Vyacheslav Molotov
Vyacheslav Mikhaylovich Molotov[a] (né Skryabin;[b] 9 March [O. S. 25 February] 1890 – 8 November 1986) was a Russian and later Soviet politician and diplomat, an Old Bolshevik, and a leading figure in the Soviet government from the 1920s onward. He served as Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars from 1930 to 1941 and as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1939 to 1949 and from 1953 to 1956. He is considered to be one of the greatest diplomats in history.[1]
In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Mikhaylovich and the family name is Molotov.
Vyacheslav Molotov
- Joseph Stalin
- Georgy Malenkov
- Nikolai Bulganin
Joseph Stalin
Himself (as Minister of Foreign Affairs)
Himself (as People's Commisar for Foreign Affairs)
Andrey Vyshinsky
Position established
Joseph Stalin
(as General Secretary)
9 March 1890
Kukarka, Russian Empire (present day Sovetsk, Kirov Oblast, Russia)
8 November 1986 (aged 96)
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Novodevichy Cemetery, Moscow
Vyacheslav Nikonov (grandson)
During the 1930s, he ranked second in the Soviet leadership, after Joseph Stalin, whom he supported loyally for over 30 years, and whose reputation he continued to defend after Stalin's death. As People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs in August 1939, Molotov became the principal Soviet signatory of the German–Soviet non-aggression pact, also known as the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact. He retained his place as a leading Soviet diplomat and politician until March 1949, when he fell out of Stalin's favour and lost the foreign affairs ministry leadership to Andrei Vyshinsky. Molotov's relationship with Stalin deteriorated further, and Stalin criticised Molotov in a speech to the 19th Party Congress.
Molotov was reappointed Minister of Foreign Affairs after Stalin's death in 1953 but staunchly opposed Nikita Khrushchev's de-Stalinization policy, which resulted in his eventual dismissal from all positions and expulsion from the party in 1961 (after numerous unsuccessful petitions, Molotov was readmitted in 1984).[2] Molotov defended Stalin's policies and legacy until his death in 1986 and harshly criticised Stalin's successors, especially Khrushchev.
Personality[edit]
Trotsky and his supporters underestimated Molotov, and the same went for many others. Trotsky called him "mediocrity personified," and Molotov himself pedantically corrected comrades referring to him as "Stone Arse" by saying that Lenin had actually dubbed him "Iron Arse."[3] However, that outward dullness concealed a sharp mind and great administrative talent. He operated mainly behind the scenes and cultivated an image of a colourless bureaucrat.[15]
Molotov was reported to be a vegetarian and teetotaler by the American journalist John Gunther in 1938.[16] However, Milovan Djilas claimed that Molotov "drank more than Stalin"[17] and did not note his vegetarianism although they had attended several banquets.
Molotov and his wife had two daughters: Sonia, adopted in 1929, and Svetlana, born in 1930.[10]