Dmitry Ustinov facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Marshal of the Soviet Union Dmitriy Ustinov
Дмитрий Фёдорович Устинов
Ustinov in 1978
Minister of Defence Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
In office 12 October 1974 – 20 May 1983
Premier	Alexei Kosygin Nikolai Tikhonov
Preceded by	Andrei Grechko
Succeeded by	Sergei Sokolov
First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union
In office 13 March 1963 – 26 March 1965
Premier	Nikita Khrushchev Alexei Kosygin
Preceded by	Alexei Kosygin
Succeeded by	Kirill Mazurov
Minister of Armament Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
In office 6 June 1941 – 6 March 1953
Premier	Joseph Stalin
Preceded by	Boris Vannikov
Succeeded by	Position abolished
Full member of the 25th, 26th Politburo of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
In office 5 March 1976 – 20 December 1984
Candidate member of the 20th–21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th Politburo of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
In office 8 April 1966 – 5 March 1976
In office 25 March 1965 – 29 March 1966
Member of the 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 25th Secretariat of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
In office 26 March 1965 – 26 October 1976
Personal details
Born	(1908-10-17)17 October 1908 Samara, Russian Empire
Died	20 December 1984(1984-12-20) (aged 76) Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Nationality	Soviet
Political party	Communist Party of the Soviet Union (1927–1984)
Profession	Mechanical engineer
Awards	Hero of the Soviet Union Hero of Socialist Labour (twice)
Military service
Allegiance	Soviet Union
Branch/service	Soviet Armed Forces
Years of service	1941–1984
Rank	Marshal of the Soviet Union (1976-1984)
Battles/wars	World War II Soviet–Afghan War

Dmitriy Fyodorovich Ustinov (Russian: Дми́трий Фёдорович Усти́нов; October 30, 1908 – December 20, 1984) was a powerful Marshal of the Soviet Union and a Soviet politician. He was a key figure during the Cold War. From 1965 to 1976, he was in charge of the Soviet Union's military factories. Later, from 1976 until his death in 1984, he served as the Minister of Defence.

Ustinov was born in 1908 in Samara, Russia, into a working-class family. He joined the Communist Party in 1927 and then studied engineering. After graduating in 1934, he worked as an engineer. By 1937, he became the director of a large arms factory. During World War II, he was the People's Commissar of Armaments. He was praised for moving many factories from Leningrad to the Ural Mountains to keep them safe. After the war, he helped the Soviet Union get German missile technology.

Under Leonid Brezhnev's leadership, Ustinov became a very important person in the Communist Party. He was given the job of managing the Soviet Union's defense industry and its armed forces. In 1976, he became the Minister of Defence and was given the highest military rank, Marshal of the Soviet Union. Ustinov believed in a strong military and supported building up Soviet weapons. This belief guided his country's defense plans until he passed away in 1984.

Early Life and Education

Dmitry Feodorovich Ustinov grew up in a working-class family in Samara. During the Russian Civil War, his family faced great hardship. His father died in 1922, and his mother passed away in 1925.

In 1927, Ustinov joined the Communist Party. He began studying engineering in 1929. He later attended the Institute of Military Mechanical Engineering in Leningrad, graduating in 1934. After that, he worked as an engineer at a marine research institute. By 1937, he moved to the "Bolshevik" Arms Factory, where he eventually became its director.

World War II Service

When Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, Joseph Stalin appointed 32-year-old Ustinov as the People's Commissar of Armaments. His main job was to move defense factories from the city of Leningrad, which was under attack, to the Ural Mountains in the east.

He successfully moved over 80 military factories. More than 600,000 workers, technicians, and engineers were part of this huge effort. Stalin was very impressed and gave Ustinov the highest civilian award, Hero of Socialist Labour. After the war, Ustinov helped the Soviet Union get important missile technology from Germany. This helped kickstart the Soviet missile and space programs.

After the War

In 1952, Ustinov became a member of the Central Committee, a powerful group in the Communist Party. After Stalin died in 1953, Ustinov became the head of the new Ministry of Defense Industry. This ministry combined the armaments and aviation industries. In 1957, he was made a Deputy Premier of the Soviet Union. He also became the chairman of the Military-Industrial Commission. This meant he was in charge of all military production.

Becoming a Soviet Leader

Brezhnev and Ustinov at the 1979 October Revolution Day Parade on Red Square.

When Leonid Brezhnev became the leader, Ustinov continued to work in the defense industry. In 1965, Brezhnev made Ustinov a candidate member of the Politburo. This was a very important group that made major decisions. Ustinov was also put in charge of developing the Soviet Union's long-range bombers and missiles. He was known in the defense industry as "Uncle Mitya." He also helped push forward the development of the Salyut space station.

Ustinov became more and more powerful as he rose through the ranks of the defense industry.

