The Secretariat of the CPSU Central Committee was a key body within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union

Communist Party of the Soviet Union

The Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...

 (CPSU) and was responsible for the central administration of the party as opposed to drafting government policy which was usually handled by the 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...

. Its members were elected by the Communist Party's Central Committee, although in all but the first years of its existence the elections were a formality since decisions were made by the senior leadership before the voting. The General Secretary of the CPSU, who was also a Politburo member, was the leader of the Secretariat and the Party. Dual membership in the Secretariat and the Politburo was reserved for two or three very senior members of the Soviet leadership and in the post-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...

 era was a stepping stone to the ultimate power. The last four Soviet leaders (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...

, 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:...

, 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...

 and 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...

) were all senior Secretaries before becoming General Secretaries.

The Secretariat was established by the Central Committee on 6 August 1917 and was initially composed of Felix Dzerzhinsky, Matvei Muranov

Matvei Muranov

Matvei Konstantinovich Muranov was a Ukrainian-born Bolshevik revolutionary and a Soviet politician.-Revolutionary beginnings:Born in a peasant family in Rybtsy near Poltava, Muranov moved to Kharkov in 1900 and worked as a railroad worker...

 and Yakov Sverdlov

Yakov Sverdlov

Yakov Mikhaylovich Sverdlov ; known under pseudonyms "Andrei", "Mikhalych", "Max", "Smirnov", "Permyakov" — 16 March 1919) was a Bolshevik party leader and an official of the Russian Soviet Republic.-Early life:...

 as full members and Adolph Joffe

Adolph Joffe

Adolph Abramovich Joffe was a Communist revolutionary, a Bolshevik politician and a Soviet diplomat of Karaim descent.-Revolutionary career:...

 and Elena Stasova

Elena Stasova

Elena Dmitrievna "Lyolia" Stasova was a Russian communist revolutionary who became a political functionary working for the Communist International . She was a Comintern representative to Germany in 1921. From 1927 to 1938 she was the president of International Red Aid...

 as candidate members (or alternates). Following 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...

 of 1917, Sverdlov and Stasova became the de facto Secretariat as other members of the body assumed other duties. At the time, the Secretariat was responsible for technical issues such as coordination of the activities of regional party organizations and handling routine administrative affairs of the Party. Its staff increased from just 30 in 1919 to 600 in 1921 and 767 by 1925.

By 1922, the body had been transformed from a technical committee to one of the most important components of the party and from that point on it was responsible for day to day operations of the Communist Party. Also in 1922, the position of General Secretary was created, the General Secretary became the head of the Secretariat and, in the years following Lenin's death, became the most important figure in the party and the country.

See also Organization of the Communist Party of the USSR

Organization of the Communist Party of the USSR

The organization of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was based on the principles of democratic centralism.The governing body of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the Party Congress which initially met annually but whose meetings became less frequent, particularly under Joseph Stalin...

