Sergei Kirov

Sergei Kirov was a prominent Soviet political leader and a close associate of Joseph Stalin. He led the Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) Communist Party and was considered a potential rival to Stalin. Kirov's assassination in 1934 is often seen as a pivotal event that led to the Great Purge, a period of intense political repression. His death was used by Stalin to justify widespread arrests, show trials, and executions targeting perceived enemies of the state, dramatically shaping Soviet history during the 1930s.