Sergei Ogoltsov
Encyclopedia
Sergei Ivanovich Ogoltsov (Сергей Иванович Огольцов in Russian)(August 29, 1900-October 26, 1976) was a Russian member of the Soviet NKVD
from 1936 until it was reorganized as the MGB in 1946. He served in the MGB until his arrest in 1953. He was the Deputy Director of State Security (MGB) from July 14, 1951 to August 9, 1951. By the time he was arrested in 1953 he had risen to the rank of Lieutenant General in the NKVD. He was released from prison in 1953 after a short arrest and he retired from the MGB. He died in 1976.
. He worked as a trainee clerk in 1916 and as a parish executive committee secretary in Prigorodskogo in 1917. In 1918-1919 he was the investigator for Sapozhkovskoy county and in 1919-1920 he was the Cheka
chief there. In 1919, Ogoltsov joined the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
(RKP)
In 1920 Ogoltsov was transferred by the Cheka to Ukraine
where he worked as the operkommissar until his promotion to deputy in 1921 Kharkov. Following his duty in Kharkov, Ogoltsov also worked for the Cheka in Poltava
.
He graduated from the School of the Frontier (OGPU) in 1927.
. His command was continually transferred in the 1930s to different units within Ukraine including the 22nd Volochisskogo NKVD border unit, and the 26th NKVD border detachment in Odessa
, and the 27th NKVD border unit in Sevastopol. He was promoted to the commander officer of the 27th Crimean NKVD border group in 1936.
After spending most of the 1930s in Ukraine among various NKVD and border units, he joined the NKVD administration in Leningrad in 1939. For the next few years he spent time in Leningrad and Kuibyshev until he was made the Commissar of State Security of the Kazakh SSR
in 1944. While at this position, Ogoltsov participated in the deportation of many Soviet peoples to Kazakh SSR. After holding several other positions Ogoltsov became the 1st Deputy Minister of Public Security of the USSR in 1951. Joseph Stalin
then nominated Ogoltsov for Minister of State Security after the removal of Vsevolod Nikolayevich Merkulov
, but he initially refused citing a lack of knowledge and experience. In 1952 Ogoltsov served as the Minister of Public Security in Uzbekistan, and then became the Head of Main Intelligence Directorate of the MVD. His final position was as the First Deputy Minister of State Security. In 1954 he was expelled from the RKP, and in 1959 he was stripped of his rank and awards from the government.
1941 Deputy Head of People's Commissariat of State Security NKGB Leningrad, Deputy Head of People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs NKVD Leningrad
1941-1943 Head of People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs NKVD Kuibyshev
1943-1944 Head of People's Commissariat of State Security NKGB Kuibyshev
1944-1945 Head of People's Commissariat of State Security Kazakh SSR
1945-1946 First Deputy People's Commissariat of State Security
1946 First Deputy Minister of State Security
1946-1951 Deputy Minister of State Security
1951-1952 Acting Minister of State Security, First Deputy Minister of State Security
1952 Head of Ministry of State Security MGB Uzbek SSR
1952-1953 First Deputy Minister of State Security, Head of Main Intelligence Directorate, Ministry of State Security MVD
1953 First Deputy Minister of State Security
. In 1941, while Ogoltsov was Head of People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs NKVD Kuibyshev, he was involved in the execution of Wiktor Alter. Alter was part of the Bund
, a Jewish-socialist committee against Adolf Hitler
in Poland
. Alter was arrested as a result of the Soviet persecution of Poles after the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
was signed. A number of Polish Jews were outraged after they discovered the Katyn Massacre
, and anyone who opposed the Soviets could expect to face deportation or execution.
The other controversial act of Ogoltsov's career was the murder of Jewish actor and producer Solomon Mikhoels
. In 1948, while serving as the Deputy Director of State Security, Ogoltsov is accused of participating in the murder of Solomon Mikhoels in Minsk
, Belarus
. Robert Conquest, a British historian and author, wrote Robert Conquest
, in his book "Reflections on a Ravaged Century" that Mikhoels "was clubbed to death at Belorussia's KGB dacha on January 1948 under the supervision of Stalin's Deputy Minister of State Security, Sergei Ogoltsov."
After Stalin's death, Ogoltsov was removed from his position as the First Deputy Minister of State Security by Beria and arrested for the murder of Solomon Mikhoels. Soon after Beria died, and Ogoltsov was rehabilitated and released.
