Main Directorate of State Security

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Chronology of Soviet
security agencies
1917–22 Cheka under Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR
(All-Russian Extraordinary Commission)
1922–23 GPU under NKVD of the RSFSR
(State Political Directorate)
1920–91 PGU KGB or
USSR

(First Chief Directorate)
1923–34 OGPU under SNK of the USSR
(Joint State Political Directorate)
1934–46 NKVD of the USSR
(People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs)
1934–41 GUGB of the NKVD of the USSR
(Main Directorate of State Security of
People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs)
1941 NKGB of the USSR
(People's Commissariat of State Security)
1943–46 NKGB of the USSR
(People's Commissariat for State Security)
1946–53 MGB of the USSR
(Ministry of State Security)
1946–54 MVD of the USSR
(Ministry of Internal Affairs)
1947–51

KI MID of the USSR
(Committee of Information under Ministry
of Foreign Affairs)

1954–78 KGB under the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union
(Committee for State Security)
1978–91 KGB of the USSR
(Committee for State Security)
1991 MSB of the USSR
(Interrepublican Security Service)
1991 TsSB of the USSR
(Central Intelligence Service)
1991 KOGG of the USSR
(Committee for the Protection of
the State Border)

The Main Directorate of State Security (Russian: Glavnoe upravlenie gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti, Главное управление государственной безопасности, ГУГБ, GUGB) was the name of the Soviet Union's most important security body within the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs (NKVD) USSR. At the time of its existence, which was from July 10, 1934 to February 3, 1941, the GUGB reflected exactly the Secret Operational Directorate within OGPU under the Council of People's Commissars,[1] which operated within OGPU structure from 1923 to 1931/32. An

intelligence service and secret police from July 1934 to February 1941, it was run under the auspices of the Peoples Commissariat of Internal Affairs (NKVD). Its first head was first deputy of People's Commissar of Internal Affairs (then Genrikh Yagoda), Commissioner 1st rank of State Security Yakov Agranov
.

History

The Main Directorate of State Security evolved from the Joint State Political Directorate (or

NKGB
.

Following the outbreak of

NKGB
.

GUGB heads

By the end of 1937, the GUGB was the most powerful and influential organ in the

People's Commissar of Internal Affairs (head of NKVD), Commissioner 3rd rank of State Security Vsevolod Merkulov
became his first deputy and the new and final head of GUGB.

Organization

Between 1934 and 1941, the Main Directorate of State Security went through several organizational changes. In January 1935, there were nine departments in the GUGB structure:

(head of GUGB) – Commissioner 1st rank of State Security Yakov Agranov
  1. Operational Department (headed by) – Karl Pauker
  2. Special Department – Gleb Bokii
  3. Department of Economics – (ЭКО/EKO) – Lev Mironov
  4. Special Department – (OO) – Mark Gai
  5. Secret Political Department – (СПО/SPO) – Georgy Molchanov
  6. Foreign Department – (ИНО/INO) – Artur Artuzov
  7. Department of Transport – (ТО) – Vladimir Kichkin
  8. Department of Information and Statistic – (УСО/USO) – Yakov Genkin
  9. Staff Department – (OK) – Yakov Weynschtok

By the end of 1937 the People's Commissar of Internal Affairs Nikolai Yezhov, in his order #00362 had changed the number of departments from five to twelve.

(head of GUGB) – komkor Mikhail Frinovsky
  • Department 1 [Protection of Government] – Israel Dagin
  • Department 2 [Operative] – Ans Zalpeter
  • Department 3 [counter-intelligence] (КРО/KRO) – Aleksandr Minayev-Cikanovich
  • Department 4 [Secret Political] (СПО/SPO) – Mikhail Litvin
  • Department 5 [Special] (OO) – Nikolai Nikolaev-Zhuryd
  • Department 6 [Transport] (TO) – Mikhail Volkov
  • Department 7 [Foreign (Intelligence)] (ИНО/INO) – Abram Slutsky
  • Department 8 [Records and Statistic] (УСО/USO) – Vladimir Cesarsky
  • Department 9 [Special (codes)] (OO) – Isaak Shapiro
  • Department 10 [Prison] – Yakov Weynschtok
  • Department 11 [Maritime Transportation] (ВО/WO) – Victor Yrcev
  • Department 12 [Technical and Operational] (OOT) – Semyen Zhukovsky

