Lot 187

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Description:

Nikita Khrushchev TLS Dating from His Days Administering Ukraine, Re: "tractors…frequently left idle in the fields"

A 1p typed letter in Russian, signed by two of the most important Soviet leaders of the twentieth century: Nikita Khrushchev (1894-1971), the future premier of the Soviet Union; and Lazar Kaganovich (1893-1991), one of Josef Stalin's closest advisers. Dated March 29, 1947 from Kiev, in modern day Ukraine. Bearing several clerical dockets and annotations in pencil and colored pencil. Lightly toned, with expected folds and a few edge chips, else near fine. 7.375" x 11.375." Accompanied by a full and complete English translation.

The signatures of both Khrushchev and Kaganovich appear along the bottom. Khrushchev, then in his role as President of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union, signed as "N. Khrushchev" in green ink. Kaganovich, serving as Secretary of the Central Committee of the KPU (Communist Party of Ukraine) has signed in purple ink as "L. Kaganovich."

Khrushchev and Kaganovich sent this sternly worded memorandum to Communist officials in an unidentified region in modern day Ukraine regarding disturbing reports of inefficiency. The stakes were high. The subpar performance of a few Soviet-operated collectivist farms impacted the total collection of State-mandated grain stores.

Translated in part:

"The Council of Ministers of the U.S.S.R. and the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine possess information that in many areas of your region, due to poor maintenance and the untimely delivery of fuel, water, and spare parts, tractors are frequently left idle in the fields.

For improved maintenance of tractors and to ensure their continuous and secure use, the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union and the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine oblige the Regional Executive Committee and the Regional Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine to mobilize the required number of vehicles, along with drivers from local organizations and enterprises, and transfer them to machine-tractor stations for a period of one month.

Please report on the execution of this…"

1947 was an extremely precarious period in Khrushchev's political career. Khrushchev was then serving as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Ukraine, a position he had held since 1938. A series of bad harvests, drought conditions, and postwar instability had left Ukraine, the Soviet Union's bread basket, in desperate straits after 1945. Stalin's government still mandated that state and collective farms surrender them 52% of their crop yields, however. These quotas were difficult enough to fulfil without the additional handicap of disabled or broken farm equipment.

In early 1947, Khrushchev had lobbied Stalin in person for special consideration for Ukraine. Khrushchev eventually received food aid for Ukraine, at a cost; Stalin was so irritated by Khrushchev's "mischief-making" that the premier temporarily removed Khrushchev from the secretaryship and replaced him with Lazar Kaganovich, the cosigner of this document. Yet Khrushchev was sufficiently restored in Stalin's graces to be restored to his office by December 1947. This political rehabilitation was no small feat when one considers the toxic political environment. Khrushchev himself had participated in Stalin's purges (arrests, exile, and executions) while managing Ukraine.

Lazar Kaganovich was Khrushchev's old mentor from the earliest days of the Russian Revolution. The two had met as early as 1917, and Khrushchev had served as Kaganovich's second-in-command in Ukraine in the 1920s.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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