Walko Chervenkov

Walko Veljow Chervenkov ( transliterated Vălko Červenkov , Bulgarian Вълко Вельов Червенков ); (Born September 6, 1900 in Slatiza , † October 21, 1980 in Sofia ) was a Bulgarian politician , general secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party and prime minister .

biography

Party functionary and resistance fighter in World War II

In 1919 Chervenkov joined the Bulgarian Communist Party (Balgarska Komunisticeska Partija (BKP)) . A year later he became a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League, of which he was a member until 1925. During this time he took part in the bloody uprising against the government of Prime Minister Aleksandar Zankow on September 23, 1923, led by the communist politicians Vasil Kolarow and Georgi Dimitrov . He then worked as an editor of the pro-communist newspapers The Gathering and The Tribe of Soldiers .

In October 1925 he began studying at the party college of the CPSU in Moscow . After his return to Bulgaria he became director of the School for Marxism - Leninism of the BKP himself .

During the Second World War , Chervenkov was an active member of the communist resistance movement against the pro- German government of Bogdan Filow . Here Chervenkov spread particularly from the Soviet Union out of him as director of the radio station Hristo Botev designed anti-fascist radio broadcasts. After the successful coup of the Fatherland Front on September 9, 1944, he returned from the Soviet Union and was elected a member of the Central Committee (ZK) of the BKP .

People's Republic of Bulgaria

After the founding of the People's Republic of Bulgaria on September 15, 1946, Chervenkov quickly assumed top positions within the party and state leadership. In 1947 he was a delegate of Bulgaria at the meeting of the founding of Kominform in the Polish city of Szklarska Poręba .

In December 1947 Chervenkov was appointed minister of culture in the government of Prime Minister Georgi Dimitrov , who was also his brother-in-law. After his death on July 2, 1949, he became first deputy prime minister in the government of his successor Kolarow and together with him also co-chairman of the BKP.

After Kolarov died six months later on January 23, 1950, Chervenkov became the sole general secretary of the Central Committee of the BKP. On February 3, 1950, he was also appointed Chairman of the Council of Ministers. Because of his Stalinist course he was called Little Stalin or because of his first name Vălko also "the red wolf".

After Stalin's death on March 5, 1953, there was increasing criticism of his party and government leadership. For this reason, Chervenkov was replaced as General Secretary of the BKP by Todor Zhivkov one year after Stalin's death on March 4, 1954 . On April 17, 1956 Chervenkov was also forced to resign as Prime Minister and hand over this office to his deputy Anton Yugov .

Chervenkov became Deputy Prime Minister himself instead and remained a member of the Central Committee of the BKP. At the 8th party congress of the BKP, which took place in November 1962, he and Jugow were accused of behavior that was harmful to the party and on November 27, 1962, he was removed from all party and government offices. In the same year he was expelled from the BKP.

In 1969, due to the events of the Prague Spring, his tacit rehabilitation took place , but he no longer held any political offices.

Web links

Literature by and about Walko Tscherwenkow in the catalog of the German National Library
Chervenkov, Vulko (Velyov). In: rulers.org. Retrieved November 10, 2019(English).
Impudence in Sofia. In: Time . December 19, 1949(English).; accessed on November 10, 2019
Bulgaria: Three Heads Roll. In: Time. July 29, 1957, archived from the original on October 19, 2011 .; accessed on November 10, 2019

Individual evidence

^ The Short Unhappy Life Of The Conformists. In: Time . July 14, 1952, archived from the original on March 13, 2009 ; accessed on November 10, 2019 .
↑ Chervenkov and Stalinism in Bulgaria. In: The Library of Congress Country Studies . July 4, 2002, Retrieved November 10, 2019 (reproduced on WorkMall.com).
^ The Satellites: Exit The Red Wolf. In: Time. April 30, 1956, archived from the original on January 15, 2008 ; accessed on November 10, 2019 .
↑ The Chervenkov Era. In: The Library of Congress Country Studies; CIA World Factbook . October 10, 2004, accessed November 10, 2019 (English, reproduced on Photius.com).
^ Bulgaria's turning point: disappointment and hope. In: derStandard.at . October 20, 2003, accessed November 10, 2019 .

predecessor	Office	successor
Wassil Kolarov	Prime Minister of Bulgaria 1950–1956	Anton Yugov

personal data
SURNAME	Chervenkov, Walko
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Chervenkov, Walko Weljoew (full name); Červenkov, Vălko; Червенков, Вълко Вельов (Bulgarian spelling)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Bulgarian politician, General Secretary of the Communist Party and Prime Minister
DATE OF BIRTH	September 6, 1900
PLACE OF BIRTH	Slatitsa
DATE OF DEATH	October 21, 1980
Place of death	Sofia

[1] The Short Unhappy Life Of The Conformists. In: Time . July 14, 1952, archived from the original on March 13, 2009 ; accessed on November 10, 2019 .

[2] Chervenkov and Stalinism in Bulgaria. In: The Library of Congress Country Studies . July 4, 2002, Retrieved November 10, 2019 (reproduced on WorkMall.com).

[3] The Satellites: Exit The Red Wolf. In: Time. April 30, 1956, archived from the original on January 15, 2008 ; accessed on November 10, 2019 .

[4] The Chervenkov Era. In: The Library of Congress Country Studies; CIA World Factbook . October 10, 2004, accessed November 10, 2019 (English, reproduced on Photius.com).

[5] Bulgaria's turning point: disappointment and hope. In: derStandard.at . October 20, 2003, accessed November 10, 2019 .