Council of Ministers of the USSR

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Ministers of the USSR ( Russian Совет министров Soviet Ministrów shortly Совмин Sowmin ) was the name of the Government of the Soviet Union from 16 March 1946. The government of Soviet Russia (1917-1922) and then the Soviet Union was first called Council of People's Commissars . On March 16, 1946, Stalin initiated the renaming.

Task and meaning

According to the Constitution of the USSR of 1977, the Council of Ministers was the highest executive and commanding body of state power in the USSR. He was the government of the country.

The Council of Ministers was formally elected by the Supreme Soviet of the USSR . He was accountable to him and his bureau . Actual power in the Union and in the Union countries lay in the hands of the only authorized Communist Party, the CPSU (1917: Social Democratic Workers' Party of Russia , from 1918 to 1925 Communist Party of Russia (B) ). The decisions of the Politburo of the CPSU as a collective political body or those of the General Secretary of the party as well as those of the Secretariat of the Central Committee were of decisive political importance for the cabinet or for an individual minister.

The Constitution of the USSR of December 5, 1936 originally only provided eight people's commissariats for the entire USSR and 10 merged people's commissariats for the Union and individual Union countries. In 1951 there were 32 ministers for the Union and 21 for the Union states . Later there were even over 80 cabinet members.

Control by the party, the security police , the plan (including by Gosplan , Gosekomsowjet , National Economic Council ) and the financial plan, as well as in the area of ​​legal and personal control, played an important role in the government system.

Each union republic had its own council of ministers with its republic ministries as well as branches of the state committees and the other central authorities. Below the level of the republic there were the administrative levels of the autonomous republics, oblasts or krais, then the large cities and the rural rayons and finally the smaller cities and municipalities. All had their administrative structures, which were subordinate to the next higher administrative or government level and finally to the Party of Union Republics or the USSR.

Overall, the government system was an almost impenetrable network of ministries, commissions, committees, controls with differentiated technical and area-related responsibilities with the ultimate political decision by the party. Competence disputes between the ministries, the national economic councils, the administrative bodies and the Soviets were common.

In 1990 the Council of Ministers was subordinated directly to President Mikhail Gorbachev as the “Cabinet of Ministers” .

composition

The Council of Ministers consisted of

  • The chairman (named in general and in the media as prime minister). From 1917 to 1924, 1941 to 1953 and from 1958 to 1964 the task of the party leader and the head of government was in one hand.
  • The first deputy chairperson (at times up to 5, a total of approx. 30) who were responsible for certain areas of activity such as foreign policy, trade, etc.
  • The deputy chairperson (at times up to 9, in total over 80), who were also responsible for certain areas of responsibility.
  • The ministers (sometimes up to 60), who were often responsible for very differentiated tasks (e.g. electrical engineering industry or civil engineering machines). A distinction was made between Union Ministers and Union and Republic Ministers. The most important ministers were those responsible for foreign affairs, internal affairs (dissolved between 1960 and 1968), defense, finance, and foreign trade.
  • The chairmen of commissions, committees or heads of offices (in 1965 there were 41 representatives) for state control, for state security ( KGB , NKVD or NKWS), for the state bank , for statistics, for production or for individual areas of responsibility (e.g. . for defense technology etc.).
  • The functionaries of state planning and the national economic councils (at times around 15 representatives) z. B. for the state plan (also called Gosplan since 1929 ) and for national economic planning .
  • The Presidents of the Councils of Ministers of the 15 Union Republics

At times, other representatives of the state also had cabinet rank, such as the Secretary of the Supreme Soviet.

The chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, from 1946 Council of Ministers of the USSR

  1. Vladimir Lenin : November 8, 1917 to January 21, 1924 (†)
  2. Alexei Rykov : February 2, 1924 to December 19, 1930
  3. Vyacheslav Molotov : December 19, 1930 to May 7, 1941
  4. Josef Stalin : May 7, 1941 to March 5, 1953 (†)
  5. Georgi Malenkov : March 6, 1953 to February 8, 1955
  6. Nikolai Bulganin : February 8, 1955 to March 27, 1958
  7. Nikita Khrushchev : March 27, 1958 to October 15, 1964
  8. Alexei Kosygin : October 15, 1964 to October 23, 1980 (†)
  9. Nikolai Tikhonov : October 23, 1980 to September 27, 1985
  10. Nikolai Ryschkow : September 27, 1985 to December 26, 1990
  11. Valentin Pavlov : January 11, 1991 to August 24, 1991
  12. Ivan Silayev : August 24, 1991 to December 1991 (dissolution of the USSR) (acting)

The First Vice-Chairs of the Council of Ministers

The Foreign Ministers (before March 16, 1946 People's Commissar)