Members of the Secretariat 1917-1991

Date	Comments
6 August 1917	Felix Dzerzhinsky, Matvei Muranov Matvei Muranov Matvei Konstantinovich Muranov was a Ukrainian-born Bolshevik revolutionary and a Soviet politician.-Revolutionary beginnings:Born in a peasant family in Rybtsy near Poltava, Muranov moved to Kharkov in 1900 and worked as a railroad worker...  and Yakov Sverdlov Yakov Sverdlov Yakov Mikhaylovich Sverdlov ; known under pseudonyms "Andrei", "Mikhalych", "Max", "Smirnov", "Permyakov" — 16 March 1919) was a Bolshevik party leader and an official of the Russian Soviet Republic.-Early life:...  (full members); Adolph Joffe Adolph Joffe Adolph Abramovich Joffe was a Communist revolutionary, a Bolshevik politician and a Soviet diplomat of Karaim descent.-Revolutionary career:...  and Elena Stasova Elena Stasova Elena Dmitrievna "Lyolia" Stasova was a Russian communist revolutionary who became a political functionary working for the Communist International . She was a Comintern representative to Germany in 1921. From 1927 to 1938 she was the president of International Red Aid...  (candidate members)
16 March 1919	Sverdlov dies
25 March 1919	Stasova elected Chief Secretary by the Central Committee
November 1919	Nikolai Krestinsky Nikolai Krestinsky Nikolay Nikolayevich Krestinsky was a Russian Bolshevik revolutionary and Soviet politician.-Origins:Krestinsky was born in the town of Mogilev, in what is now Mahilyow Voblast of Belarus. According to Russian archivist A. B. Roginsky, Krestinsky was of ethnic Russian origin...  added; becomes Chief Secretary
5 April 1920	Krestinsky, Yevgeny Preobrazhensky, Leonid Serebryakov
16 March 1921	Vasily Mikhaylov, Vyacheslav Molotov Vyacheslav Molotov Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov was a Soviet politician and diplomat, an Old Bolshevik and a leading figure in the Soviet government from the 1920s, when he rose to power as a protégé of Joseph Stalin, to 1957, when he was dismissed from the Presidium of the Central Committee by Nikita Khrushchev... , Yemelyan Yaroslavsky Yemelyan Yaroslavsky Yemelyan Mikhailovich Yaroslavsky was a Russian revolutionary, Soviet politician, communist party organizer and activist, journalist, and historian...
3 April 1922	Valerian Kuibyshev and Molotov with 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...  as General Secretary
26 April 1923	Molotov, Yan Rudzutak Yan Rudzutak Jānis Rudzutaks was a Latvian Bolshevik revolutionary and Soviet politician.Rudzutaks was born in the Kuldīga district of the Courland Governorate , into the family of a farm worker. In 1903, he started working in a factory in Riga. Two years later, he joined Latvian Social Democratic Labour Party... , Stalin
February 1924	Rudzutak replaced by Andrei Andreyev Andrei Andreyev Andrey Andreyevich Andreyev was a Soviet politician....
2 June 1924	Andreyev, Isaac Zelensky, Lazar Kaganovich Lazar Kaganovich Lazar Moiseyevich Kaganovich was a Soviet politician and administrator and one of the main associates of Joseph Stalin.-Early life:Kaganovich was born in 1893 to Jewish parents in the village of Kabany, Radomyshl uyezd, Kiev Governorate, Russian Empire... , Molotov, Stalin
August 1924	Zelensky replaced by Nikolai Uglanov Nikolai Uglanov Nikolai Aleksandrovich Uglanov was a Russian Bolshevik politician, who played an important role in the government of the Soviet Union.* 20 August 1924 - November 27, 1928, First Secretary of the Moscow Communist Party...
30 April 1925	Kaganovich replaced by Andrei Bubnov Andrei Bubnov Andrei Sergeyevich Bubnov was a Bolshevik revolutionary leader in Russia, and member of the Left Opposition.-Biography:...
1 January 1926	Grigory Yevdokimov, Stanislav Kosior Stanislav Kosior Stanislav Vikentyevich Kosior, sometimes spelled Kossior was one of three Kosior brothers, Polish-born Soviet politicians. He was General Secretary of the Ukrainian Communist Party, deputy prime minister of the USSR, and a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union... , Molotov, Stalin, Uglanov with Artukhina Artukhina Alexandra Vasilevna Artyukhina was an early Russian Bolshevist and revolutionary who rose to the sit on the Secretariat of the CPSU Central Committee, but was brought down by Joseph Stalin's purges in the late 1930s....  and Bubnov as candidate members
9 April 1926	Yevdokimov replaced by Shvernik
16 April 1927	Shvernik replaced by Kubyak
