Lecture Notes: Biography of Nikita Khrushchev

Early Life and Rise to Power

• Joined the Communist Party as a young man.
• Started as a minor government functionary in Ukraine.
• Rose to become the leader of the Soviet Union.
• Journey to Moscow:
  • Viewed as momentous and possibly frightening.
  • Felt like an outsider (muzhik/peasant from Kursk) despite being 35 and recently literate.
  • Quickly attracted attention by denouncing fellow students who questioned Stalin.
• Early Political Career:
  • Became head of a Moscow district under Stalin.
  • Involved in the construction of Moscow's first subway.
  • Made political chieftain of Moscow in 1934.
  • Became one of Stalin's "high priests," though humiliated by him.

The Great Purges

• Role in Stalin's Purges:
  • Khrushchev helped whip up public hatred during Stalin's purge trials.
  • Known for his involvement in the execution of many in the Soviet hierarchy.
• Ukraine's Situation:
  • Made political leader of Ukraine to quell rebellion.
  • Oversaw the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians.
  • Gained the nickname "Hangman of Ukraine."

World War II and Post-war Era

• War Role:
  • Served as a political commissar during WWII.
  • Gained prestige for his association with the Battle of Stalingrad.
• Post-war Political Maneuvering:
  • Involved in the internal power struggle after Stalin's death.
  • Outmaneuvered rivals like Malenkov, Beria, Molotov, and Bulganin.

Leadership and Policies

• Denouncement of Stalin:
  • Publicly denounced Stalin in 1956, condemning his brutal regime.
• Eastern Europe and Hungarian Revolt:
  • Quashed the Hungarian revolt to maintain Soviet control.
• Space Race and Propaganda:
  • Celebrated Soviet achievements in space, such as Sputnik and Yuri Gagarin.
• Foreign Relations and the West:
  • Engaged in the "kitchen debate" with Nixon in 1959.
  • Visited the USA for a propaganda victory.
  • Clashed with Eisenhower over the U-2 incident.

Challenges and Decline

• Conflict with China:
  • Uneasy alliance with Mao Tse Tung.
• Internal Threats:
  • Worried about being overthrown by Soviet subordinates.
• Cuban Relations:
  • Courtship of Cuba under Fidel Castro, seen as a potential missile base.

Notable Events

• Khrushchev's son, Sergei, became a political science professor in the US.
• Known for his dramatic shoe-banging incident at the UN.

These notes cover the main events and themes in Khrushchev's life and tenure as a Soviet leader. They underscore his strategic political maneuvering, involvement in purges, prominent role during the Cold War, and his ultimate struggle with internal and external pressures.