Council of People's Commissars


The Council of People's Commissars was a government institution formed soon after the October Revolution during 1917. Created in the Russian Republic, the council began forming the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. It evolved to become the highest executive authority of the government of the Soviet Union. The chairman of this council was thus the head of government, and was usually called "premier" or "prime minister" outside Russia and the Soviet Union.
The 1918 Constitution of the RSFSR formalized the role of the Sovnarkom of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic : it was to be responsible to the Congress of Soviets for the "general administration of the affairs of the state". The constitution enabled the Sovnarkom to issue decrees having the force of law when the Congress was not in session. If these decrees were not approved at the Congress' next session, they were considered revoked. In practice, due to the principles of democratic centralism, the Congress merely rubber-stamped these decrees at its next session.
When the Soviet Union was established during December 1922, the USSR Sovnarkom was modeled on the RSFSR Sovnarkom. It was transformed during 1946 into the Council of Ministers.

Original People's Commissars

The first council elected by the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets was composed as follows. Many early commisars later opposed the party majority organized by Stalin and allegedly conspired with the Trotskyist opposition or some other opposition group, which resulted in their expulsion from the party or being arrested. The party had banned factional opposition groups at the Eleventh Party Congress during 1921. Still the original People's Comissariat included Left-Communists, Trotskyists and other ex-oppositionists. Most alleged conspirators were executed for treason during the Great Purge, some had sentences reduced to imprisonment.
People's CommissarOriginal incumbentDeath
ChairmanVladimir LeninStroke, 1924
SecretaryNikolai GorbunovExecuted 1938
People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs of the RSFSRLeon TrotskyAssassinated 1940
People's Commissariat for AgricultureVladimir Milyutindied in prison 1937
Council of People's Commissars on War and Navy AffairsNikolai Krylenko Executed 1938
Council of People's Commissars on War and Navy AffairsPavel Dybenko Executed 1938
People's Commissariat for Trade and Industry of the RSFSRViktor NoginNatural causes 1924
People's Commissariat for Education of the RSFSRAnatoly LunacharskyNatural causes 1933
People's Commissariat for FoodIvan TeodorovichExecuted 1937
People's Commissariat for Interior Affairs of the RSFSRAlexei RykovExecuted 1938
People's Commissariat for JusticeGeorgy OppokovExecuted 1938
People's Commissariat for LabourAlexander ShlyapnikovExecuted 1937
People's Commissariat of Marine Fleet of the USSRSemyon Dukelsky In connection with the increased paranoia is placed in the hospital. He wrote denunciations against doctors allegedly plotting to kill him on instructions from US intelligence. Natural causes 1960
People's Commissariat of NationalitiesJoseph StalinNatural causes 1953
People's Commissariat for Posts and Telegraphs of the RSFSRNikolai Glebov-AvilovExecuted 1937
People's Commissariat for Railways
People's Commissariat for FinanceIvan Skvortsov-StepanovTyphoid fever 1928
People's Commissariat for Social WelfareAlexandra KollontaiNatural causes 1952

All-Union Sovnarkom

Upon the creation of the USSR in 1922, the Union's government was modelled after the first Sovnarkom. The Soviet republics retained their own governments which dealt with domestic matters.

Sovmin

In 1946, the Sovnarkoms were transformed into the Council of Ministers at both all-Union and Union Republic level.

Councils by administrative division