19 December 1927	Kosior, Kubyak, Molotov, Stalin, Uglanov with Aleksandra Artyukhina, Bubnov and Moskvin as candidate members
11 April 1928	Kubyak replaced by Smirnov; Bauman elected candidate member
12 July 1928	Kosior replaced by Kaganovich
30 April 1929	Uglanov replaced by Bauman
13 July 1930	Bauman, Kaganovich, Molotov, Postyshev, Stalin with Moskvin and Shvernik as candidate members.
21 December 1930	Molotov removed
2 October 1932	Bauman and Moskvin removed
10 February 1934	Andrei Zhdanov Andrei Zhdanov Andrei Alexandrovich Zhdanov was a Soviet politician.-Life:Zhdanov enlisted with the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1915 and was promoted through the party ranks, becoming the All-Union Communist Party manager in Leningrad after the assassination of Sergei Kirov in 1934... , Kaganovich, Sergei Kirov, Stalin The term General Secretary is no longer used; Stalin remains the de facto leader of the Secretariat
1 December 1934	Kirov assassinated
February 1935	Nikolai Yezhov Nikolai Yezhov Nikolai Ivanovich Yezhov or Ezhov was a senior figure in the NKVD under Joseph Stalin during the period of the Great Purge. His reign is sometimes known as the "Yezhovshchina" , "the Yezhov era", a term that began to be used during the de-Stalinization campaign of the 1950s...  and Andreyev join
22 March 1939	Andreyev, Zhdanov, Georgy Malenkov Georgy Malenkov Georgy Maximilianovich Malenkov was a Soviet politician, Communist Party leader and close collaborator of Joseph Stalin. After Stalin's death, he became Premier of the Soviet Union and was in 1953 briefly considered the most powerful Soviet politician before being overshadowed by Nikita... , Stalin
4 May 1941	Alexander Shcherbakov joins
10 May 1945	Shcherbakov dies
18 March 1946	Zhdanov, Kuznetsov, Malenkov, Popov, Stalin
6 May 1946	Malenkov replaced by Patolichev
24 May 1947	Patolichev replaced by 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...
1 July 1948	Georgy Malenkov Georgy Malenkov Georgy Maximilianovich Malenkov was a Soviet politician, Communist Party leader and close collaborator of Joseph Stalin. After Stalin's death, he became Premier of the Soviet Union and was in 1953 briefly considered the most powerful Soviet politician before being overshadowed by Nikita...  and Panteleimon Ponomarenko Panteleimon Ponomarenko Panteleimon Kondrat'evich Ponomarenko ; 9 August 1902 18 January 1984) was a general in the Red Army before becoming a Soviet administrator in Belarus and then Kazakhstan. He was born in Krasnodar Krai, Russia....  join
31 August 1948	Zhdanov dies
28 January 1949	Alexey Kuznetsov removed
16 December 1949	Popov replaced by 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...
16 October 1952	Aristov, 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... , Ignatov, Malenkov, N. Mikhaylov, Pegov, Ponomarenko, Stalin, Suslov, Khrushchev; The titleGeneral Secretary is formally abolished
5 March 1953	Stalin dies
5 March 1953	Brezhnev, Ignatov, Pegov and Panteleimon Ponomarenko Panteleimon Ponomarenko Panteleimon Kondrat'evich Ponomarenko ; 9 August 1902 18 January 1984) was a general in the Red Army before becoming a Soviet administrator in Belarus and then Kazakhstan. He was born in Krasnodar Krai, Russia....  replaced by Ignatyev, Pospelov and Shatalin. Note: Malenkov becomes the de facto senior secretary by virtue of the fact that he is also Prime Minister
14 March 1953	Georgy Malenkov Georgy Malenkov Georgy Maximilianovich Malenkov was a Soviet politician, Communist Party leader and close collaborator of Joseph Stalin. After Stalin's death, he became Premier of the Soviet Union and was in 1953 briefly considered the most powerful Soviet politician before being overshadowed by Nikita...  removed
14 March 1953	Ignatyev, Pospelov, Suslov, Khrushchev, Shatalin
5 April 1953	Ignatyev removed
7 September 1953	Khrushchev elected First Secretary by the Central Committee
8 March 1955	Shatalin removed
12 July 1955	Aristov, Belyaev, Dmitri Shepilov Dmitri Shepilov Dmitri Trofimovich Shepilov was a Soviet politician and Minister of Foreign Affairs who joined the abortive plot to oust Nikita Khrushchev from power in 1957.-Childhood:Dmitri Shepilov was born to a worker's family in Askhabad...  join
27 February 1956	Aristov, Belyaev, Brezhnev, Pospelov, Suslov, Yekaterina Furtseva, 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... , Shepilov
24 December 1956	Shepilov removed
14 February 1957	Shepilov rejoins
