The first deputy premier of the Soviet Union was the deputy

head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...

of the

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until it dissolved in 1991. During its existence, it was the largest country by are ...

(USSR). Despite the title, the office was not always held by a single individual. The office bore three different titles throughout its existence: First Deputy Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars (1923–1946), First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers (1946–1991), and First Deputy Prime Minister of the Soviet Union (1991). The term "first deputy premier" was used by outside commentators to describe the office of first deputy head of government. A first deputy premier was responsible for a specific policy area. For example,

Kirill Mazurov Kirill Trofimovich Mazurov (, ; 25 March 1914 – 19 December 1989) was a Soviet people, Soviet partisan, politician, and one of the leaders of the Belarusian resistance during World War II who governed the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic a ...

was responsible for industry, while

Dmitry Polyansky Dmitry Stepanovich Polyansky (; – 8 October 2001) was a Soviet statesman who was First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union from 1965 to 1973. From 1958 to 1962 he was Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Ru ...

was responsible for

agriculture in the Soviet Union Agriculture in the Soviet Union was mostly collectivized, with some limited cultivation of private plots. It is often viewed as one of the more inefficient sectors of the economy of the Soviet Union. A number of food taxes ( prodrazverstka, ...

. In addition, an officeholder would be responsible for coordinating the activities of

ministries Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

, state committees, and other bodies subordinated to the government. It was expected that a First Deputy gave these organs guidance in an expeditious manner to ensure the implementation of plans for economic and social development and to check if the orders and decisions of the government were being followed. If the premier could not perform his duties one of the first deputies would take on the role of acting premier until the premier's return. During the late 1970s, when the health of Premier

Alexei Kosygin Alexei Nikolayevich Kosygin (–18 December 1980) was a Soviet people, Soviet statesman during the Cold War. He served as the Premier of the Soviet Union from 1964 to 1980 and, alongside General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev, was one of its most ...

deteriorated, First Deputy Premier

Nikolai Tikhonov Nikolai Aleksandrovich Tikhonov ( – 1 June 1997) was a Soviet Russian-Ukrainian statesman during the Cold War. He served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers from 1980 to 1985, and as a First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers, ...

acted on his behalf as during his absence. Finally, a first deputy was by right a member of the government

Presidium A presidium or praesidium is a council of executive officers in some countries' political assemblies that collectively administers its business, either alongside an individual president or in place of one. The term is also sometimes used for the ...

, its highest decision-making organ. Twenty-six individuals held the office of first deputy premier. The first officeholder was

Valerian Kuibyshev Valerian Vladimirovich Kuybyshev (; – 25 January 1935) was a Russian revolutionary, Red Army officer, and prominent Soviet politician. Biography Early years Born in Omsk in Siberia on , Kuybyshev studied at the , a Cadet Corps in O ...

, who was inaugurated in 1934.

Lavrentiy Beria Lavrentiy Pavlovich Beria ka, ლავრენტი პავლეს ძე ბერია} ''Lavrenti Pavles dze Beria'' ( – 23 December 1953) was a Soviet politician and one of the longest-serving and most influential of Joseph ...

spent the shortest time in office, serving for 113 days. At more than seventeen years,

Vyacheslav Molotov Vyacheslav Mikhaylovich Molotov (; – 8 November 1986) was a Soviet politician, diplomat, and revolutionary who was a leading figure in the government of the Soviet Union from the 1920s to the 1950s, as one of Joseph Stalin's closest allies. ...

spent the longest time in office, and held his position for most 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 chairmanship, as well as through the chairmanships of

Georgy Malenkov Georgy Maximilianovich Malenkov (8 January 1902 O.S. 26 December 1901">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 26 December 1901ref name=":6"> – 14 January 1988) was a Soviet politician who br ...

and

Nikolai Bulganin Nikolai Alexandrovich Bulganin (; – 24 February 1975) was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 1955 to 1958. He also served as Minister of Defense (Soviet Union), Minister of Defense, following service in the Red Army during World War II. ...

List of officeholders

Notes

References

* First Deputy Premier Lists of office-holders in the Soviet Union First Deputy Premier {{featured list

List of officeholders

See also

Notes

References