Nikolai Podgorny
Encyclopedia
Nikolai Viktorovich Podgorny ( – 12 January 1983) was a Soviet
Ukrainian statesman during the Cold War
. He served as First Secretary of the Central Committee
of the Communist Party of Ukraine, or leader of the Ukrainian SSR
, from 1957 to 1963 and as Chairman of the Presidium
of the Supreme Soviet from 1965 to 1977. He was replaced as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet in 1977 by General Secretary
Leonid Brezhnev
. That same year he lost his seat in the Political Bureau (Politburo) and was forced to resign from active politics.
Podgorny was born in the city of Karlovka in 1903 to a Ukrainian working class
family. He graduated in from a local worker's school in 1926, and in 1931 from the Kiev Technological Institute of Food Industry. He became a member of the All-Union Communist Party (bolsheviks) in 1930. Podgorny climbed up the Soviet hierarchy through the industrial ladder; by 1953 he had become Second Secretary of the Communist Party of Ukraine. After Anastas Mikoyan
's resignation, Podgorny was voted into office as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. After Premier Alexei Kosygin's fall from favour Podgorny became the second most powerful figure in the Soviet Union until his removal as head of state in 1977.
, Russian Empire
to a Ukrainian working-class family. Podgorny started work at the age of 17 as a student at the mechanical workshops in Karlovka. After the Russian Revolution Podgorny became one of the founders of the Karlovka Komsomol
. He served as a Secretary of the Komsomol from 1921 to 1923. In 1926 Podgorny graduated from a local workers' school, and graduated from the Kiev Technological Institute of Food Industry in 1931. In 1930, Podgorny became a member of the All-Union Communist Party (bolsheviks). Following his graduation Podgorny started working in the sugar industry. He was promoted to Deputy Chief Engineer of Vinnytsia
in 1937 and was promoted in 1939 as the Chief Engineer of the Kamenetz-Podolsk Oblast
sugar trusts. By the end of 1939 Podgorny had become Deputy People's Commissar for Food Industry of the Ukrainian SSR. The next year Podgorny was appointed Deputy People's Commissar for Food Industry of the Soviet Union
.
(World War II). After the liberation of Ukraine
from the hands of Nazi Germany
, Podgorny reestablished Soviet control over Ukraine on the orders of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (Ukrainian SSR) and the Soviet Government. In the post-war years Podgorny regained his old office of Deputy People's Commissar for Food Industry of the Ukrainian SSR, but was later appointed in 1946 as a Permanent Representative to the Council of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR. In April 1950 he was made First Secretary of the Kharkiv Regional Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine
(CPU). In 1953 Podgorny was elevated to Second Secretary of the Central Committee
(CC) of the CPU. From 1957–63 he was First Secretary of the CC of the CPU. In this role, Podgorny worked on reorganising and modernising the Ukrainian economy, which had been destroyed during the war years. He worked to increase the rate of industrial and agricultural production and to improve people's welfare. He paid particular attention to improving party organisation and educating new cadres.
In 1960 Podgorny became a member of the Politburo (Political Bureau) and by 1963 had risen to prominence within the Soviet hierarchy as a member of the Secretariat of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). As a protégé and close companion of Nikita Khrushchev
, he travelled with him to United Nations headquarters
in 1960. He acted as a Soviet emissary to Czechoslovkia, East Germany, Canada
, and Yugoslavia
. Podgorny's beliefs were strongly influenced by Khrushchev, and under Leonid Brezhnev
's rule, Podgorny was one of the most liberal members within the Soviet leadership, even more liberal than Premier Alexei Kosygin.
Podgorny briefly fell out of Khruschev's favor in 1961 when he blamed bad corn yields in the Ukrainian SSR on "bad weather". Khrushchev claimed the crops had been "stolen" and "pilfered". However, in 1962, Podgorny reported to Khrushchev that agricultural output had again increased: Under Podgorny's leadership, the Ukrainian SSR had doubled Ukraine's supply of grain to the state from the previous year. Because of his handling of agriculture, First World
commentators saw Podgorny as one of Khrushchev's many potential heirs. According to historian Ilya Zemtsov, the author of Chernenko: The Last Bolshevik: The Soviet Union on the Eve of Perestroika, Brezhnev began starting a conspiracy against Khrushchev when he found out that he had chosen Podgorny, and not himself, as his potential successor. The coup took Podgorny evidently by surprised, seeing that he left Moscow
on 10 October, two days before the coup was initiated.
