Anatoly Lukyanov

Lukyanov was an early political ally of Mikhail Gorbachev, supporting his efforts in issues such as the fight against corruption and the start of reforms in the economy. However, beginning in 1987–1988, he increasingly sympathized with the party establishment, correctly foreseeing that Gorbachev's policies would lead to the Soviet collapse.

• Name — Anatoly Lukyanov • Office — Member of the State Duma • Term Start — 11 January 1994 • Term End — 29 December 2003 • Office1 — Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union • Term Start1 — 15 March 1990 • Term End1 — 4 September 1991 • President1 — Mikhail Gorbachev • Predecessor1 — Mikhail Gorbachev • Successor1 — Office abolished • Office2 — First Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union • Term Start2 — 1 October 1988 • Term End2 — 15 March 1990 • President2 — Mikhail Gorbachev • Predecessor2 — Pyotr Demichev • Successor2 — Gennady Yanayev (as vice president) • Office3 — Head of the General Department of the Central Committee • Term Start3 — 24 May 1985 • Term End3 — 17 January 1987 • Predecessor3 — Klavdii Bogolyubov • Successor3 — Valery Boldin • Office4 — Candidate member of the 27th Politburo • Term Start4 — 30 September 1988 • Term End4 — 14 July 1990 • Office5 — Member of the 27th Secretariat • Term Start5 — 28 January 1987 • Term End5 — 30 September 1988 • Born — 7 May 1930 • Birthplace — Smolensk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union • Died — 9 January 2019 • Place of death — Moscow, Russia • Resting Place — Troyekurovskoye Cemetery • Party — Communist Party of the Russian Federation (1993-2019) • Other Party — Communist Party of the Soviet Union (1953-1991) • Education — Moscow State University

Lukyanov was born in Smolensk on 7 May 1930, the son of a Red Army officer who was killed in action during World War II. He graduated from the Law School of the Moscow State University in 1953, while also being a member of the Communist Youth League (Komsomol). During his years in law school, he befriended Mikhail Gorbachev, who was also studying there at the time, becoming an early political ally of the future leader. He went on to earn a post-graduate degree in Constitutional Law and a PhD in Public Law.

From 1956 to 1961 Lukyanov worked as a legal adviser at the Legal Commission of the Soviet Council of Ministers. He later was an adviser on legislation-drafting at the Supreme Soviet and worked on constitutional law issues at the Central Committee. He also served as a constitutional adviser to the governments of the Polish People's Republic and the Hungarian People's Republic. All the while he benefited from being constantly based in Moscow, at the center of government.

• Illustration — Lukyanov in the 1980s In 1975-77 he worked on drafting the 1977 Soviet Constitution, which replaced the 1936 Soviet Constitution. From 1977 till 1983 he was Chief of the Secretariat of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. He was also a leading member of the powerful Central Auditing Commission. Lukyanov was a secretary of the CPSU Central Committee from January 1987 and a candidate member of the Politburo from September 1988. Lukyanov was elected vice-chairman of the Presidium Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union in March 1989, and chairman of the Presidium the following year. In 1991, Boris Yeltsin and Ivan Silayev accused him of being the leading force behind the Soviet coup attempt of 1991. Lukyanov was arrested on 29 August 1991, and held for fifteen months on charges of conspiracy. On September 4, he was relieved of his post as speaker of the union parliament. Throughout the investigation, Lukyanov denied complicity. Lukyanov was the Chairman of the Central Advisory Council of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, and the senior adviser to party leader Gennady Zyuganov, since co-founding the party in 1993. Lukyanov was elected as a deputy to the first three State Dumas of the Russian Federation (1993, 1995 and 1999). His last political position was as Chairman of the Duma Committee on Constitutional Law. He did not participate in the elections of 2003 and instead became a board member of the company OEG Petroservis.

Lukyanov was found dead in his Moscow home on 9 January 2019, at the age of 88, after suffering from an unspecified illness. He is buried at Troyekurovskoye Cemetery in Moscow on 11 January.

He was employed by Moscow State University, Faculty of Law. Recorded positions include Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union and member of the State Duma. He belonged to 3rd State Duma of the Russian Federation, 2nd State Duma of the Russian Federation and 1st State Duma of the Russian Federation. He worked at Moscow.