in Aleksey Nikolayevich TolstoyAleksey Nikolayevich Tolstoy
Aleksey Nikolayevich Tolstoy , nicknamed the Comrade Count, was a Russian and Soviet writer who wrote in many genres but specialized in science fiction and historical novels...
's "The Road to Calvary" novels as ruthless but cowardly killer, who participates in numerous atrocities against civilians but shies away from battle engagements. Phrases "Hide your teeth or I'll swing them out" and "I'm Leva Zadov, I'll speak and you'll fear" attributed to him by Tolstoy, became part of the Russian slang
Slang
Slang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's language or dialect but are considered more acceptable when used socially. Slang is often to be found in areas of the lexicon that refer to things considered taboo...
. It is proven today that Tolstoy used biased pamphlet published in 1924 in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
for his information on Zadov.
External links
- Зиньковский-Задов Лев Николаевич (Russian)
- Лев Яруцкий. Кто, он Лева Задов? (Russian)
- Свинцовая примочка главному "скрипачу" (Russian)