and Premier, Podgorny and Brezhnev appealed to the Central Committee, blaming Khrushchev for economic failures and accusing him of voluntarism and immodest behavior. Influenced by Brezhnev and his allies, Politburo
members voted to remove Khrushchev from office. In the aftermath of Khrushchev's removal, a collective leadership
was formed, headed by Brezhnev as First Secretary, Alexei Kosygin as head of government
, and Anastas Mikoyan
as head of state
. Before becoming head of state, Podgorny served as the party's Second Secretary, and was therefore in charge of the Party's Organisational Division. In this capacity, Podgorny threatened Brezhnev's position as First Secretary because the Organisational Division, if Podgorny chose so, could easily be turned into his own power base within the party. Brezhnev allied himself with Alexander Shelepin
, the KGB chairman, to oppose both Podgorny and Kosygin.
Podgorny's position was constantly threatened by Brezhnev and his allies. In an article in Ekonomicheskaya Gazeta from February 1965, the newspaper criticised the Kharkiv
Party organisation which Podgorny had previously headed, but also its management of the economy. By indirectly criticising Podgorny, the article raised doubts about his qualifications as a leading member of the Soviet leadership. Podgorny launched a counterattack in his 1965 speech in Baku
, Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic, were he criticised the Soviet leadership's heavy industrial policy
. This, as it turned out, would be a move he would regret for life. Instead of offending just Brezhnev and Shelepin, he offended the whole conservative wing of the leadership. To make matters even worse for Podgorny, Mikhail Suslov
, who had kept outside of the conflict, sided with Brezhnev, and called his views "revisionist". Later in 1965, Podgorny lost his seat in the Secretariat, and on 9 December 1965 he replaced Mikoyan as Chairman of the Presidium
of the Supreme Soviet. His removal from the Secretariat also signalled the end of his wish to assume the First Secretaryship.
The majority of Politburo members under Brezhnev were conservative communists
. Even so, Podgorny remained one of the most liberal-minded members in the Era of Stagnation. Other liberal-minded Politburo members included Kosygin and Andrei Kirilenko
. Factionalism within the Soviet leadership in the 1960s led Podgorny to become more active; he held several speeches in Moscow
and went on numerous state visit
s at the expense of Brezhnev and Kosygin's popularity. There was speculation in Soviet society that Podgorny was trying to replace Kosygin as Premier, or even Brezhnev as General Secretary, due to his increasing presence in the late 1960s. The 24th Party Congress, while reaffirming Brezhnev's and Kosygin's respective positions, made it clear that Podgorny had become a major player in Soviet politics. The collective leadership was eventually left powerless in the late 1970s when Brezhnev had close to full control over the Politburo.
, Podgorny delivered an intelligence report to Egypt
ian Vice President Anwar Sadat
which claimed, falsely, that Israel
i troops were massing along the Syria
n border. That same year, he engaged in a dialogue with Pope Paul VI as part of the pontiff's ostpolitik
; the result was greater openness for the Roman Catholic Church
in Eastern Europe
. In 1971 Podgorny went on two state visits, the first to the People's Republic of China
(PRC) and the second to North Vietnam
; Kosygin went on a visit to Canada
while Brezhnev visited Yugoslavia
. Podgorny frequently paid visits to North Vietnam during the Vietnam War
to discuss Soviet-Vietnamese foreign relations. In 1973, Podgorny visited Finland
and Mohammed Daoud Khan
's Afghanistan
.
Brezhnev conspired to oust Podgorny as early as 1970. The reason was simple: Brezhnev was third, while Podgorny was first in the ranking of Soviet diplomatic protocol. Since September 1970 Brezhnev tried to form an opposition in the Politburo to oust Podgorny. According to Time
, "There was some speculation in Moscow" that if Brezhnev didn't succeed in removing Podgorny he would establish a Council of State modelled after institutions found in, for example, East Germany, People's Republic of Bulgaria and the Socialist Republic of Romania
. The post of Chairman of the Council of State would give Brezhnev the top state and party job in the USSR. Brezhnev's backers were unable, and didn't even try, to remove Podgorny from the head of state post at the 1970 Central Committee plenum. Brezhnev could count on only five votes, while another seven Politburo members were opposed to granting Brezhnev more power; removing Podgorny would in fact mean the end of the collective leadership.
