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| XX Congress of the CPSU | |
|---|---|
| Name | XX Congress of the CPSU |
| Native name | XX съезд КПСС |
| Date | 14–25 February 1956 |
| Location | Moscow, Soviet Union |
| Venue | Kremlin |
| Delegates | 1,331 delegates, 86 candidates |
| Called by | Communist Party of the Soviet Union |
| Previous | 19th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union |
| Next | 22nd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union |
XX Congress of the CPSU was the 20th congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union held in Moscow from 14 to 25 February 1956. The congress marked a watershed in post‑Joseph Stalin Soviet history, notable for the secret denunciation by Nikita Khrushchev of the excesses associated with Joseph Stalin and for debates that reverberated across the Eastern Bloc, Non-Aligned Movement, and Western Bloc. Delegates representing republics and allied parties convened in the Kremlin amid growing tensions over de‑Stalinization, Khrushchev’s leadership, and relations with Yugoslavia, China, and Poland.
The congress followed the death of Joseph Stalin in March 1953 and a power struggle involving Georgy Malenkov, Lavrentiy Beria, Nikita Khrushchev, and Vyacheslav Molotov. After the Korean War armistice and the arrest and execution of Lavrentiy Beria, Khrushchev consolidated influence within the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Politburo. Internationally, the period encompassed the post‑Stalin–Ribbentrop Pact realignments, tensions with Tito, rapprochement attempts with Yugoslavia, and the commencement of the Sino-Soviet relations recalibration involving Mao Zedong. Preparations for the congress involved internal reports from the Communist Party of Ukraine, Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, and other republican parties, as well as consultations with delegations from Hungary, Romania, and East Germany.
The congress convened with 1,331 full delegates and 86 candidate delegates, alongside observers from foreign parties including the Communist Party of China, Communist Party of Yugoslavia, French Communist Party, Italian Communist Party, and the Albanian Party of Labour. Delegates included members of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union, officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Soviet Union), and ideologues from institutes such as the Institute of Marxism–Leninism. Notable Soviet delegates comprised Nikita Khrushchev, Anastas Mikoyan, Nikolai Bulganin, and Lazar Kaganovich (who faced censure), while foreign attendees included Zhou Enlai and Enver Hoxha. The congress functioned through plenary sessions, commission meetings, and closed secret sessions that produced the most consequential documents.
Major agendas included de‑Stalinization, Party discipline, the role of the KGB, economic planning administered by the Council of Ministers (Soviet Union), and foreign policy toward Yugoslavia, China, and India. Intense debates centered on the publication of a confidential report delivered by Nikita Khrushchev to the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union criticizing Joseph Stalin's cult of personality, purges, and show trials such as the Moscow Trials. Questions were raised regarding rehabilitation of victims like Georgy Pyatakov and Nikolai Bukharin and procedural reforms concerning the NKVD and security organs. Delegates from Poland and Hungary raised concerns about national communism and Soviet control, while representatives from the Communist Party of China engaged in discussions that hinted at later Sino-Soviet split frictions.
The congress adopted resolutions endorsing a policy of collective leadership and condemning the abuses associated with Joseph Stalin, while reaffirming allegiance to Marxism–Leninism as interpreted by the Party. It approved changes in organizational statutes affecting the Central Committee and the Politburo, and resolutions on industrial and agricultural planning involving the Ministry of Agriculture (Soviet Union) and the Gosplan. Measures for rehabilitating victims of the Great Purge were authorized, and guidelines for cultural policy touching on institutions such as the Union of Soviet Writers were issued. Foreign policy resolutions called for tactical cooperation with Yugoslavia and engagement with the Non-Aligned Movement leadership including Jawaharlal Nehru and Gamal Abdel Nasser.
Khrushchev emerged as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union with enhanced authority, while Nikolai Bulganin and Georgy Malenkov's roles were adjusted within the Council of Ministers (Soviet Union). Several long‑standing officials, including Lazar Kaganovich and Vyacheslav Molotov, encountered demotion or censure linked to their association with Joseph Stalin's repressive policies. The congress elevated figures like Anastas Mikoyan and consolidated a cadre aligned with Khrushchev’s approach to reform. Personnel decisions extended to republican parties, affecting leaders in the Ukrainian SSR, Belorussian SSR, and Baltic republics.
Domestically, the congress precipitated the release and rehabilitation of political prisoners and influenced cultural liberalization affecting the Soviet film industry and authors associated with the Thaw movement such as Boris Pasternak and Alexander Solzhenitsyn later on. Economic policy shifts influenced industrial ministries and initiatives in the Virgin Lands campaign. Internationally, the secret speech and subsequent disclosures strained relations with People's Republic of China and fueled unrest in Poland and Hungary, contributing to the 1956 Poznań protests and the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. The congress’s stance affected ties with Tito's Yugoslavia and altered Soviet posture toward the Warsaw Pact and relations with the United States during the Cold War.
Historians assess the congress as initiating the Khrushchev Thaw and reshaping twentieth‑century communism by undermining Stalinist orthodoxy while preserving one‑party rule under the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The secret denunciation influenced dissident movements and reform currents within parties such as the Polish United Workers' Party and Hungarian Working People's Party, and contributed to later debates at the 20th Politburo sessions and the 22nd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Scholarly analysis connects the congress to wider phenomena including de‑colonization, the Non-Aligned Movement, and the evolution of Sino-Soviet relations, making it a pivotal event in Cold War historiography.
Category:Communist Party of the Soviet Union congresses Category:1956 in the Soviet Union Category:Cold War conferences