Viktoria Petrovna Brezhneva (russian: Виктория Петровна Брежнева, link=no, , Denisova, Дени́сова, ; 11 December 1908 – 5 July 1995) was the wife of

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

politician and longtime

General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev; uk, links= no, Леонід Ілліч Брежнєв, . (19 December 1906– 10 November 1982) was a Soviet politician who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union between 1964 and 1 ...

. She was the

mother ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the case of ...

of Yuri Brezhnev and Galina Brezhneva.

Biography

She was born in

Belgorod Belgorod ( rus, Белгород, p=ˈbʲeɫɡərət) is a city and the administrative center of Belgorod Oblast, Russia, located on the Seversky Donets River north of the border with Ukraine. Population: Demographics The population of B ...

in 1908 as Viktoria Petrovna Denisova (Дени́сова). It is claimed by historian Robert Service that she was of Jewish ancestry but Denisova herself has denied having any Jewish ancestry. She met

in 1926 and they married in 1928. The following year, Viktoria gave birth to their first child, Galina. Four years later, their second child,

Yuri Yuri may refer to: People and fictional characters Given name *Yuri (Slavic name), the Slavic masculine form of the given name George, including a list of people with the given name Yuri, Yury, etc. * Yuri (Japanese name), also Yūri, feminine Ja ...

, was born. Viktoria's relationship with Brezhnev was described as "old fashioned" and one that "without exaggeration ouldbe called gentle". According to the memoirs of Brezhnev's relatives, Viktoria encouraged Brezhnev's materialistic outlook. During Brezhnev's General Secretaryship, Viktoria remained at the sidelines; she did not like attracting public attention. Her last appearance in public was at Brezhnev's state funeral in 1982. Following the death of Brezhnev, Viktoria lived on for another 13 years, dying after struggling for several years with

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ...

in 1995. She lived in Brezhnev's old apartment for the remainder of her life. Her daughter, Galina, did not attend the funeral although the rest of the family did.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brezhneva, Viktoria 1908 births 1995 deaths People from Belgorod People from Belgorodsky Uyezd Viktoria Brezhneva Soviet women Spouses of Russian and Soviet national leaders Deaths from diabetes Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery