After the death of the General Secretary of the Communist Party Yu.Andropov to his post was chosen by Konstantin Chernenko. For many, this appointment was a surprise, since the new secretary-general had multiple health problems and, apparently, did not claim this position at all. As a result, he stayed at his post for not more than a year and died of acute cardiac and hepatic insufficiency.
The future secretary general was born in 1911 on September 11 inpeasant family. His childhood was spent in the remote Siberian village of Bolshaya Tes (flooded with the waters of the Krasnoyarsk reservoir in 1972) in the Yenisei province. Its roots come from Little Russia (Ukraine). Even in the 18th century, the ancestors of Chernenko settled on the banks of the Yenisei River and began to engage in farming. His father, Ustin Demidovich, after the death of his first wife, mother Constantine and the other three children, married a second time. But the relationship with her stepmother with two stepchildren and two stepdaughters did not work out, and they had a hard life in their father's house. Konstantin Chernenko, a very young child, used to work on local kulaks. Like all Soviet children, he was accepted into the pioneers, and at the age of 14 joined the ranks of the Komsomol. And in 1926-1929. studied at a rural youth school in the city of Novoselovo.
В 1931 году К.Черненко был призван в армию.He was sent to one of the border military units located in Hogos, on the territory of the Soviet Republic of Kazakhstan (on the border with China). Over the two years of service, Konstantin Chernenko has repeatedly shown himself on the best side: he took part in the liquidation of the legendary Bekmuratov gang, became a member of the CPSU (B.), Was elected secretary of the party organization of the frontier posts.
After returning from the service, Chernenko is appointedDirector of the Territory Party Education in the city of Krasnoyarsk. Together with this he becomes the head of the agitation and propaganda department in Novoselovsky and Uyar districts. After the outbreak of the Patriotic War, he was elected secretary of the Communist Party of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. For sure, many, after reading the biography of Konstantin Chernenko, will be surprised by his luck and ask the question: how could he so quickly advance in the service? There is a version that in this played a big role his sister, Valentine, who was the "friend" of the first secretary of the communist party of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, comrade O. Aristov.
С 1943-1945 гг.he receives a referral to Moscow for study at the higher school of party organizers. In a word, throughout the war Konstantin Chernenko, whose photo is posted in the article, spent in the rear and did not participate in any of the military operations. Nevertheless, during this period he received one award - "For Valiant Labor." While still a student of a party school, he was appointed to the post of secretary of the regional committee of the Penza region, where he worked until 1948. Then from the center he receives an order to move to the Moldavian SSR and head the department of propaganda and agitation of the Central Committee of the Republic.
In Chisinau Chernenko meets Leonid IlyichBrezhnev. This meeting becomes a turning point in his destiny. Two men begin to feel strong sympathy for each other, which soon turns into a strong friendship. After that, their careers are intertwined in the most intractable way. In 1953, at the age of 42, Chernenko, in absentia, graduated from the Pedagogical Institute of Chisinau and received a diploma of higher education. Three years later, returning to Moscow, not without the patronage of Leonid Ilyich, he receives the post of head of the propaganda department of the CPSU Central Committee, and from 1960 to 1965. headed the secretariat of the USSR PVS. In the same year, Chernenko became the head of the Central Department of the Central Committee, where he worked until 1982. In the same period he becomes secretary of the KP. For many members of the Central Committee it becomes clear that the most approximate person for the new secretary general is Chernenko Konstantin Ustinovich. The years of Brezhnev's rule were for him the most fruitful, and he ascended the career ladder almost to the very top. In addition to the posts he held officially, he acted as Leonid Ilyich's most trusted man. Many envied him, but were also afraid.
Sometimes it seemed that the country is ruled not by Brezhnev, but byKonstantin Chernenko, after all, he performed many functions for the secretary general. And then he was nicknamed the "gray cardinal", because they guessed that all the important decisions came from him. Leonid Ilyich practically in all was considered with his opinion. In a word, Chernenko became an irreplaceable person for him. To all other things, Brezhnev felt that from Bones (as he kindly called him), there was no threat to his power, since he felt comfortable in the "position" of the right-hand leader of the country.
The dependence of Brezhnev on Chernenko reached suchscale, that he could not step without him. Chernenko accompanied the secretary general on foreign trips. In 1975, they paid an official visit to Finland, and in 1979 they went to Austria. There were several more visits to the socialist countries.
K. Chernenko twice married.His first wife was Faina Vasilievna, who bore him a son and daughter. Several years of married life showed that their marriage was a mistake, and the couple broke up. Nevertheless, Konstantin Ustinovich cared for his children, and later engaged in their promotion on the career ladder. In this way, his son became the first secretary of the city committee of the city of Tomsk as a completely young man. The daughter, Vera, had the opportunity to go to study in Washington. The second time Konstantin Ustinovich married in 1944. Anna Dmitrievna became his new wife. A wise, calculating woman. They say that she was able to give the right advice to her husband and that it was she who contributed to the birth of a strong friendship between Brezhnev and Chernenko.
Since 1974, Brezhnev was seriously ill.And his environment, of course, thought about who would become his successor. Since in those years Chernenko was the closest person to the secretary general, it was he who was considered the main candidate for the post of head of state. However, when in November 1982 Brezhnev died in a dream, Gromyko and Andropov were the first to call him. Today, the details of the day of the death of the Soviet leader are already known, and some details give rise to reflection. At the bed of the deceased in a narrow circle it was decided that on the post of General Secretary Brezhnev would be replaced ... no, not Chernenko, but Yuri Andropov. However, he did not have to take this position for a long time, and a year later the prophecy came true: Konstantin Ustinovich became the head of the Soviet Union. There is a version that his decision was facilitated by a decision secretly taken by the "aging" politburo dreaming of restoration, or rather, resuscitation of the Brezhnev era.
February 13, 1984, two months before the death of Yu.Andropov, the country learned the name of the new secretary general. They became Konstantin Chernenko - the same gray cardinal under the rule of Brezhnev. He was 73 years old, and he had serious health problems. Nevertheless, the new secretary-general took an active part in the creation of the new Constitution of the USSR. During the years of service to the Fatherland, he was awarded three times the Order of the Golden Star and the title Hero of Socialist Labor.
In April of the same year, after the death of Andropov, heHe was elected chairman of the Presidium of the USSR Armed Forces. In the short time of his reign, despite the frequent deterioration in health, Chernenko still managed to commemorate him with several important events. Under him, several school education reforms were carried out. September 1 in the country officially became known as the Day of Knowledge. Chernenko drew attention to the detrimental impact on the youth of Western rock music, as a result, the country fought with amateur musical groups. As for foreign policy, a warming of relations with the PRC, as well as with Spain, began to be observed during his reign. For the first time in the history of diplomatic relations, the king of Spain arrived in Moscow. But with the United States, on the contrary, relations have deteriorated further. It was decided to boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
Более подробно о 390 днях его правления можно read in the book by Victor Pribytkov "The Apparatus of Konstantin Chernenko". There are many interesting facts that will shed light on that short period in the life of the Soviet Union.
Konstantin Chernenko died in a hospital in 1985, March 10, and was the last party leader of the USSR, who was buried near the Kremlin walls.