While Brezhnev was plotting, Podgorny's position within the Politburo grew stronger. Podgorny had been able to win support from the hardline communists due to Brezhnev's liberal-minded policy regarding Yugoslavia, military disarmament deals with the First World
, and forcing East Germany into a concession with West Germany
in the Berlin negotiations
.
and Petro Shelest
. Podgorny was constantly in conflict with Kosygin over policy issues in the Politburo. When Podgorny and Kosygin actually agreed on something Brezhnev would find himself in the minority, and forced to follow their decisions. However, Podgorny was pleased about his position within the leadership, and even more pleased by the extension of powers given to the Supreme Soviet. As head of state, Podgorny saw little threat to his position, even if a Central Committee resolution from 1971 had called for the expansion of Party activities in Soviets
.
With Brezhnev's position consolidated in the early 1970s, Brezhnev used Podgorny to weaken Kosygin's position as Chairman
of the Council of Ministers by giving the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
some executive powers. With the help from Brezhnev Podgorny managed to make the Council of Ministers subordinate to the Presidium. However, these changes threatened Brezhnev, and Brezhnev would later order Konstantin Chernenko
to take a look at the 1936 Soviet Constitution
to find a way to weaken Podgorny's position. As it turned out there were none, Podgorny's position as head of state meant that he could in fact block any measures taken by Brezhnev to circumscribe his powers. Chernenko did come up with a solution, to make it law that the Party leader would also become the leader of the Government apparatus. The 1977 Soviet Constitution
was drafted to weaken the position of Podgorny by making it law that the Party leader was in fact also leader of the Government. The draft which delt with the leading role of the Party, and it's clear supremacy, in Soviet society was approved by the Soviet leadership. The approval of the 1977 Soviet Constitution is considered Podgorny's death kneel.
. According to Robert Vincent Daniels, Podgorny was before his removal the second most powerful man in the Soviet Union, behind Brezhnev but ahead of Premier Kosygin. The post of Chairman of the Presidium had acquired more powers during his tenure, and had changed from a largely honourary office to the second most important office in the USSR. Though there were some Sovietologists who foresaw Podgorny's fall, the decision to remove Podgorny from the Politburo took the world by surprise. A unanimous vote was taken by the Central Committee after Grigory Romanov
proposed removing Podgorny from the Politburo. The vote seemed to have taken Podgorny by surprise, and immediately after the vote, he got up from his politburo seat to instead sit with the ordinary members. The Central Committee had however voted him off the Politburo, and Podgorny still retained his seat as Chairman. After his removal from the Politburo Podgorny's name disappeared from Soviet media. The Soviet media told the Soviet people that Podgorny retired due to his stance against détente
and producing more consumer goods
. Podgorny lost his Chairmanship of the Presidium on 16 June 1977.
Due to his advanced age, Brezhnev was regarded as too old to carry out some of the functions of head of state. The Supreme Soviet, on Brezhnev's orders, established the new post of First Deputy Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, an office equivalent to the First World post of Vice President. Vasili Kuznetsov, at the age of 76, was unanimously approved by the Supreme Soviet as First Deputy Chairman of the Presidium.
, the President of Finland
. There was never any explanation given, nor a denunciation of him, by the Soviet authorities. Podgorny retained his seat in the Supreme Soviet after his downfall. He was seen at the 61st anniversary reception of the October Revolution
at the Grand Palace of the Kremlin in November 1978 by Tokichiro Uomoto, the Japanese Ambassador to the Soviet Union. Podgorniy spoke to Brezhnev, Kosygin, and then to Andrei Gromyko
all of whom looked embarrassed by the presence of Podgorny, according to Uomoto. Soon after this incident, Podgorny lost his seat in the Supreme Soviet. In Tretyakov Gallery
, Podgorny was removed from the 1977 painting of the Soviet leaders at the Red Square by Dimitri Nalbanjan in which Podgorny stood between Brezhnev and Kosygin. Podgorny died of cancer on 12 January 1983, and was buried in Moscow at the Novodevichy cemetery
.
As with many other high-standing Soviet officials, Podgorny was honoured with several awards. He was awarded five Orders of Lenin, one Order of the Red Banner
and several medals, as well as being awarded several foreign state prizes by the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the Mongolian People's Republic, the Socialist Republic of Czechoslovakia, and Finland
.