18 June 1957	Presidium of the Central Committee votes to dismiss Khrushchev as First Secretary (7 in favor, 4 against), but the decision is revoked on the same day and the issue is postponed until the June 1957 Central Committee Plenum which reaffirms Khrushchev
29 June 1957	Shepilov replaced by Otto Kuusinen
17 December 1957	Ignatov, Kirichenko, Mukhitdinov join
12 November 1958	Belyaev removed
4 May 1960	Aristov, Ignatov, Kirichenko, Pospelov and Yekaterina Furtseva removed; Kozlov joins
16 July 1960	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...  removed
31 October 1961	Pyotr Demichev Pyotr Demichev Pyotr Nilovich Demichev was a Soviet-Russian political figure; First Deputy Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet from 1986 to 1988 and Minister of Culture from 1974 to 1986.... , Ilyichev, Kozlov, Kuusinen, Boris Ponomarev Boris Ponomarev Boris Nikolayevich Ponomarev was a Soviet politician, ideologist and historian, and a member of the Secretariat of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union... , Spiridonov, Suslov, Khrushchev, Shelepin
23 April 1962	Spiridonov removed
23 November 1962	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:... , Polyakov, Rudakov and Titov added
21 June 1963	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...  and Podgorny Nikolai Podgorny Nikolai Viktorovich Podgorny 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...  added
17 May 1964	Kuusinen dies
14 October 1964	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...  removed, 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...  elected First secretary at the Central Committee plenum
16 November 1964	Frol Kozlov Frol Kozlov Frol Romanovich Kozlov was a Soviet politician, Hero of Socialist Labor .He was elected a candidate member of the Presidium on 14 February 1957 and served as a full member from 29 June 1957 until he was relieved of his duties on 16 November 1964, following the ousting of his...  and Polyakov Polyakov Polyakov or Polyakova is a Russian last name and may refer to:People* Dzyanis Palyakow , Belarusian footballer* Aleksei Poliakov , Russian/Uzbek goalkeeper...  removed
26 March 1965	Ilyichev replaced by Ustinov
29 September 1965	Titov replaced by Fyodor Kulakov Fyodor Kulakov Fyodor Davydovich Kulakov was a Soviet-Russian statesman during the Cold War....
6 December 1965	Podgorny Nikolai Podgorny Nikolai Viktorovich Podgorny 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...  replaced by Kapitonov
8 April 1966	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:... , 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... , Demichev, Kapitonov, 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... , Kulakov, Boris Ponomarev Boris Ponomarev Boris Nikolayevich Ponomarev was a Soviet politician, ideologist and historian, and a member of the Secretariat of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union... , Rudakov, 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... , 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... , Shelepin; Brezhnev's title changes from First Secretary to General Secretary
10 July 1966	Rudakov dies
13 December 1966	Solomentsev joins
21 June 1967	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:...  removed
26 September 1967	Alezander Shelepin removed
10 April 1968	Katushev joins
9 April 1971	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... , Pyotr Demichev Pyotr Demichev Pyotr Nilovich Demichev was a Soviet-Russian political figure; First Deputy Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet from 1986 to 1988 and Minister of Culture from 1974 to 1986.... , Kapitonov, Katushev, 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... , Kulakov, Ponomarev, Solomentsev, Suslov, Ustinov
23 November 1971	Solomentsev removed
18 December 1972	Dolgikh joins
16 December 1974	Demichev relieved of duties at the Central Committee plenum
5 March 1976	Brezhnev, Dolgikh, Mikhail Zimyanin Mikhail Zimyanin Mikhail Vasilyevich Zimyanin , was a first secretary of the Byelorussian SSR during the Soviet Union, between 1946 and 1950.Zimyanin served as the editor-in-chief of the newspaper Pravda, the official publication of the Communist Party between 1965 and 1976. Afterwards, he was appointed to the... , Kapitonov, Katushev, Kirilenko, Fyodor Kulakov Fyodor Kulakov Fyodor Davydovich Kulakov was a Soviet-Russian statesman during the Cold War.... , Ponomarev, Suslov, 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... , 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...  elected secretaries at the Central Committee plenum
