Turtledove
Register
Advertisement
Communist star-1-

For similarly named political parties, see Communist Party.

The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) (Russian: Коммунистическая Партия Советского Союза, tr. Kommunisticheskaya Partiya Sovetskogo Soyuza, IPA [kəmʊnʲɪˈsʲtʲiʨɪskəjə ˈpartʲɪja sɐˈvʲeʦkəvə sɐˈjʊzə], abbr.: КПСС (KPSS)) was the ruling and only legal political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world.

It emerged from the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin. The party led the 1917 October Revolution that overthrew the Russian Provisional Government and established the world's first socialist state. Given the central role under the Constitution of the Soviet Union, the party controlled all tiers of government in the Soviet Union and did not tolerate any opposition. Thanks to the efforts of Joseph Stalin, the party leader was also the near-absolute ruler of the USSR. Its organization was subdivided into communist parties of the constituent Soviet republics as well as the mass youth organization, Komsomol.

The party was also the driving force of Comintern, maintained organizational links and supported communist movements in Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa. The party ceased to exist with the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt failure and was succeeded by the Communist Party of the Russian Federation in Russia and the communist parties of the now-independent former Soviet republics.

Literary comment[]

The CPSU is referenced in most Harry Turtledove timelines involving the Soviet Union, but is germane only to a few.

Communist Party of the Soviet Union in The Gladiator[]

The Communist Party controlled the USSR and by implication, Europe and North America after winning the Cold War. Countries that fell under the USSR's influence were ruled by a single communist or socialist party, which was in turn closely modeled on the USSR's ruling party. Moreover, given the USSR's immense power, it was understood that in most places, a Soviet Party member carried a great deal of clout, and was to be treated with a great deal of deference.

Communist Party of the Soviet Union in A World of Difference[]

After the death of General-Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985, the Communist Party sank deeper and deeper under the thumb of the KGB for the remainder of the decade.

Communist Party of the Soviet Union in Worldwar[]

The Communist Party ruled the Soviet Union during the Race Invasion of Tosev 3 and after the Peace of Cairo. The pattern of treachery and powerplays that had been established by Joseph Stalin in his tenure as the General Secretary was continued on after his death. His successor, Vyacheslav Molotov, while capable of Stalin's ruthlessness, was nonetheless far less feared by his enemies. After surviving a coup attempt, Molotov was more dependent upon the Red Army than he'd have liked.

Advertisement