Minister of Defence

In 1976, after the previous Defence Minister, Andrei Grechko, passed away, Ustinov took over the role. He was promoted to General of the Army and then quickly to the highest military rank, Marshal of the Soviet Union. This was unusual because he had not served in the military before.

Ustinov worked with Marshal Nikolai Ogarkov to improve and modernize the Soviet military. He believed that the Soviet armed forces were strong enough to handle any challenges.

Ustinov became very influential in the Kremlin. His support helped Yuri Andropov become the leader after Brezhnev. He also had a lot of influence during Konstantin Chernenko's time as leader.

Ustinov with Erich Honecker in East Berlin in 1984.

In 1979, the leader of Afghanistan, Nur Muhammad Taraki, was removed from power. Ustinov and Yuri Andropov strongly supported Soviet military action in Afghanistan. They were concerned about the United States' presence in the Persian Gulf. On December 12, 1979, the Politburo approved their plan. On December 24, 1979, Soviet troops entered Afghanistan.

In the early 1980s, the United States developed its Space Shuttle program. This worried the Soviet defense industry. Ustinov received reports that the US Shuttle could be used to put nuclear missiles in space. Because of this concern, Ustinov made the development of the Soviet Buran Shuttle a top priority.

Death and Legacy

On November 7, 1984, Ustinov was too ill to lead the annual military parade on Red Square. He had caught pneumonia in late October. He had surgery for a heart problem, but his health got worse. He died on December 20, 1984, from heart failure. He was given a state funeral, and his ashes were buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis.

Several things were named in his honor. The RFS Marshal Ustinov is a Russian warship. The Baltic State Technical University in Saint Petersburg was renamed the Ustinov Baltic State Technical Military-Mechanical University. The city of Izhevsk was also named after him from 1984 to 1987. However, under Mikhail Gorbachev, cities named after recent Soviet leaders were changed back to their original names.

Ustinov believed the military was very important. He made sure the Soviet Union's ICBMs were always up-to-date. He also wrote several books, including "Selected Speeches and Articles" and "To serve my country - the cause of Communism."

Personality and Family

Mikhail Gorbachev described Ustinov as an energetic and positive person. When Gorbachev faced challenges, Ustinov encouraged him to "stand firm."

Colonel General Igor Illarionov, who worked with Ustinov for 30 years, said Ustinov was very dedicated to his work. He often worked late into the night and slept only a few hours during the day.

Academician Yevgeniy Chazov, a doctor who knew Ustinov, described him as having strong willpower, quick decision-making skills, and optimism. Chazov felt Ustinov represented the strong leaders who helped the Soviet Union win World War II. However, Chazov believed Ustinov's biggest mistake was the war in Afghanistan. He thought Ustinov, like older leaders, believed all problems could be solved with military strength.

Ustinov was not always open to new ideas. He often disagreed with Marshal Nikolai Ogarkov, the Chief of the General Staff. Ogarkov wanted to make the Soviet military smaller and use more high-tech weapons. Ustinov, however, preferred to focus on a large number of soldiers and nuclear weapons. Even though Ustinov greatly improved the technology of the Soviet armed forces, most of these improvements were for nuclear weapons, like the Typhoon-class submarine and the Tu-160 bomber.

Ustinov was married to Taisa Alekseevna Briekalova-Ustinova. They had a daughter, Vera, and a son, Nikolai.

Awards and Honours

Soviet Awards

• Hero of the Soviet Union
• Hero of Socialist Labor, twice (1942, 1961)
• Order of Lenin, 11 times
• Order of Suvorov, 1st class (1945)
• Order of Kutuzov, 1st class (1944)
• Lenin Prize (1982)
• Stalin Prize, 1st class (1953)
• USSR State Prize (1983)
• Many campaign and jubilee medals

Foreign Awards

• Mongolian People's Republic:
  • Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic (1981)
  • Order of Sukhbaatar, three times
• Czechoslovakia:
  • Hero of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1982)
  • Order of Klement Gottwald, twice
• Vietnam:
  • Order of Ho Chi Minh (1983)
• Bulgaria:
  • Order of Georgi Dimitrov, twice
• Poland:
  • Cross of Grunwald, 1st class (1976)
• Hungary:
  • Order of the Flag of the Republic of Hungary with rubies, twice
• Afghanistan:
  • Order of the Sun of Liberty (1982)
• East Germany:
  • Order of Karl Marx, twice
  • Scharnhorst Order (1977)
• Finland:
  • Order of the White Rose, 1st class (1978)
• Cuba:
  • Order of Playa Girón (1983)

Images for kids

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  Ustinov in 1946

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  Kremlin Wall Necropolis - grave of Ustinov

See also

In Spanish: Dmitri Ustínov para niños