October 1976	Ustinov replaced by Ryabov
24 May 1977	Katushev replaced by Rusakov
17 July 1978	Kulakov dies
27 November 1978	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...  joins
17 April 1979	Ryabov removed
3 March 1981	Brezhnev, 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... , Dolgikh, Zimyanin, Kapitonov, Kirilenko, Ponomarev, Rusakov, Suslov, Chernenko
25 January 1982	Suslov dies
24 May 1982	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:...  joins
10 November 1982	Brezhnev dies
12 November 1982	Andropov elected General secretary at a Central Committee extraordinary plenum
22 November 1982	Kirilenko replaced by Ryzhkov
29 May 1983	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 :...  dies
15 June 1983	Romanov joins
26 December 1983	Ligachev joins
9 February 1984	Andropov dies
13 February 1984	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...  elected General secretary at a Central Committee extraordinary plenum
10 March 1985	Chernenko dies
11 March 1985	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... , elected General secretary at a Central Committee extraordinary plenum
23 April 1985	Nikonov joins
1 July 1985	Romanov replaced by Boris Yeltsin Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of...  and Zaikov
15 October 1985	Ryzhkov removed
18 February 1986	Yeltsin and Rusakov removed
6 March 1986	Biryukova, 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... , Anatoly Dobrynin Anatoly Dobrynin Anatoly Fyodorovich Dobrynin was a Russian statesman and a former Soviet diplomat and politician. He was Soviet Ambassador to the United States, serving from 1962 to 1986 and most notably during the Cuban Missile Crisis. He was appointed by Nikita Khrushchev.... , Dolgikh, Zaikov, Zimyanin, Yegor Ligachev Yegor Ligachev Yegor Kuzmich Ligachev is a Russian politician who was a high-ranking official in the Communist Party of the Soviet Union . Originally a protege of Mikhail Gorbachev, Ligachev became a challenger to his leadership.-Early life:... , Medvedev, Nikonov, Razumovsky, Alexander Yakovlev Alexander Nikolaevich Yakovlev Alexander Nikolaevich Yakovlev was a Soviet politician and historian who was a Soviet governmental official in the 1980s and a member of the Politburo and Secretariat of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union...
28 January 1987	Zimyanin replaced by Lukyanov and Slyunkov
18 February 1988	Baklanov joins
30 September 1988	Biryukova, Dobrynin, Dolgikh and Lukyanov removed; Viktor Chebrikov Viktor Chebrikov Viktor Mikhailovich Chebrikov ) was a Soviet Union public official and security administrator and head of the KGB from December 1982 to October 1988....  joins
20 September 1989	Nikonov and Chebrikov removed; Girenko, Manayenkov, Stroyev and Usmanov join
9 December 1989	Frolov joins
10 July 1990	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... , re-elected General Secretary, Ivashko Vladimir Ivashko Vladimir Antonovich Ivashko , was briefly the acting General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during the period from 24 August 1991 to 29 August 1991. On 24 August Mikhail Gorbachev resigned, and on 29 August the CPSU was suspended by the Supreme Soviet...  Deputy general secretary at the 28th party Congress by secret ballot
14 July 1990	Baklanov, Gidaspov, Girenko, Dzasokhov, Kuptsov, Manayenkov, Semyonova, Stroyev, Falin, Shenin, Gennady Yanayev Gennady Yanayev Gennady Ivanovich Yanayev was a Soviet Russian politician and statesman whose career spanned the rules of Khrushchev, Brezhnev, Andropov and Chernenko, and culminated during the Gorbachev years. Yanayev was born in Perevoz, Gorky Oblast... , Aniskin, Gayvoronsky, Melnikov, Teplenichev and Turgunova join
31 January 1991	Yanayev replaced by Luchinsky
25 April 1991	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... , tendered his resignation to the joint plenum of the Central Committee and the Central Control Commission, but it was declined; Baklanov removed
26 July 1991	Kalashnikov Melnikov and Maltsev join
24 August 1991	After failure of the August coup Gorbachev resigns as General Secretary and is succeeded by Ivashko, CPSU in the Russian SFSR banned by Yeltsin
29 August 1991	CPSU activity suspended by the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union, effectively ceases to exist