Boris Karlovich Pugo (, ; 19 February 1937 – 22 August 1991) was a

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

politician of Latvian origin.

Early life and education

Pugo was born in Kalinin,

Russian SFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (Russian SFSR or RSFSR), previously known as the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and the Russian Soviet Republic, and unofficially as Soviet Russia,Declaration of Rights of the labo ...

(now

Tver Tver (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative centre of Tver Oblast, Russia. It is situated at the confluence of the Volga and Tvertsa rivers. Tver is located northwest of Moscow. Population: The city is ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

) into a family of Latvian communists. They had left Latvia after Latvia was proclaimed an independent country in 1918, and the Communist side was defeated in the war that followed. His father, Karl Janovich Pugo, was a participant in the October Revolution and the Civil War as a member of the

Latvian Riflemen The Latvian Riflemen (; ) were originally a military formation of the Imperial Russian Army assembled starting 1915 in Latvia in order to defend Baltic governorates against the German Empire in World War I. Initially, the battalions were forme ...

. His family returned to Latvia after the Soviet Union occupied and annexed it in 1940. Pugo graduated from

Riga Polytechnical Institute Riga Technical University (RTU) () is the oldest technical university in the Baltic countries established on October 14, 1862. It is located in Riga, Latvia and was previously known as Riga Polytechnical Institute and Riga Polytechnicum. In 19 ...

in 1960 and worked in various

Komsomol The All-Union Leninist Young Communist League, usually known as Komsomol, was a political youth organization in the Soviet Union. It is sometimes described as the youth division of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU), although it w ...

, Communist Party and Soviet government positions, both in Latvia and

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

Party career

Pugo served in various positions between 1960 and 1984 including the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Komsomol of the

Latvian SSR The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (Also known as the Latvian SSR, or Latvia) was a Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republic of the Soviet Union from 1940 to 1941, and then from 1944 until 1990. The Soviet occupation of the Bal ...

, a secretary of the Central Committee of Komsomol of the USSR, the First Secretary of the Riga City Committee of the Communist Party and chairman of the KGB in Latvia. Pugo was the first secretary of the

Communist Party of Latvia The Communist Party of Latvia (, LKP) was a political party in Latvia. History Latvian Social-Democracy prior to 1919 The party was founded at a congress in June 1904. Initially the party was known as the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party ...

from 14 April 1984 to 4 October 1989. Pugo also served as chairman of the

Central Control Commission of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union The Central Control Commission (, ''Tsentral'naya Kontrol'naya Komissiya'') was a supreme disciplinary body (since 1934 within the Central Committee) of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, also known as the ''Party Control Commission'' (193 ...

from 1989 to 1991. Between 1990 and 1991, Pugo was the Minister of Interior Affairs of the USSR.

August coup and death

Pugo participated in the

August coup The 1991 Soviet coup attempt, also known as the August Coup, was a failed attempt by hardliners of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) to Coup d'état, forcibly seize control of the country from Mikhail Gorbachev, who was President ...

in 1991 and as the Minister of the Interior firmly supported measures to suppress opposition to the coup. After the coup had failed, Pugo died by

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

, anticipating arrest. He was contacted by the RSFSR prosecution for a meeting and he shot himself minutes after the phone call. His wife Valentina Ivanovna also died by suicide, although sources from the time were uncertain as to whether she killed herself or was killed by her husband.

References

External links

Pugo Boris Karlovich biography
in Russian * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pugo, Boris Karlovich 1937 births 1991 suicides 1991 deaths People from Tver Riga Technical University alumni Heads of the Communist Party of Latvia People's commissars and ministers of the Soviet Union Ministers of internal affairs of the Soviet Union State Committee on the State of Emergency members Candidates of the Politburo of the 25th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Candidates of the Politburo of the 26th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Candidates of the Politburo of the 27th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Eleventh convocation members of the Soviet of Nationalities Members of the Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1967–1971 Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1971–1975 Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1975–1980 Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1980–1985 Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, 1985–1990 Expelled members of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of the Badge of Honour Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Recipients of the Order of the Red Star Latvian communists Russian people of Latvian descent Soviet colonel generals Soviet politicians who died by suicide Suicides by firearm in the Soviet Union Burials in Troyekurovskoye Cemetery