The Soviet Control Commission (, SKK) was a monitoring and management committee established by the

Soviet Union 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 ...

in order to oversee the leadership of the

German Democratic Republic East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. It was active from 10 October 1949 and 20 September 1955 and it was legitimated by the

Potsdam Agreement The Potsdam Agreement () was the agreement among three of the Allies of World War II: the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union after the war ended in Europe that was signed on 1 August 1945 and published the following day. A ...

between the Allies.

History

In 1949, the

Soviet Military Administration in Germany The Soviet Military Administration in Germany (; ''Sovyetskaya Voyennaya Administratsiya v Germanii'', SVAG; , SMAD) was the Soviet military government, headquartered in Berlin- Karlshorst, that directly ruled the Soviet occupation zone in German ...

(SMAD), which had been previously the main authority in the Soviet occupation zone, transferred its powers to the German administrative institutions in sight of the foundation of a self-governing communist-led state in East Germany. When the

was proclaimed in October 1949, the SMAD was dismantled and reorganized as the Soviet Control Commission, giving more independence to the GDR government. As Supreme Commander of the Group of Soviet Forces in Germany and SMAD leader, General Vasily Chuikov oversaw the establishment of the SKK and he became head of it shortly thereafter. After the

death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

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 ...

, the Commission became known as the "High Commission of the USSR in Germany". The former political adviser to General Chuikov, Vladimir Semyonov, was appointed as the High Commissioner. The apparatus of the High Commissioner had a decisive role in suppressing the anti-government protests which began in East Berlin and covered the entire territory of the German Democratic Republic in June 1953 (see East German uprising of 1953). The USSR abolished the commission on 20 September 1955 after the recognizing of the "full sovereignty" of the GDR. However, the Soviet government had continued to exercise its political influence through its embassy in East Berlin and the presence of Red Army troops in the East German territory.

Functions

If the decisions made by the GDR government were considered against Soviet directives or Marxist–Leninist principles, the SKK was authorized to overrule each decision. Local officials had little revision power on the decisions. The Soviet Control Commission had controlled both the federal government of the GDR and each local state government, and it had been considered as the ultimate authority in both the Soviet zone and in the former East Germany. Günther Heydemann: ''Die SBZ- und DDR-Forschung im Institut für Zeitgeschichte'', in: Horst Möller, Udo Wengst (Hrsg.): ''50 Jahre Institut für Zeitgeschichte. Eine Bilanz'', Oldenbourg, München 1999, , S. 469–486, hier S. 479. The SKK monitored the implementation of the Potsdam agreements and of the other Allied decisions in the GDR. Members of the Soviet Control commission had to represent the interests of the Soviet Union in the GDR, but at the same time they also supported the leading

Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (, ; SED, ) was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from the country's foundation in 1949 until its dissolution after the Peaceful Revolution in 1989. It was a Mar ...

in its actions against internal and external political opponents.

References

{{Authority control 1949 establishments in the Soviet Union Politics of East Germany Germany–Soviet Union relations 1949 establishments in East Germany 1953 disestablishments in East Germany Soviet forces in Germany

History

Functions

See also

References