Donduk Kuular (, ; 1888–1932) was a

Tuva Tuva (; ) or Tyva (; ), officially the Republic of Tyva,; , is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia. Tuva lies at the geographical center of Asia, in southern Siberia. The republic borders the Federal subjects of Russia, federal sub ...

n monk, politician, and prime minister of the

Tuvan People's Republic The Tuvan People's Republic (TPR), known simply as Tannu Tuva, was a partially recognized socialist republic that existed between 1921 and 1944 in North Asia. It was located in the same territory as the former Imperial Russian protectorate of ...

Life

Born in

Tannu Uriankhai Tannu Uriankhai (, ; , ; ) was a historical region of the Mongol Empire, its principal successor, the Yuan dynasty, and later the Qing dynasty. The territory of Tannu Uriankhai largely corresponds to the modern-day Tuva Republic of the Russian F ...

during the rule of the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

of China, Donduk was originally a Lamaist monk. As leader of a group of Russian-supported

Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

, he proclaimed the independence of the People's Republic of Tannu Tuva from 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 ...

in 1921. He subsequently switched his allegiance to the

Tuvan People's Revolutionary Party The Tuvan People's Revolutionary Party was a political party in Tuva, founded in 1921. When the Tuvan People's Republic was founded in the same year, the party held single-party control over its government as a vanguard party. History Under ...

. Aware of his young nation's vulnerability, Donduk sought to establish ties with the

Mongolian People's Republic The Mongolian People's Republic (MPR) was a socialist state that existed from 1924 to 1992, located in the historical region of Outer Mongolia. Its independence was officially recognized by the Nationalist government of Republic of China (1912� ...

. His monastic background and theocratic inclinations gave him a close relationship with the country's lamas, whose interests he sought to advance in spite of

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

's growing irritation. In 1926 he established Buddhism as the state religion of Tannu Tuva, which in November was renamed the Tuvan People's Republic. Stalin found Donduk's separatist and theocratic tendencies obnoxious, and counter to communist principles of internationalism and atheism. In 1929 he was removed from power and arrested. Meanwhile, five Tuvan graduates of the

Communist University of the Toilers of the East The Communist University of the Toilers of the East (, KUTV; also known as the Far East University) was a revolutionary training school for important communist political leaders. The school operated under the umbrella of the Communist Internatio ...

were appointed ''commissars extraordinary'' to Tuva. Their loyalty to Stalin ensured that they would pursue policies, such as

collectivization Collective farming and communal farming are various types of "agricultural production in which multiple farmers run their holdings as a joint enterprise". There are two broad types of communal farms: agricultural cooperatives, in which member- ...

, that Donduk had ignored. A coup was launched in 1929. One of these commissars,

Salchak Toka Salchak Kalbakkhorekovich Toka (, – 11 May 1973) was a Tuvan and later, Soviet politician. He was General Secretary of the Tuvan department of the CPSU from 1944 to 1973; previously, he was the List of leaders of Communist Tuva#Heads of party ...

, replaced Donduk as General Secretary of the Tuvan People's Revolutionary Party. On 22 March 1932, Donduk was sentenced the highest penaltydeath through execution by a firing squadalongside 3 other figures named "exploiters" including

Mongush Buyan-Badyrgy Mongush Buyan-Badyrgy (, ; 25April 189222March 1932) was a Tuvan politician and statesman. Adopted by a ''noyon'' (chieftain) after his birth, he succeeded his adoptive father in that role between 1907 and 1909. He was the ''noyon'' for his ''k ...

, and the following day they were executed.Indjin Bayart: ''An Russland, das kein Russland ist'', Hamburg 2014, p. 114.
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References

1888 births 1932 deaths Anti-Stalinist left History of the Tuvan People's Republic People executed by the Soviet Union Independence activists Tuvan people Tibetan Buddhism in Siberia Tibetan Buddhists from Russia {{tuva-stub