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...
Ukrainian 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...
. He served as First Secretary of the Central Committee
Central Committee
Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the...
of the Communist Party of Ukraine, or leader of the Ukrainian SSR
Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic or in short, the Ukrainian SSR was a sovereign Soviet Socialist state and one of the fifteen constituent republics of the Soviet Union lasting from its inception in 1922 to the breakup in 1991...
, from 1957 to 1963 and as Chairman of the Presidium
Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet was a Soviet governmental institution – a permanent body of the Supreme Soviets . This body was of the all-Union level , as well as in all Soviet republics and autonomous republics...
of the Supreme Soviet from 1965 to 1977. He was replaced as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet in 1977 by General Secretary
General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the title given to the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. With some exceptions, the office was synonymous with leader of the Soviet Union...
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...
. That same year he lost his seat in the Political Bureau (Politburo) and was forced to resign from active politics.
Podgorny was born in the city of Karlovka in 1903 to a Ukrainian working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
family. He graduated in from a local worker's school in 1926, and in 1931 from the Kiev Technological Institute of Food Industry. He became a member of the All-Union Communist Party (bolsheviks) in 1930. Podgorny climbed up the Soviet hierarchy through the industrial ladder; by 1953 he had become Second Secretary of the Communist Party of Ukraine. After Anastas Mikoyan
Anastas Mikoyan
Anastas Ivanovich Mikoyan was an Armenian Old Bolshevik and Soviet statesman during the rules of Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Nikita Khrushchev, and Leonid Brezhnev....
's resignation, Podgorny was voted into office as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. After Premier Alexei Kosygin's fall from favour Podgorny became the second most powerful figure in the Soviet Union until his removal as head of state in 1977.
Early life
Podgorny was born on in KarlovkaKarlivka
Karlivka is a city in Poltava Oblast, Ukraine. Population is 17,995 . Until the 1950s the city was known as Karlovka.-See Also:* Karlivka...
, Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
to a Ukrainian working-class family. Podgorny started work at the age of 17 as a student at the mechanical workshops in Karlovka. After the Russian Revolution Podgorny became one of the founders of the Karlovka 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...
. He served as a Secretary of the Komsomol from 1921 to 1923. In 1926 Podgorny graduated from a local workers' school, and graduated from the Kiev Technological Institute of Food Industry in 1931. In 1930, Podgorny became a member of the All-Union Communist Party (bolsheviks). Following his graduation Podgorny started working in the sugar industry. He was promoted to Deputy Chief Engineer of Vinnytsia
Vinnytsia
Vinnytsia is a city located on the banks of the Southern Bug, in central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Vinnytsia Oblast.-Names:...
in 1937 and was promoted in 1939 as the Chief Engineer of the Kamenetz-Podolsk Oblast
Khmelnytskyi Oblast
Khmelnytskyi Oblast is an oblast of western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Khmelnytskyi.The current estimated population is around 1,401,140 .-Geography:...
sugar trusts. By the end of 1939 Podgorny had become Deputy People's Commissar for Food Industry of the Ukrainian SSR. The next year Podgorny was appointed Deputy People's Commissar for Food Industry of the 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....
.
Ukraine and national politics (1942–1963)
Podgorny became the Director of the Moscow Technological Institute of Food Industry in 1942, during the Great Patriotic WarEastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
(World War II). After the liberation of Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
from the hands of 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...
, Podgorny reestablished Soviet control over Ukraine on the orders of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (Ukrainian SSR) and the Soviet Government. In the post-war years Podgorny regained his old office of Deputy People's Commissar for Food Industry of the Ukrainian SSR, but was later appointed in 1946 as a Permanent Representative to the Council of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR. In April 1950 he was made First Secretary of the Kharkiv Regional Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine
Communist Party of Ukraine
The Communist Party of Ukraine is a political party in Ukraine, currently led by Petro Symonenko.The party fights the Ukrainian national self-determination by identifying any Ukrainian national parties as the National-Fascist ones The Communist Party of Ukraine is a political party in Ukraine,...
(CPU). In 1953 Podgorny was elevated to Second Secretary of the Central Committee
Central Committee
Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the...
