February 6, 1922, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks decided to establish the State Political Administration. What is GPU? Why were the Bolsheviks not satisfied with the previous punishing and controlling body - the Cheka? We will try to answer in this article.
Reorganization of the Cheka
Before answering the question of what the GPU is, it is necessary to understand why in 1922 the members of the party were no longer satisfied with the Cheka (All-Russian Emergency Commission).
VChK was created almost immediately after the Bolsheviks seized power. The communists themselves called this event a revolution, and in Soviet historiography it was called the Great October Socialist Revolution. Recall that in February 1917 the Great Bourgeois Revolution had already passed. The emperor was overthrown, power was to be transferred to a democratic government - the Constituent Assembly. However, on October 25, Lenin and his associates carried out an armed seizure of power.
Naturally, the revolutionary forces did not support such an adventurous trick. Oppositionists began to be called "controversy", i.e. supporters of the counterrevolution. Subsequently, thisthey began to give the term to everyone who somehow disagreed with the actions of the Bolsheviks. It was to combat the “counter” that the All-Russian Extraordinary Commission was created in December 1917. It was headed by F. E. Dzerzhinsky, nicknamed "Iron Felix" for his strong character and tough temper.
Why did the Cheka cease to suit the Bolsheviks?
The Cheka is a punitive body whose work was directed against supporters of the counterrevolution. Any citizen who at least somehow showed dissatisfaction with the current government could be declared "counter". To understand what the GPU is and how it differed from the Cheka, we list the powers of the punitive organization. Chekists on the ground had unlimited power. Their competence included:
- Search at any time of the day or night without explanation.
- Arrest and interrogation of any suspicious, according to the KGB, citizen.
- Expropriation of property from "kulaks" and "counters" without trial or investigation. Which in practice led to total robbery.
- Detention and execution without trial.
Chekists were not controlled by anyone. They considered themselves "special", having the right to any action in the "interests of the revolution" and against the "fight against the counter". Thousands of ordinary citizens fell under execution without trial or investigation during the "Red Terror". The Chekists themselves sometimes did not even see the accused. Executions were carried out after the compilation of certain lists. Often the reason for the massacre was the surname, appearance, occupation, etc. Bolshevikswere winning the civil war, so they considered the repressive measures justified. Then events took place that completely changed the consciousness of the Bolsheviks: peasants and soldiers went to war. The most famous of them is the Tambov uprising. Chemical weapons were used against the rebels, the children and wives of the partisans were sent to camps, forcing fathers and husbands to surrender. But the uprising in Kronstadt was truly unexpected. In fact, the Bolsheviks were opposed by a force that brought them to power. After that, it became clear that this could not continue.
GPU: transcript
GPU stands for Main Political Directorate. The reorganization of the Cheka took place on February 6, 1922. After the creation of the USSR, the OGPU was formed in November 1923 - the United State Political Administration. The combined structure included the GPU of the NKVD of the RSFSR (the main political department of the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic), as well as all the former organizations of the Cheka and the GPU of the other republics. In fact, all disparate punitive bodies were included in a single and understandable management system. So, what is the GPU (decoding), we have covered. We list the internal changes that followed the creation of this organization.
Restricting the arbitrariness of security officers
The reform has significantly reduced the arbitrariness of the fighters with "counter". Total arbitrariness has come to an end. Of course, the GPU officers also went too far on the ground, but this was already a violation of the law, for which it was supposedpunishment. Even the top leaders of the Chekists - Yagoda and Yezhov - were shot for arbitrariness and numerous excesses.
After the reform, the Main Political Directorate has become not a punishing, but a law enforcement organization. Her competence also included the fight against enemies and spies, the protection of borders, control over the work of the police, etc. However, now all arrests and executions were ordered by the courts, and not by the distraught Chekists. In addition, there was a significant reduction in staffing in the field, and the work of employees was controlled by the prosecutor's office.
In fact, there was a demotion of the Chekists: before the reform, no one controlled them, they could do any arbitrary act "in the interests of the revolution", and the body itself was directly subordinate to the SNK (Council of People's Commissars). The Cheka was superior to the NKVD. After the reform, the Chekists became not a "special" unit, but policemen, since the OGPU became one of the units of the NKVD. A prosecutor's office was created to control the work of the new agency.
Liquidation
So, what is the GP, we found out. Let's talk a little about further reorganizations.
In 1934, the OGPU was completely liquidated as an organization. She completely merged with the NKVD. From 1934 to 1936 the organization was headed by G. G. Yagoda, from 1936 to 1938 - N. I. Yezhov. And since 1938 - L. P. Beria. All of them were later shot.
In 1941, the NKVD split into the NKVD and the NKGB (People's Commissariat for State Security). The NKGB became the successor of the Cheka-GPU-OGPU.
In 1946, the NKGB was reorganized into the MGB (Ministrystate security). After coming to power N. S. Khrushchev, the MGB becomes the KGB (Committee of State Security) in 1954. It lasted until the collapse of the Union. Today, the functions of the OGPU are performed by 4 departments at once: the GRU (Main Intelligence Directorate), the FSB (Federal Security Service), the Investigative Committee, and the National Guard.
However, only FSB officers are considered the successors of the "Chekists".
