'''Lavrenty Beria''' (1899-1953) was the head of the Soviet security apperatus under [[Stalin]]. Appointed deputy head of the [[NKVD]] (secret police) in 1938, he helped carry out the Stalinist purges. Promoted head of the NKVD in November 1938, he then purged that organisation. One of the victimes was its former chief, Yezhov, who was executed in 1940. In the 1940s Beria oversaw the Soviet atomic weaponry programme, and built up an espionage netwoprk in thye [[United States]] and [[Europe]]. In 1946 he resigned as head of the NKVD but maintained overall control of security as deputy Prime Minister. | '''Lavrenty Beria''' (1899-1953) was the head of the Soviet security apperatus under [[Stalin]]. Appointed deputy head of the [[NKVD]] (secret police) in 1938, he helped carry out the Stalinist purges. Promoted head of the NKVD in November 1938, he then purged that organisation. One of the victimes was its former chief, Yezhov, who was executed in 1940. In the 1940s Beria oversaw the Soviet atomic weaponry programme, and built up an espionage netwoprk in thye [[United States]] and [[Europe]]. In 1946 he resigned as head of the NKVD but maintained overall control of security as deputy Prime Minister. |