(CC) of the CPU. From 1957–63 he was First Secretary of the CC of the CPU. In this role, Podgorny worked on reorganising and modernising the Ukrainian economy, which had been destroyed during the war years. He worked to increase the rate of industrial and agricultural production and to improve people's welfare. He paid particular attention to improving party organisation and educating new cadres.
In 1960 Podgorny became a member of the Politburo (Political Bureau) and by 1963 had risen to prominence within the Soviet hierarchy as a member of the Secretariat of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). As a protégé and close companion of 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...
, he travelled with him to United Nations headquarters
United Nations headquarters
The headquarters of the United Nations is a complex in New York City. The complex has served as the official headquarters of the United Nations since its completion in 1952. It is located in the Turtle Bay neighborhood of Manhattan, on spacious grounds overlooking the East River...
in 1960. He acted as a Soviet emissary to Czechoslovkia, East Germany, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
. Podgorny's beliefs were strongly influenced by Khrushchev, and under 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...
's rule, Podgorny was one of the most liberal members within the Soviet leadership, even more liberal than Premier Alexei Kosygin.
Podgorny briefly fell out of Khruschev's favor in 1961 when he blamed bad corn yields in the Ukrainian SSR on "bad weather". Khrushchev claimed the crops had been "stolen" and "pilfered". However, in 1962, Podgorny reported to Khrushchev that agricultural output had again increased: Under Podgorny's leadership, the Ukrainian SSR had doubled Ukraine's supply of grain to the state from the previous year. Because of his handling of agriculture, 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 saw Podgorny as one of Khrushchev's many potential heirs. According to historian Ilya Zemtsov, the author of Chernenko: The Last Bolshevik: The Soviet Union on the Eve of Perestroika, Brezhnev began starting a conspiracy against Khrushchev when he found out that he had chosen Podgorny, and not himself, as his potential successor. The coup took Podgorny evidently by surprised, seeing that he left 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...
on 10 October, two days before the coup was initiated.
Appointment and the collective leadership
During the 1964 ouster to remove Khrushchev as First SecretaryGeneral Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the title given to the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. With some exceptions, the office was synonymous with leader of the Soviet Union...
and Premier, Podgorny and Brezhnev appealed to the Central Committee, blaming Khrushchev for economic failures and accusing him of voluntarism and immodest behavior. Influenced by Brezhnev and his allies, Politburo
Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Politburo , known as the Presidium from 1952 to 1966, functioned as the central policymaking and governing body of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.-Duties and responsibilities:The...
members voted to remove Khrushchev from office. In the aftermath of Khrushchev's removal, a collective leadership
Collective leadership
Collective leadership or Collectivity of leadership , was considered an ideal form of governance in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics...
was formed, headed by Brezhnev as First Secretary, Alexei Kosygin as head of government
Head of government
Head of government is the chief officer of the executive branch of a government, often presiding over a cabinet. In a parliamentary system, the head of government is often styled prime minister, chief minister, premier, etc...
, and Anastas Mikoyan
Anastas Mikoyan
Anastas Ivanovich Mikoyan was an Armenian Old Bolshevik and Soviet statesman during the rules of Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Nikita Khrushchev, and Leonid Brezhnev....
as head of state
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
. Before becoming head of state, Podgorny served as the party's Second Secretary, and was therefore in charge of the Party's Organisational Division. In this capacity, Podgorny threatened Brezhnev's position as First Secretary because the Organisational Division, if Podgorny chose so, could easily be turned into his own power base within the party. Brezhnev allied himself with 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...
, the KGB chairman, to oppose both Podgorny and Kosygin.
Podgorny's position was constantly threatened by Brezhnev and his allies. In an article in Ekonomicheskaya Gazeta from February 1965, the newspaper criticised the Kharkiv
Kharkiv
Kharkiv or Kharkov is the second-largest city in Ukraine.The city was founded in 1654 and was a major centre of Ukrainian culture in the Russian Empire. Kharkiv became the first city in Ukraine where the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic was proclaimed in December 1917 and Soviet government was...
Party organisation which Podgorny had previously headed, but also its management of the economy. By indirectly criticising Podgorny, the article raised doubts about his qualifications as a leading member of the Soviet leadership. Podgorny launched a counterattack in his 1965 speech in Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
, Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic, were he criticised the Soviet leadership's heavy industrial policy
Heavy industry
Heavy industry does not have a single fixed meaning as compared to light industry. It can mean production of products which are either heavy in weight or in the processes leading to their production. In general, it is a popular term used within the name of many Japanese and Korean firms, meaning...
