Kirill Trofimovich Mazurov (, ; 25 March 1914 – 19 December 1989) 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 ...

partisan, politician, and one of the leaders of the

Belarusian resistance during World War II Belarusian resistance during World War II opposed Nazi Germany from 1941 until 1944. German occupation of Byelorussia during World War II, Byelorussia was one of the Soviet republics occupied following Operation Barbarossa. The term Belarusian ...

who governed the

Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR, Byelorussian SSR or Byelorussia; ; ), also known as Soviet Belarus or simply Belarus, was a Republics of the Soviet Union, republic of the Soviet Union (USSR). It existed between 1920 and 19 ...

as First Secretary of the

Communist Party of Byelorussia 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, ...

from 1956 until 1965, when he became a member of the

Politburo of the CPSU The Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, abbreviated as Politburo, was the de facto highest executive authority in the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). While elected by and formally a ...

Political career

Kirill Mazurov was born in 1914 in the

Mogilev Governorate Mogilev Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Northwestern Krai of the Russian Empire. The governorate bordered the Vitebsk Governorate to the north, the Smolensk Governorate to the east, the Chernigov Gover ...

of 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 a peasant family of

Belarusian Belarusian may refer to: * Something of, or related to Belarus * Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent * A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus * Belarusian language * Belarusian culture * Belarusian cuisine * Byelor ...

ethnicity.Герои Страны
/ref> He was originally a construction technician, and graduated from the

Gomel Gomel (, ) or Homyel (, ) is a city in south-eastern Belarus. It serves as the administrative centre of Gomel Region and Gomel District, though it is administratively separated from the district. As of 2025, it is the List of cities and largest ...

highway technical school in 1933. He joined the

Communist Party of the Soviet Union The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU),. Abbreviated in Russian as КПСС, ''KPSS''. at some points known as the Russian Communist Party (RCP), All-Union Communist Party and Bolshevik Party, and sometimes referred to as the Soviet ...

in 1940 and 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 ...

in 1941. During the

Great Patriotic War The Eastern Front, also known as the Great Patriotic War (term), Great Patriotic War in the Soviet Union and its successor states, and the German–Soviet War in modern Germany and Ukraine, was a Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II ...

, he participated in military actions as a political instructor, a battalion commander and an instructor of the army's political department. Mazurov left the army in 1942 to become secretary of the central committee of the Belarusian

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 ...

. Mazurov then moved to a

Soviet partisan Soviet partisans were members of resistance movements that fought a guerrilla war against Axis forces during World War II in the Soviet Union, the previously Soviet-occupied territories of interwar Poland in 1941–45 and eastern Finland. The ac ...

unit where he became president of the central staff. After the war, Mazurov returned to his position as secretary of the Belarusian Komsomol. In 1947 he joined the apparatus of the

. From 1949 to 1950 he was the First Secretary of the

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

city committee and from 1950 to 1953 first secretary of the Minsk regional committee of the Communist Party of Byelorussia. From 1950 to 1979, he was a deputy 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 ...

. After

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 death, he actively supported

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 ...

. He was chairman of the

council of ministers Council of Ministers is a traditional name given to the supreme Executive (government), executive organ in some governments. It is usually equivalent to the term Cabinet (government), cabinet. The term Council of State is a similar name that also m ...

of BSSR (1953–1965), then First Secretary of the

(1956–1965). In 1964 he was appointed candidate member of the

Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee The Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, abbreviated as Politburo, was the de facto highest executive authority in the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). While elected by and formally a ...

and was then a full member from 26 March 1965 to 27 November 1978. He was also the First Deputy Chairman of the

Council of Ministers Council of Ministers is a traditional name given to the supreme Executive (government), executive organ in some governments. It is usually equivalent to the term Cabinet (government), cabinet. The term Council of State is a similar name that also m ...

(1965–1976). Mazurov retired in 1978. In the 1980s, he gave an interview to ''

Izvestia ''Izvestia'' ( rus, Известия, r=Izvestiya, p=ɪzˈvʲesʲtʲɪjə, "The News") is a daily broadsheet newspaper in Russia. Founded in February 1917, ''Izvestia'', which covered foreign relations, was the organ of the Supreme Soviet of th ...

'' in which he said he was the envoy of Brezhnev who commanded the Warsaw Pact invasion force in Czechoslovakia in 1968 under the code name "General Trofymov". He said he regretted his action, added "today I would not accept to guide one similar operation" and asked the Czechs to forgive the Soviets

Decorations

He was military decoration, awarded the

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...

five times, the

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner () was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. It was the highest award of S ...

, the

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War () is a Soviet Union, Soviet military Order (decoration), decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to Partisan (military), partisans for heroic deeds in the Easte ...

1st class and was a

Hero of Socialist Labor The Hero of Socialist Labour () was an honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It represented the highest degree of distinction in the USSR and was awarded for exceptional achievements in Soviet ...

in 1971. He received other military medals as well.

External links

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Biography of Mazurov
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Biography of Mazurov
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mazurov, Kirill 1914 births 1989 deaths Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery People from Gomel district People from Gomelsky Uyezd Deputy heads of government of the Soviet Union Members of the Central Committee of the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Central Committee of the 22nd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Central Committee of the 23rd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Central Committee of the 24th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Central Committee of the 25th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Presidium of the 20th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Presidium of the 22nd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Politburo of the 23rd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Politburo of the 24th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Members of the Politburo of the 25th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Presidium of the Supreme Soviet Third convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Fourth convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Fifth convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Sixth convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Seventh convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Eighth convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Ninth convocation members of the Soviet of the Union Members of the Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union Heads of the Communist Party of Byelorussia Heads of government of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic Members of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Soviet military personnel of World War II Belarusian partisans Heroes of Socialist Labour Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Friendship of Peoples

Political career

Decorations

Further reading

External links

References