After

Lavrenty Beria
took over Frinovsky place as a GUGB head, in 29 of September 1938, GUGB underwent another organizational change -

(head of GUGB) – Commissioner 1st rank of State Security
Lavrenty Beria
(head of GUGB) – Commissioner 3rd rank of State Security Vsevolod Merkulov[2]
  • Department 1 – [Protection of Party and Soviet officials]
    • included Political department, 24 office divisions, a school, commandant's offices of the CC VKP(b) and NKVD of USSR
  • Department 2 – [Secret Political] –
    • Division 1 [Trotskyists, Zinovievists, leftists, rightists, miasnikovtsi, shlyapnikovtsi, banned from the party, foreign missions]
    • Division 2 [Mensheviks, anarchists, members of the Socialist Revolutionary Party, Bundists, Zionists, clerics, provocateurs, gendarmes, counterintelligence agents, punishers, White Cossacks, monarchists]
    • Division 3 [combating Ukrainian, Belarusian, and Ugro-Finnish national c-i]
    • Division 4 [agent studies on a/s political parties,
      mussavatists
      , nationalists]
    • Division 5 [literati, press, publishing, theatres, cinema, art]
    • Division 6 [academies of sciences, science and research institutes, scientific societies]
    • Division 7 [discovery and study of c-i formations among studying youth, system of the People's Commissariat of Enlightenment and children of repressed]
    • Division 8 [People's Commissariat of Healthcare of USSR and RSFSR and its education institutions]
    • Division 9 [People's Commissariat of Justice, Supreme Court, Prosecutor's Office, People's Commissariat of Social Security and their educational institutions]
    • Division 10 [combating church and sect c-i]
    • Division 11 [physical culture organizations, volunteer societies, clubs, sports publishers]
    • Division 12 [Special council, militsiya, fire guard, military commissariats, leadership of the reserves]
  • Department 3 – [counter-intelligence]
    • Division 1 [Germany, Hungary]
    • Division 2 [Japan, China]
    • Division 3 [Great Britain]
    • Division 4 [France, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain]
    • Division 5 [Romania, Greece, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia]
    • Division 6 [Poland]
    • Division 7 [Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark]
    • Division 8 [United States and countries of South America]
    • Division 9 [Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan]
    • Division 10 [ White movement c-i elements]
    • Division 11 [Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania]
    • Division 12 [People's Commissariat of Foreign Affairs, embassies and consulates]
    • Division 13 [[[Executive Committee of the Communist International|ECCI]],
      MOPR
      ]
    • Division 14 [[[Vneshtorg|Foreign Trade]], trade offices]
    • Division 15 [[[Intourist]] and VOKS]
    • Diplomat security section
    • Diplomat security political department
    • Divisions 16, 17, 18, 19 Diplomat security
  • Department 4 – [Special] —
    • Division 1 [headquarters]
    • Division 2 [intelligence directorates]
    • Division 3 [aviation]
    • Division 4 [technical troops]
    • Division 5 [motorized detachments]
    • Division 6 [artillery, cavalry and artillery detachments]
    • Division 7 [infantry, cavalry and artillery detachments]
    • Division 8 [[[politruk]]]
    • Division 9 [medical service]
    • Division 10 [Navy]
    • Division 11 [NKVD troops]
    • Division 12 [organizational and mobilizing]
    • investigative section
  • Department 5 – [Foreign (Intelligence)]
    • Division 1 [Germany, Hungary, Denmark]
    • Division 2 [Poland]
    • Division 3 [France, Belgium, Switzerland, Netherlands]
    • Division 4 [Great Britain]
    • Division 5 [Italy]
    • Division 6 [Spain]
    • Division 7 [Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Greece]
    • Division 8 [Finland, Sweden, Norway, Spitzbergen]
    • Division 9 [Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania]
    • Division 10 [United States, Canada, South America, Mexico]
    • Division 11 [Japan, Manchuria]
    • Division 12 [China, Xinjiang]
    • Division 12 [Mongolia, Tuva]
    • Division 12 [Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan]
    • Division 12 [technical intelligence]
    • Division 12 [operational equipment]
    • Division 12 [visas]
  • Department 6 – [Ciphering, safeguard of state secrecy]
    • Division 1, 2, 3 [safeguard of state secrecy, verification and recordkeeping of those admitted to secret work and documents]
    • Division 4 [deciphering]
    • Division 5 [research, development and recordkeeping of ciphers, drafting NKVD ciphers, preparation of ciphering specialists]
    • Division 6 [NKVD encrypting process]
    • Division 7 [organizational management of peripherals, development of instructions and regulations on secret ciphering and agent missions]
    • Division 8 [ciphering]
  • GUGB Investigating Section —