. This, as it turned out, would be a move he would regret for life. Instead of offending just Brezhnev and Shelepin, he offended the whole conservative wing of the leadership. To make matters even worse for Podgorny, 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...
, who had kept outside of the conflict, sided with Brezhnev, and called his views "revisionist". Later in 1965, Podgorny lost his seat in the Secretariat, and on 9 December 1965 he replaced Mikoyan as Chairman of the Presidium
Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet was a Soviet governmental institution – a permanent body of the Supreme Soviets . This body was of the all-Union level , as well as in all Soviet republics and autonomous republics...
of the Supreme Soviet. His removal from the Secretariat also signalled the end of his wish to assume the First Secretaryship.
The majority of Politburo members under Brezhnev were conservative communists
Hardline
In politics, hardline refers to the doctrine, policy, and posturing of a government or political body as being absolutist and sometimes authoritarian. The hardline position is usually extremist and uncompromising....
. Even so, Podgorny remained one of the most liberal-minded members in the Era of Stagnation. Other liberal-minded Politburo members included Kosygin 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...
. Factionalism within the Soviet leadership in the 1960s led Podgorny to become more active; he held several speeches 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...
and went on numerous state visit
State visit
A state visit is a formal visit by a foreign head of state to another nation, at the invitation of that nation's head of state. State visits are the highest form of diplomatic contact between two nations, and are marked by ceremonial pomp and diplomatic protocol. In parliamentary democracies, heads...
s at the expense of Brezhnev and Kosygin's popularity. There was speculation in Soviet society that Podgorny was trying to replace Kosygin as Premier, or even Brezhnev as General Secretary, due to his increasing presence in the late 1960s. The 24th Party Congress, while reaffirming Brezhnev's and Kosygin's respective positions, made it clear that Podgorny had become a major player in Soviet politics. The collective leadership was eventually left powerless in the late 1970s when Brezhnev had close to full control over the Politburo.
Diplomatic protocol
In 1967, just before the outbreak of the Six-Day WarSix-Day War
The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...
, Podgorny delivered an intelligence report to Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian Vice President Anwar Sadat
Anwar Sadat
Muhammad Anwar al-Sadat was the third President of Egypt, serving from 15 October 1970 until his assassination by fundamentalist army officers on 6 October 1981...
which claimed, falsely, that Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i troops were massing along the Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
n border. That same year, he engaged in a dialogue with Pope Paul VI as part of the pontiff's ostpolitik
Ostpolitik
Neue Ostpolitik , or Ostpolitik for short, refers to the normalization of relations between the Federal Republic of Germany and Eastern Europe, particularly the German Democratic Republic beginning in 1969...
; the result was greater openness for the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
in Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
. In 1971 Podgorny went on two state visits, the first to the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
(PRC) and the second to North Vietnam
North Vietnam
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam , was a communist state that ruled the northern half of Vietnam from 1954 until 1976 following the Geneva Conference and laid claim to all of Vietnam from 1945 to 1954 during the First Indochina War, during which they controlled pockets of territory throughout...
; Kosygin went on a visit to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
while Brezhnev visited Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
. Podgorny frequently paid visits to North Vietnam during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
to discuss Soviet-Vietnamese foreign relations. In 1973, Podgorny visited Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and Mohammed Daoud Khan
Mohammed Daoud Khan
Sardar Mohammed Daoud Khan or Daud Khan was Prime Minister of Afghanistan from 1953 to 1963 and later becoming the President of Afghanistan...
's Afghanistan
Republic of Afghanistan
Republic of Afghanistan was the official state government of Mohammed Daoud Khan from 1973 to 1978. Daoud Khan became Afghanistan's first President in 1973 after he deposed Mohammad Zahir Shah in a non-violent coup...
.
Brezhnev conspired to oust Podgorny as early as 1970. The reason was simple: Brezhnev was third, while Podgorny was first in the ranking of Soviet diplomatic protocol. Since September 1970 Brezhnev tried to form an opposition in the Politburo to oust Podgorny. According to Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, "There was some speculation in Moscow" that if Brezhnev didn't succeed in removing Podgorny he would establish a Council of State modelled after institutions found in, for example, East Germany, People's Republic of Bulgaria and the Socialist Republic of Romania
Communist Romania
Communist Romania was the period in Romanian history when that country was a Soviet-aligned communist state in the Eastern Bloc, with the dominant role of Romanian Communist Party enshrined in its successive constitutions...