  1. Lev Trotsky (1917-1918)
  2. Adolf Joffe (1918)
  3. Karl Radek (1918)
  4. Georgi Tschitscherin (1918–1930)
  5. Maxim Litvinov (1930-1939)
  6. Vyacheslav Molotov (1939-1949)
  7. Andrei Wyschinski (1949–1953)
  8. Vyacheslav Molotov (1953–1956)
  9. Dmitri Shepilov (1956–1957)
  10. Andrei Gromyko (1957–1985)
  11. Eduard Shevardnadze (1985–1990)
  12. Alexander Bessmertnych (1990 – August 1991)
  13. Eduard Shevardnadze (August – September 1991)
  14. Boris Pankin (September – December 1991)

The interior ministers (before March 16, 1946 people's commissars) and the heads of the security organs

  1. Alexei Rykow (1917-1918)
  1. Felix Dzerzhinsky (1920–1923), Internal Affairs and State Security (Cheka, GPU), then only State Security until 1926
  2. Alexander Beloborodov (1923–1928)
  3. Vyacheslav Menschinsky (1928–1934), Home Affairs and State Security (OGPU)
  4. Genrich Jagoda (1934–1936), Home Affairs and State Security (NKVD)
  1. Filaretow (1937–1938), only interior
  2. Lavrenti Beria , 1st time (1938–1941), Interior and State Security (NKVD)
  1. Lavrenti Beria , 2nd time (1941–1945), Interior and State Security (NKVD, NKWS)
  2. Sergei Kruglow (1945–1953), only inside
  1. Lavrenti Beria , 3rd time (1953), Home Affairs and State Security (NKGB)
  2. Sergei Kruglow, 2nd time (1953–1956), only interior
  1. Nikolai Dudorow (1956–1960), only inside
  1. Nikolai Shcholokov (1968–1982)
  1. Vitaly Fedorchuk (1982-1986); 1982 briefly also state security
  1. Alexander Vlasov (1986–1988), only interior
  2. Wadim Bakatin (1988–1990), only interior
  1. Boris Pugo (1990 – August 1991), only interior
  2. Viktor Barannikow (August – December 1991), only interior
    • Wadim Bakatin (August – December 1991), State Security only (KGB)

Note: See also at KGB (Committee for State Security), the Soviet secret service .

Defense Ministers (before March 16, 1946 People's Commissars)

  1. Lev Trotsky (1918-1924)
  2. Mikhail Frunze (1924–1925) †, General
  3. Kliment Voroshilov (1925–1940), Marshal of the Soviet Union
  4. Semyon Timoshenko (1940–1941), Marshal of the Soviet Union
  5. Josef Stalin (1941–1947), generalissimo
  6. Nikolai Bulganin (1947–1949), Marshal of the Soviet Union
  7. Alexander Wassilewski (1949–1953), Marshal of the Soviet Union
  8. Nikolai Bulganin (1953–1955), Marshal of the Soviet Union
  9. Georgi Zhukov (1955–1957), Marshal of the Soviet Union
  10. Rodion Malinowski (1957–1967) †, Marshal of the Soviet Union
  11. Andrei Grechko (1967–1976) †, Marshal of the Soviet Union
  12. Dmitri Ustinow (1976–1984) †, Marshal of the Soviet Union
  13. Sergei Sokolow (1984–1987), Marshal of the Soviet Union
  14. Dmitri Yasov (1987 – August 1991), Marshal of the Soviet Union
  15. Yevgeny Shaposhnikov (August 1991 – December 1991), Air Force Marshal

The Finance Ministers (before March 16, 1946 People's Commissars)

  1. Ivan Shkwarzew (Stepanow) (1917–1918)
  2. Isidor Gukowski (1918–1921)
  3. Nikolai Krestinsky (1921–1923)
  4. Grigory Sokolnikow (1923–1926)
  5. Nikolai Bryukhanov (1926-29)
  6. Grigori Grinko (1930-1937)
  7. Vlas Tschubar (1937-1938)
  8. Arseni Swerew (1938–1948)
  9. Alexei Kosygin (1948)
  10. Arseni Swerew (1948–1960)
  11. Wassili Garbusow (1960–1984)
  12. Boris Gostew (1985-1989)
  13. Valentin Pavlov (1989–1991)
  14. Vladimir Orlov (1991)

The presidents of Gosplan

Gosplan was the Soviet Union's economic planning committee. The main tasks lay in the creation of the five-year plan of the USSR. The chairmen of Gosplan were members of the respective government of the USSR and because of their importance since 1938 almost without exception also deputy or first deputy chairperson of the Council of People's Commissars or the Council of Ministers. The list of chairpersons see under Gosplan.

literature

  • Spuler: Regents and Governments of the World , Minister-Ploetz, Bd. 4 u. 5, 1964 and 1972, ISBN 3-87640-026-0 .
  • Merle Fainsod: How Russia is governed , Kiepenheuer & Witsch, 1965.
  • Michail Gorbatschow : Memories , Siedler, Berlin 1995, ISBN 3-88680-524-7 .
  • Press Agency Nowosti (APN), Moscow (ed.): USSR - Questions and Answers , 1st edition, Karl-Marx-Werk Pößneck V 15/30, Dietz Verlag , East Berlin 1967.