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
from 1936 until it was reorganized as the MGB in 1946. He served in the MGB until his arrest in 1953. He was the Deputy Director of State Security (MGB) from July 14, 1951 to August 9, 1951. By the time he was arrested in 1953 he had risen to the rank of Lieutenant General in the NKVD. He was released from prison in 1953 after a short arrest and he retired from the MGB. He died in 1976.
Early life
Sergei Ivanovich Ogoltsov was born on August 29, 1900 as the son of a peasant in a village in the province of RyazanRyazan
Ryazan is a city and the administrative center of Ryazan Oblast, Russia. It is located on the Oka River southeast of Moscow. Population: The strategic bomber base Dyagilevo is just west of the city, and the air base of Alexandrovo is to the southeast as is the Ryazan Turlatovo Airport...
. He worked as a trainee clerk in 1916 and as a parish executive committee secretary in Prigorodskogo in 1917. In 1918-1919 he was the investigator for Sapozhkovskoy county and in 1919-1920 he was the Cheka
Cheka
Cheka was the first of a succession of Soviet state security organizations. It was created by a decree issued on December 20, 1917, by Vladimir Lenin and subsequently led by aristocrat-turned-communist Felix Dzerzhinsky...
chief there. In 1919, Ogoltsov joined the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...
(RKP)
In 1920 Ogoltsov was transferred by the Cheka to Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
where he worked as the operkommissar until his promotion to deputy in 1921 Kharkov. Following his duty in Kharkov, Ogoltsov also worked for the Cheka in Poltava
Poltava
Poltava is a city in located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Poltava Oblast , as well as the surrounding Poltava Raion of the oblast. Poltava's estimated population is 298,652 ....
.
He graduated from the School of the Frontier (OGPU) in 1927.
Career in State Security
In 1923, Ogoltsov became the Inspector Special Branch 14 Infantry Corps based in KievKiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
. His command was continually transferred in the 1930s to different units within Ukraine including the 22nd Volochisskogo NKVD border unit, and the 26th NKVD border detachment in Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
, and the 27th NKVD border unit in Sevastopol. He was promoted to the commander officer of the 27th Crimean NKVD border group in 1936.
After spending most of the 1930s in Ukraine among various NKVD and border units, he joined the NKVD administration in Leningrad in 1939. For the next few years he spent time in Leningrad and Kuibyshev until he was made the Commissar of State Security of the Kazakh SSR
Kazakh SSR
The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Kazakh SSR for short, was one of republics that made up the Soviet Union.At in area, it was the second largest constituent republic in the USSR, after the Russian SFSR. Its capital was Alma-Ata . Today it is the independent state of...
in 1944. While at this position, Ogoltsov participated in the deportation of many Soviet peoples to Kazakh SSR. After holding several other positions Ogoltsov became the 1st Deputy Minister of Public Security of the USSR in 1951. Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
then nominated Ogoltsov for Minister of State Security after the removal of Vsevolod Nikolayevich Merkulov
Vsevolod Nikolayevich Merkulov
Vsevolod Nikolayevich Merkulov , was the head of NKGB from February to July 1941, and again from April 1943 to March 1946. He was a member of the so-called "Georgian mafia" of Lavrenti Beria, head of the NKVD.In 1913, Merkulov graduated from the Tiflis Gymnasium with the gold medal and became a...
, but he initially refused citing a lack of knowledge and experience. In 1952 Ogoltsov served as the Minister of Public Security in Uzbekistan, and then became the Head of Main Intelligence Directorate of the MVD. His final position was as the First Deputy Minister of State Security. In 1954 he was expelled from the RKP, and in 1959 he was stripped of his rank and awards from the government.
List of titles held
1939-1941 Head of People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs NKVD LeningradLeningrad
Leningrad is the former name of Saint Petersburg, Russia.Leningrad may also refer to:- Places :* Leningrad Oblast, a federal subject of Russia, around Saint Petersburg* Leningrad, Tajikistan, capital of Muminobod district in Khatlon Province...
1941 Deputy Head of People's Commissariat of State Security NKGB Leningrad, Deputy Head of People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs NKVD Leningrad
1941-1943 Head of People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs NKVD Kuibyshev
Samara, Russia
Samara , is the sixth largest city in Russia. It is situated in the southeastern part of European Russia at the confluence of the Volga and Samara Rivers. Samara is the administrative center of Samara Oblast. Population: . The metropolitan area of Samara-Tolyatti-Syzran within Samara Oblast...
