Who Were the Leaders of the Soviet Union?
The Soviet Union (USSR) officially began in October 1917 after the monarchy was ousted in the Russian Revolution. The USSR existed for 3/4 of a century during which time there were a series of internationally prominent leaders. The following seven Soviet leaders played significant roles in shaping the 20th century: USSR Leader Leadership Began Leadership Ended Duration Vladimir Ilych Lenin 26 October 1917 3 April 1922 4 years 6 months Joseph Stalin 3 April 1922 5 March 1953 30 years 11 months Nikita Khrushchev 7 September 1953 14 October 1964 11 years 1 month Leonid Brezhnev 14 October 1964 10 November 1982 18 years 1 month Yuri Andropov 12 November 1982 9 February 1984 1 year 3 months Konstantin Chernenko 13 February 1984 10 March 1985 1 year 1 month Mikhail Gorbachev 11 March 1985 25 December 1991 6 years 9 months As is evident from the chart above, Stalin ruled the Soviet Union for an astonishing 3 decades! Yuri Andropov and Konstantin Chernenko, on the other hand, presided over the
