Aleksi Inauri ( ka, ალექსი ინაური; , ''Aleksey Nikolayevich Inauri'') (May 12, 1908 – June 23, 1993) was a Soviet commander who headed the Georgian KGB (Committee for State Security) for over 30 years (1954–1986) and made it one of the most effective of the KGB's regional Soviet branches. Cherkashin, Victor & Feifer, Gregory (2005), ''Spy Handler: Memoir of a KGB Officer'', p. 125. Basic Books, . He ended his career as a

colonel general Colonel general is a military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically General officer#Old European system, general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, ...

and a

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...

Early life and career

Born in Gori (then under the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

), Inauri was a worker until volunteering, in 1926, in the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

and graduated from a Cavalry School for the North Caucasian Mountainous Nationalities in

Krasnodar Krasnodar, formerly Yekaterinodar (until 1920), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Krasnodar Krai, Russia. The city stands on the Kuban River in southern Russia, with a population of 1,154,885 residents, and up to 1.263 millio ...

in 1931. From April 1931, he commanded a cavalry platoon and then a squadron of the 16th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Cavalry Division of the Ukrainian Military District. He became a member of the

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in 1932. From October 1936, Inauri was put in charge of the regimental schools for the same division, later in 1938 as assistant commander for the commanding officer. Before the outbreak of war, Inauri commanded the same division's 99th Cavalry Regiment as a

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

in the Kiev Special Military District.

World War II

From June 1941 to January 1942, lieutenant colonel Inauri led the 99th Cavalry Regiment into combat. The cavalrymen under his command excelled in mid-January 1942 during the

Second Battle of Kharkov The Second Battle of Kharkov or Operation Fredericus was an Axis powers, Axis counter-offensive in the region around Kharkov against the Red Army Izium bridgehead offensive conducted 12–28 May 1942, on the Eastern Front (World War II), Easter ...

, which led to another promotion on May 6 of the same year. From August 1942 to the end of the war, Inauri commanded the 1st Cavalry Division of the 15th Cavalry Corps, Transcaucasus Front, stationed in Iran. Due to outstanding performance, Inauri was promoted to major general by the resolution of the

Council of People's Commissars The Council of People's Commissars (CPC) (), commonly known as the ''Sovnarkom'' (), were the highest executive (government), executive authorities of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR), the Soviet Union (USSR), and the Sovi ...

of the USSR.

Post war

Inauri continued service as a commander of a cavalry division till 1946. In 1948 he graduated from the Voroshilov General Staff Academy and took charge of the 18th Mechanized Division as part of the Soviet occupation forces in Germany. In 1951 he commanded the 9th Rifle Division and in February 1953 he took command over the 3rd Mountain Rifle Corps of the

Carpathian Military District The Red Banner Carpathian Military District (, ) was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces during the Cold War and subsequently of the Armed Forces of Ukraine during the early Post-Soviet period. It was established on 3 May 1946 on the ...

. In 1954, Inauri was made head of the Georgian KGB, a post that he retained until 1986. Later in 1957, he was promoted to

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

. His tenure coincided with a series of upheavals, including the 1956 uprising, and rise of

anti-Soviet Anti-Sovietism or anti-Soviet sentiment are activities that were actually or allegedly aimed against the Soviet Union or government power within the Soviet Union. Three common uses of the term include the following: * Anti-Sovietism in inter ...

dissident groups in Georgia to which Inauri was able to respond vigorously due largely to a strict discipline imposed by him within the KGB and a large web of espionage through which Inauri's agents infiltrated dissident groups and even the

Georgian Orthodox Church The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonl ...

. He played a key role in a palace coup against

Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and the Premier of the Soviet Union, Chai ...

in October 1964, escorting the Soviet leader from his

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Pitsunda Pitsunda or Bichvinta ( ka, ბიჭვინთა, ; ; ) is a resort town in the Gagra District of Abkhazia/Georgia. Founded by Greek colonists in the 5th century BC, Pitsunda became an important political and religious centre of the region i ...

to a special meeting of the

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of the Central Committee in

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where Khrushchev was to be ousted. Inauri was promoted to the rank of colonel general in 1967 and awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union in 1985, shortly before his retirement later in 1986.Knight, Amy W. (1993), ''Beria: Stalin's First Lieutenant'', pp. 214, 277.

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, . From 1984 to 1989, Inauri was a member of the

Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union The Supreme Soviet of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (SSUSSR) was the highest body of state authority of the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1936 to 1991. Based on the principle of unified power, it was the only branch of government in the So ...

References