1943-1944 Head of People's Commissariat of State Security NKGB Kuibyshev
1944-1945 Head of People's Commissariat of State Security Kazakh SSR
1945-1946 First Deputy People's Commissariat of State Security
1946 First Deputy Minister of State Security
1946-1951 Deputy Minister of State Security
1951-1952 Acting Minister of State Security, First Deputy Minister of State Security
1952 Head of Ministry of State Security MGB Uzbek SSR
Uzbek SSR
The Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Uzbek SSR for short, was one of the republics of the Soviet Union since its creation in 1924...
1952-1953 First Deputy Minister of State Security, Head of Main Intelligence Directorate, Ministry of State Security MVD
1953 First Deputy Minister of State Security
Controversies and arrest
During Ogoltsov's tenure in the NKVD under Lavrenti Beria, he was involved in the killings of several prominent JewsJews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
. In 1941, while Ogoltsov was Head of People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs NKVD Kuibyshev, he was involved in the execution of Wiktor Alter. Alter was part of the Bund
Bund
- Organizations :* German American Bund, a pro-Nazi pre-World War II organisation* General Jewish Labour Bund in Lithuania, Poland and Russia, a political party founded in the Russian Empire* General Jewish Labour Bund in Poland, a political party founded in Poland...
, a Jewish-socialist committee against Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. Alter was arrested as a result of the Soviet persecution of Poles after the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, named after the Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov and the German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, was an agreement officially titled the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union and signed in Moscow in the late hours of 23 August 1939...
was signed. A number of Polish Jews were outraged after they discovered the Katyn Massacre
Katyn massacre
The Katyn massacre, also known as the Katyn Forest massacre , was a mass execution of Polish nationals carried out by the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs , the Soviet secret police, in April and May 1940. The massacre was prompted by Lavrentiy Beria's proposal to execute all members of...
, and anyone who opposed the Soviets could expect to face deportation or execution.
The other controversial act of Ogoltsov's career was the murder of Jewish actor and producer Solomon Mikhoels
Solomon Mikhoels
Solomon Mikhoels ; was a Soviet Jewish actor and the artistic director of the Moscow State Jewish Theater. Mikhoels served as the chairman of the Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee during the Second World War...
. In 1948, while serving as the Deputy Director of State Security, Ogoltsov is accused of participating in the murder of Solomon Mikhoels in Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
, Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
. Robert Conquest, a British historian and author, wrote Robert Conquest
Robert Conquest
George Robert Ackworth Conquest CMG is a British historian who became a well-known writer and researcher on the Soviet Union with the publication in 1968 of The Great Terror, an account of Stalin's purges of the 1930s...
, in his book "Reflections on a Ravaged Century" that Mikhoels "was clubbed to death at Belorussia's KGB dacha on January 1948 under the supervision of Stalin's Deputy Minister of State Security, Sergei Ogoltsov."
After Stalin's death, Ogoltsov was removed from his position as the First Deputy Minister of State Security by Beria and arrested for the murder of Solomon Mikhoels. Soon after Beria died, and Ogoltsov was rehabilitated and released.
See also
- Soviet UnionSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
- Felix Dzerzhinsky - Founder of the Cheka
- Chronology of Soviet secret police agenciesChronology of Soviet secret police agenciesThere was a succession of Soviet secret police agencies over time. The first secret police after the Russian Revolution, created by Vladimir Lenin's decree on December 20, 1917, was called "Cheka"...
- World War II crimes in Poland
- Mass graves in the Soviet UnionMass graves in the Soviet UnionThis page discusses mass graves in the Soviet Union.-Soviet repression and terror:The government of the USSR under Stalin murdered many of its own citizens and foreigners. These mass killings were carried out by the security organisations, such as the NKVD, and reached their peak in the Great Purge...
- NKVD prisoner massacres
- Doctors' plotDoctors' plotThe Doctors' plot was the most dramatic anti-Jewish episode in the Soviet Union during Joseph Stalin's regime, involving the "unmasking" of a group of prominent Moscow doctors, predominantly Jews, as conspiratorial assassins of Soviet leaders...
, engineered by Beria. - Genrikh YagodaGenrikh YagodaGenrikh Grigoryevich Yagoda , born Enokh Gershevich Ieguda , was a Soviet state security official who served as director of the NKVD, the Soviet Union's Stalin-era security and intelligence agency, from 1934 to 1936...
, head of NKVD from 1934-1936. - Nikolai YezhovNikolai YezhovNikolai Ivanovich Yezhov or Ezhov was a senior figure in the NKVD under Joseph Stalin during the period of the Great Purge. His reign is sometimes known as the "Yezhovshchina" , "the Yezhov era", a term that began to be used during the de-Stalinization campaign of the 1950s...
, head of the NKVD from 1936-1938.