. The post of Chairman of the Council of State would give Brezhnev the top state and party job in the USSR. Brezhnev's backers were unable, and didn't even try, to remove Podgorny from the head of state post at the 1970 Central Committee plenum. Brezhnev could count on only five votes, while another seven Politburo members were opposed to granting Brezhnev more power; removing Podgorny would in fact mean the end of the collective leadership.
While Brezhnev was plotting, Podgorny's position within the Politburo grew stronger. Podgorny had been able to win support from the hardline communists due to Brezhnev's liberal-minded policy regarding Yugoslavia, military disarmament deals with the 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...
, and forcing East Germany into a concession with West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
in the Berlin negotiations
Four Power Agreement on Berlin
The Four Power Agreement on Berlin also known as the Berlin Agreement or the Quadripartite Agreement on Berlin was agreed on 3 September 1971 by the four wartime allied powers, represented by their Ambassadors...
.
Later tenure
In the Politburo Podgorny could count on the support of Gennady VoronovGennady Voronov
Gennady Ivanovich Voronov was a Soviet-Russian statesman who was from 1962 to 1971 the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Russian SFSR, literally meaning Premier or Prime Minister....
and Petro Shelest
Petro Shelest
Petro Yukhymovych Shelest was the First Secretary of the Communist party in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic Petro Yukhymovych Shelest (February 14, 1908 - January 22, 1996) was the First Secretary of the Communist party in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic Petro Yukhymovych Shelest...
. Podgorny was constantly in conflict with Kosygin over policy issues in the Politburo. When Podgorny and Kosygin actually agreed on something Brezhnev would find himself in the minority, and forced to follow their decisions. However, Podgorny was pleased about his position within the leadership, and even more pleased by the extension of powers given to the Supreme Soviet. As head of state, Podgorny saw little threat to his position, even if a Central Committee resolution from 1971 had called for the expansion of Party activities in Soviets
Soviet (council)
Soviet was a name used for several Russian political organizations. Examples include the Czar's Council of Ministers, which was called the “Soviet of Ministers”; a workers' local council in late Imperial Russia; and the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union....
.
With Brezhnev's position consolidated in the early 1970s, Brezhnev used Podgorny to weaken Kosygin's position as Chairman
Premier of the Soviet Union
The office of Premier of the Soviet Union was synonymous with head of government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics . Twelve individuals have been premier...
of the Council of Ministers by giving the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet was a Soviet governmental institution – a permanent body of the Supreme Soviets . This body was of the all-Union level , as well as in all Soviet republics and autonomous republics...
some executive powers. With the help from Brezhnev Podgorny managed to make the Council of Ministers subordinate to the Presidium. However, these changes threatened Brezhnev, and Brezhnev would later order 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...
to take a look at the 1936 Soviet Constitution
1936 Soviet Constitution
The 1936 Soviet constitution, adopted on December 5, 1936, and also known as the "Stalin" constitution, redesigned the government of the Soviet Union.- Basic provisions :...
to find a way to weaken Podgorny's position. As it turned out there were none, Podgorny's position as head of state meant that he could in fact block any measures taken by Brezhnev to circumscribe his powers. Chernenko did come up with a solution, to make it law that the Party leader would also become the leader of the Government apparatus. The 1977 Soviet Constitution
1977 Soviet Constitution
At the Seventh Session of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR Ninth Convocation on October 7, 1977, the third and last Soviet Constitution, also known as the "Brezhnev Constitution", was unanimously adopted...
was drafted to weaken the position of Podgorny by making it law that the Party leader was in fact also leader of the Government. The draft which delt with the leading role of the Party, and it's clear supremacy, in Soviet society was approved by the Soviet leadership. The approval of the 1977 Soviet Constitution is considered Podgorny's death kneel.
Removal
Podgorny's removal from office in 1977 has become the most notable example of power transfer in the late Brezhnev EraHistory of the Soviet Union (1964–1982)
The history of the Soviet Union from 1964 to 1982, referred to as the Brezhnev Era, covers the period of Leonid Brezhnev's rule of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics . This period began with high economic growth and soaring prosperity, but ended with a much weaker Soviet Union facing social,...
