Government of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic

An early Sovnarkom decree, introducing the "Western European calendar" in Russia. According to the decree, January 31, 1918 (Old style) was to be followed by February 14, 1918 (New style)

The Government of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic was known officially as the Council of People's Commissars (1917–1946), Council of Ministers (1946–1978) and Council of Ministers – Government (1978–1991)

Council of People's Commissars

The Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR (Russian: Совет народных комиссаров РСФСР) was government cabinet of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) from 1917 through 1946, when it was renamed the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR. In 1922 state powers of the institution were technically somewhat superseded by the Council of People's Commissars of USSR.

By September 1917, the councils (soviets) of workers, peasants and soldiers acquired considerable political and military power. The leaders of the Petrograd Soviet conspired to overthrow the Russian Provisional Government; the uprising started on 7 November 1917, when Red Guards units captured the Winter Palace. On the next day, 8 November 1917, the Second All-Russian Congress of Soviets recognized the success of the uprising, and formally established the new government that reflected the capture of the soviets by the Bolsheviks.

The government was formally called the Council of People's Commissars (Совет народных коммиссаров), abbreviated as Sovnarkom (Совнарком). It was Leon Trotsky who devised the council and commissar names, thereby avoiding the more "bourgeois" terms, minister and cabinet.

The People's Commissars (Russian: Народный комиссар, translit.: Narodny komissar, or Narkom) functioned as government ministers; a ministry was therefore called called a People's Commissariat (Russian: Народный комиссариат, translit.: Narodny komissariat, abbreviated to narkomat).

Formation

A Sovnarkom session between December 1917 and January 1918, with (from the left) Isaac Steinberg, Ivan Skvortsov-Stepanov, Boris Kamkov, Vladimir Bonch-Bruyevich, V.E. Trutovsky, Alexander Shlyapnikov, P.P. Proshyan, Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Alexandra Kollontai, Pavel Dybenko, E.K. Kosharova, Nikolai Podvoisky, Nikolai Gorbunov, V.I. Nevsky, Alexander Shotman, Georgy Chicherin

Traditionally, a government is a council of ministers nominated by a ruler or by a president, but the Bolsheviks saw this as a bourgeois institution, and wanted to create what they thought a new government of workers and peasants, a 'soviet' government.

The role and structure of the Sovnarkom was formalized in the 1918 Constitution of the RSFSR. The Sovnarkom of the RSFSR was responsible to the Congress of Soviets for the "general administration of the affairs of the state". The constitution enabled the Sovnarkom to issue decrees carrying the full force of law when the Congress was not in session. The Congress then routinely approved these decrees at its next session.

Each People's Commissar was head of commissariat and had several deputies and a collegium which functioned as a deliberative body to advise the commissar.

The Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, also elected by the Congress, had a function similar to that of a prime minister. The first Chairman of the Sovnarkom was Vladimir Lenin.

The original People's Commissars

The first council elected by the Second All-Russian congress was composed as follows:

People's Commissar	Original incumbent	Death
Chairman	Vladimir Lenin	Natural causes 1924
Executive Officer	Nikolai Gorbunov	Executed 1938
People's Commissariat for Agriculture of the RSFSR	Vladimir Milyutin	Died in prison 1937
People's Commissariat for Military Affairs of the RSFSR	Vladimir Antonov-Ovseyenko Nikolai Krylenko	Executed 1939 Executed 1938
People's Commissariat for Naval Affairs of the RSFSR	Pavel Dybenko	Executed 1938
People's Commissariat for Trade and Industry of the RSFSR	Viktor Nogin	Natural causes 1924
People's Commissariat for Education of the RSFSR	Anatoly Lunacharsky	Natural causes 1933
People's Commissariat for Food	Ivan Teodorovich	Executed 1937
People's Commissariat for Foreign Affairs of the RSFSR	Leon Trotsky	Assassinated 1940
People's Commissariat for Interior Affairs of the RSFSR	Alexei Rykov	Executed 1938
People's Commissariat for Justice of the RSFSR	Georgy Oppokov	Executed 1937
People's Commissariat for Labour of the RSFSR	Alexander Shlyapnikov	Executed 1937
People's Commissariat of Nationalities	Joseph Stalin	Natural causes 1953
People's Commissariat for Posts and Telegraphs of the RSFSR	Nikolai Glebov-Avilov	Executed 1937
People's Commissariat for Railways of the RSFSR	(vacant)
People's Commissariat for Finance	Ivan Skvortsov-Stepanov	Natural causes 1928

Council of Ministers

The Council of People's Commissars was renamed Council of Ministers in 1946.

External links

• The Consul General at Moscow (Summers) to the Secretary of State
• The decree of the Council of the People's Commissars on the ...