Zhivkov

The Communist leader who ruled Bulgaria for 35 years.

Life

Son of a farming family

Zhivkov came from a peasant family, worked as a printer and joined the resistance movement during World War II. In 1954 he became First Secretary of the Bulgarian Communist Party and thereafter held power for a long time, also serving as Chairman of the State Council from 1971.

35 years

He closely followed the Soviet line and pushed industrialization, and Bulgarian living standards rose somewhat; but politically power was highly centralized. In 1984—1989 the government forced ethnic Turkish residents to adopt Slavic names, and in 1989 some 300,000-plus ethnic Turks were forced to leave for Turkey.

Ousted

In November 1989 he was ousted by reformers within the party; he was later put on trial and died in 1998.

Legacy

Zhivkov was one of the longest-ruling leaders in Eastern Europe, and his ouster marked the beginning of Bulgaria's upheaval.

Did you know? He once proposed that Bulgaria join the Soviet Union as its sixteenth union republic, an offer the Soviet side politely declined.

Key dates

• 1954Became First Secretary
• 1971Also Chairman of the State Council
• 1984Imposed a forced renaming campaign
• 1989Ousted
• 1998Died