. According to Robert Vincent Daniels, Podgorny was before his removal the second most powerful man in the Soviet Union, behind Brezhnev but ahead of Premier Kosygin. The post of Chairman of the Presidium had acquired more powers during his tenure, and had changed from a largely honourary office to the second most important office in the USSR. Though there were some Sovietologists who foresaw Podgorny's fall, the decision to remove Podgorny from the Politburo took the world by surprise. A unanimous vote was taken by the Central Committee after Grigory Romanov
Grigory Romanov
Grigory Vasilyevich Romanov , was a Soviet politician and member of the Politburo and Secretariat of the CPSU. In 1985, he was considered Mikhail Gorbachev's main rival in the succession struggle after the death of Konstantin Chernenko in March 1985....
proposed removing Podgorny from the Politburo. The vote seemed to have taken Podgorny by surprise, and immediately after the vote, he got up from his politburo seat to instead sit with the ordinary members. The Central Committee had however voted him off the Politburo, and Podgorny still retained his seat as Chairman. After his removal from the Politburo Podgorny's name disappeared from Soviet media. The Soviet media told the Soviet people that Podgorny retired due to his stance against détente
Détente
Détente is the easing of strained relations, especially in a political situation. The term is often used in reference to the general easing of relations between the Soviet Union and the United States in the 1970s, a thawing at a period roughly in the middle of the Cold War...
and producing more consumer goods
Consumer goods in the Soviet Union
The industry of the Soviet Union was usually divided into two major categories. Group A was "heavy industry," which included all goods that serve as an input required for the production of some other, final good...
. Podgorny lost his Chairmanship of the Presidium on 16 June 1977.
Due to his advanced age, Brezhnev was regarded as too old to carry out some of the functions of head of state. The Supreme Soviet, on Brezhnev's orders, established the new post of First Deputy Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, an office equivalent to the First World post of Vice President. Vasili Kuznetsov, at the age of 76, was unanimously approved by the Supreme Soviet as First Deputy Chairman of the Presidium.
Retirement, death and recognition
Podgorny's life after his resignation is not well documented. The last mention of him in any major Soviet media was his meeting with Urho KekkonenUrho Kekkonen
Urho Kaleva Kekkonen , was a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland and later as the eighth President of Finland . Kekkonen continued the “active neutrality” policy of his predecessor President Juho Kusti Paasikivi, a doctrine which came to be known as the “Paasikivi–Kekkonen...
, the President of Finland
President of Finland
The President of the Republic of Finland is the nation's head of state. Under the Finnish constitution, executive power is vested in the President and the government, with the President possessing extensive powers. The President is elected directly by the people of Finland for a term of six years....
. There was never any explanation given, nor a denunciation of him, by the Soviet authorities. Podgorny retained his seat in the Supreme Soviet after his downfall. He was seen at the 61st anniversary reception of the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
at the Grand Palace of the Kremlin in November 1978 by Tokichiro Uomoto, the Japanese Ambassador to the Soviet Union. Podgorniy spoke to Brezhnev, Kosygin, and then to 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...
all of whom looked embarrassed by the presence of Podgorny, according to Uomoto. Soon after this incident, Podgorny lost his seat in the Supreme Soviet. In Tretyakov Gallery
Tretyakov Gallery
The State Tretyakov Gallery is an art gallery in Moscow, Russia, the foremost depository of Russian fine art in the world.The gallery's history starts in 1856 when the Moscow merchant Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov acquired works by Russian artists of his day with the aim of creating a collection,...
, Podgorny was removed from the 1977 painting of the Soviet leaders at the Red Square by Dimitri Nalbanjan in which Podgorny stood between Brezhnev and Kosygin. Podgorny died of cancer on 12 January 1983, and was buried in Moscow at the Novodevichy cemetery
Novodevichy Cemetery
Novodevichy Cemetery is the most famous cemetery in Moscow, Russia. It is next to the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist site. It should not be confused with the Novodevichy Cemetery in Saint Petersburg....
.
As with many other high-standing Soviet officials, Podgorny was honoured with several awards. He was awarded five Orders of Lenin, one Order of the Red Banner
Order of the Red Banner
The Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
and several medals, as well as being awarded several foreign state prizes by the People's Republic of Bulgaria, the Mongolian People's Republic, the Socialist Republic of Czechoslovakia, and Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
.