In the days of the USSR, a huge number of people were engaged in labor and creative activities. Among them, a special place is occupied by General Tsvigun, whose biography is filled with numerous interesting facts, as well as ongoing career growth.
Biochronicle S.K.
Semen Kuzmich Tsvigun - a statesman of the USSR. In 1967 - 1982 - One of the deputy chairman of the KGB of the USSR.
Born in the village of Stratievka (Vinnytsia region of modern Ukraine) in 1917 in a family of ethnic Ukrainians.
In 1937 he graduated with honors from the Faculty of History of Odessa Pedagogical Institute.
From 1937 to 1939 carries out labor activities as a teacher and director of a school in Odessa.
Since 1939 - work in the People’s Commissariat of Internal Affairs.
In December 1941 he went to the front. He fought on the South, Don, Western, Stalingrad and other fronts. He was a partisan detachment.
In 1945, he began working at the Ministry of State Security of the Moldavian SSR.
From 1951 to 1953, he worked as First Deputy Minister of the State Security of the Moldavian SSR.
In 1953–1955 - First Deputy Chairman of the KGB of the Moldavian SSR.
In 1955-1957 - Head of the KGB of the Tajik SSR.
In 1963–1967 headed the KGB of the Azerbaijan SSR.
In 1967, he was appointed first deputy chairman of the KGB of the USSR.
Since 1978, Tsvigun is an army general of the USSR Armed Forces.
January 19, 1982 dies as a result of suicide.
A family
General Tsvigun Semyon Kuzmich was married to the famous Soviet writer Rosa Mikhailovna Ermolyeva. The son of Semyon Kuzmich, Mikhail is an employee of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, worked as the ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of Russia to Djibouti (from 1995 to 1999) and to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (from 2003 to 2009).
Creative activity of the general
In addition to his service in senior positions in the KGB, General Tsvigun is also known as the author of books about scouts who worked during the Great Patriotic War, the author of scripts for films about the war, and a memoirist. In 1973 and in 1979, two books of Semyon Tsvigun were published under the title “The Secret Front” (1973) and “We Will Return (1979). He also personally wrote scripts for two well-known front-line films: “Front without Flanks” (the film premiered in 1974) and “Front Behind Enemy Lines” (premiered in 1981).
The image of Tsvigun in literature and cinema
The Soviet writer Yulian Semenov used the image of the general in his novel “Secrets of Kutuzovsky Prospekt”, which tells about the work of security officers.
In addition, in a joint novel by Eduard Topol and Friedrich Neznansky “Red Square” there is a description of one of the many versions of the suicide of the general. However, the surname was changed in the novel: Tsvigun appeared in the book as General Wigun.
In 2004, on the basis of the novel "Red Square", the eponymous series was released on the Russian screen, in which V. Khlevinsky played the role of Vigun.
Awards of the USSR and foreign countries
Semen Tsvigun is a general who has received numerous awards not only from the Soviet Union, but also from foreign countries. The following is a list of general awards:
In 1977 he received the title of Hero of Socialist Labor and the sickle and hammer medal attached to the title.
In different years he was awarded two orders of Lenin, the Order of the October Revolution. One of the few figures who received two orders of the Red Star.
For the scripts for films in 1978 he became a laureate of the State Prize of the RSFSR, and in 1979 - the prize of the Lenin Komsomol.
Of course, General Tsvigun is an interesting historical figure. He left a mark not only in the history of the USSR, but also in the culture of the whole country.
Death of Tsvigun
According to the official version, General Tsvigun suffered from severe lung cancer in the last years of his life.
Various rumors related to the circumstances of the death of Tsvigun appeared due to the fact that the members of the family of L.I. Brezhnev were not present at the funeral procession, and the Secretary General himself did not have an obituary. As a result of this, a version appeared according to which Semen Tsvigun was summoned to the central committee to report that in the case of widespread corruption in government bodies, some defendants testified that Tsvigun, a KGB general, was also one of the accomplices in the crime. According to assumptions, at the end of the conversation in the Central Committee, Semyon Tsvigun asked for a day to ponder the current situation, after which he went to his home and fired a deadly shot.
However, Vladimir Kryuchkov, ex-chairman of the KGB of the USSR, spoke about the death of General Tsvigun Semyon Kuzmich as
“The tragedy that happened in 1982 generated a lot of rumors and speculation among the people. The fact is that he was diagnosed with a severe form of cancer. Send metastases, which affected his psyche. He understood that he was burning alive, and on January 19 threw himself a bullet in his head. He was a very honest man who was a true patriot. Also, the version of corruption crimes should be mistaken for speculation, if only because Tsvigun is a General. "Novodevichy cemetery in the first few days after his death was buried in flowers."