GUGB Ranks

The GUGB had a unique system of ranks, a blend of the position-rank system used in the

Internal Troops/political/specialist branches, with GUGB rank placed at least one grade higher than a similar army equivalent.[3][4][5][6]

When GUGB and Militsiya ranks were replaced with military ranks and insignia in February 1943, Major to Sergeant ranks were aligned with Colonel to Junior Lieutenant, and Senior Major and up were replaced with various degrees of Commissioner. In 1945, General Commissioner

Generals of the Army
to Major General.

Ranks of GUGB 1935–1943
  • генеральный комиссар ГБ – Commissioner General of State Security
  • комиссар ГБ 1-го ранга – Commissioner 1st rank of State Security
  • комиссар ГБ 2-го ранга – Commissioner 2nd rank of State Security
  • комиссар ГБ 3-го ранга – Commissioner 3rd rank of State Security
  • старший майор ГБ – Senior Major of State Security
  • майор ГБ – Major of State Security
  • капитан ГБ – Captain of State Security
  • старший лейтенант ГБ – Senior Lieutenant of State Security
  • лейтенант ГБ – Lieutenant of State Security
  • младший лейтенант ГБ – Junior Lieutenant of State Security
  • сержант ГБ – Sergeant of State Security
Rank insignia 1935-1937
Commissioner General of State Security Commissioner of State Security 1st Rank Commissioner of State Security 2nd Rank Commissioner of State Security 3rd Rank Senior Major of State Security Major of State Security Captain of State Security Senior Lieutenant of State Security Lieutenant of State Security Junior Lieutenant of State Security Sergeant of State Security
петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936 петлица ГБ 1936
н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936 н/з гб 1936
Source:[7]
Rank insignia 1937-1943
Commissioner General of State Security Commissioner of State Security 1st Rank Commissioner of State Security 2nd Rank Commissioner of State Security 3rd Rank Senior Major of State Security Major of State Security
петлица ГБ 1937 Нквд1936вс5 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937
Source:[8]
Captain of State Security Senior Lieutenant of State Security Lieutenant of State Security Junior Lieutenant of State Security Sergeant of State Security
петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937 петлица ГБ 1937
Source:[8]

See also

References

  1. ISBN 978-83-05-13484-2
    .
  2. ^ Structure and functions of NKVD USSR at the end of 1939 (Структура и функции НКВД СССР на конец 1939 года). Aleksandr Yakovlev Foundation.
  3. ^ "Парковочная страница R01".
  4. ^ "PIPNI.cz - Moderní hosting".
  5. ^ "PIPNI.cz - Moderní hosting".
  6. ^ "PIPNI.cz - Moderní hosting".
  7. ^ Звания и знаки различия органов госбезопасности (1935 – 1943 г.) Retrieved 2017-08-28.
  8. ^ a b Форма и знаки различия в органах госбезопасности 1922- 1945 гг. Retrieved 2017-08-28.
  • Piotr Kołakowski - NKWD i GRU na ziemiach Polskich 1939-1945 - (Kulisy wywiadu i kontrwywiadu) - Dom Wydawniczy Bellona Warszawa 2002 - (NKVD and GRU on Polish soil 1939-1945 [Intelligence counter-intelligence series] Warsaw, 2002)
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