Of these, Blyukher, Tukhachevsky, and Yegorov were executed during Stalin's Great Purge of 1937–38. On 7 May 1940, three new Marshals were appointed: the new People's Commissar of Defence, Semyon Timoshenko, Boris Shaposhnikov, and Grigory Kulik.
During World War II, Kulik was demoted for incompetence, and the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union was given to a number of military commanders who earned it on merit. These included Georgy Zhukov, Ivan Konev and Konstantin Rokossovsky to name a few. In 1943, Stalin himself was made a Marshal of the Soviet Union, and in 1945, he was joined by his intelligence and police chief Lavrenti Beria. These non-military Marshals were joined in 1947 by politician Nikolai Bulganin.
Two Marshals were executed in postwar purges: Kulik in 1950 and Beria in 1953, following Stalin's death. Thereafter the rank was awarded only to professional soldiers, with the exception of Leonid Brezhnev, who made himself a Marshal in 1976, and Dmitry Ustinov, who was prominent in the arms industry and was appointed Defence Minister in July 1976. The last Marshal of the Soviet Union was Dmitry Yazov, appointed in 1990, who was imprisoned after the failed coup against Mikhail Gorbachev in 1991. Marshal Sergei Akhromeev committed suicide in 1991 during the fall of the Soviet Union.
The Marshals fell into three generational groups.
Those who had gained their reputations during the Russian Civil War. These included both those who were purged in 1937–38 (Blyukher, Tukhachevsky, and Yegorov), and those who held high commands in the early years of World War II (Budyonny, Kulik, Shaposhnikov, Timoshenko and Voroshilov). All of the latter except Shaposhnikov and Timoshenko proved out-of-step with modern warfare and were removed from commanding positions.
Those who made their reputations in World War II and assumed high commands in the latter part of the war. These included Zhukov, Vasilievsky, Konev, Rokossovsky, Malinovsky, Tolbukhin, Govorov, and Meretskov.
Those who assumed high command in the Cold War era. All of these were officers in World War II, but their higher commands were held in the Warsaw Pact or as Soviet Defence Ministers. These included Sokolovsky, Grechko, Yakubovsky, Kulikov, Ogarkov, Akhromeev, and Yazov.
All Marshals in the third category had been officers in World War II, except Ustinov, who had been People's Commissar for Armaments. Even Yazov, who was 20 when the war ended, had been a platoon commander. Brezhnev was not a professional soldier, but was still commissioned as a political commissar in the war.
Of the 35 Marshals who were career soldiers, the majority were of Russian origin. Timoshenko (Tymoshenko), Kulik (Kulyk), Grechko (Hrechko), Yeremenko (Yeryomenko), Moskalenko, Batitsky (Batytsʹkyy) and Koshevoy (Koshovyy) were of Ukrainian origin, while Sokolovsky (Sakaloŭski) and Yakubovsky (Jakuboŭski) had Belarusian origins. Rokossovsky (Rokossowski) was born in Congress Poland to a Polish family, while Malinovsky (Malinowsky) was born in Odessa (now in Ukraine) to a Polish father. Tukhachevsky also had Polish ancestry. Bagramyan (Baghramyan) was the sole marshal of Armenian origin.
The rank was abolished with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991. It was succeeded in the new Russia by the rank of Marshal of the Russian Federation, which has been held by only one person, Marshal Igor Sergeyev, who was Russian Defence Minister from 1997 to 2001.
After the death of Marshal Yazov in 2020 there were no living Marshals of the Soviet Union.
(1897–1982) Retired, 1968. Made Hero of the Soviet Union, 1944 and 1977. Last surviving Marshal of the Soviet Union to hold high command during World War II.
^Positions listed are those held by the officer when promoted to marshal, both within the Soviet Armed Forces, Communist Party of the Soviet Union and non-CPSU governmental apparatus. Politico-military positions, such as ministers, first deputy ministers, and deputy ministers of defence are to be included, whereas service on the Group of Inspectors General is not to be included.
^Refers to number of years holding rank of marshal. Unless otherwise stated, marshals of the Soviet Union hold their rank until final relief or removal from a position within the armed forces, party or state apparatus (including membership in the Party Congress, Central Committee, Politburo/Presidium). Time spent between holding of such positions is not counted.
^Notes include years of birth and death; awards of the Hero of the Soviet Union, Hero of Socialist Labour, Order of Victory or honours of similar significance; major military appointments prior to promotion to marshal; major non-governmental or Party-affiliated appointments; familial relationships with other marshals of the Soviet Union or significant Party and state officials; and unusual career events such as demotion, removal from office or being purged by Party leadership.
^Resigned as head of state, 7 May 1960; removed from Presidium, 16 Jul 1960; removed from Central Committee, Oct 1961; re-elected to Central Committee, 1966.
^Reduced to candidate member, 22nd Central Committee, 1961.
^Arrested and stripped of rank, 21 Feb 1938; executed, 23 Feb 1939; rehabilitated and posthumously restored as marshal, 14 Mar 1956.
^Arrested, 22 Oct 1938; died in captivity, 9 Nov 1938; retroactively stripped of rank, Mar 1939; rehabilitated and posthumously restored as marshal, 1956.
^Arrested and stripped of rank, 22 May 1937; executed, 12 Jun 1937; rehabilitated and posthumously restored as marshal, 31 Jan 1957.
^Dismissed as deputy people's commissar for defence and expelled from Central Committee, 24 Feb 1942; demoted to major general, 17 Mar 1942; promoted to lieutenant general, 15 Apr 1943; demoted to major general, 9 Jul 1945; arrested and stripped of rank, 11 Jan 1947; executed, 24 Aug 1950; rehabilitated and posthumously restored as marshal, 28 Sep 1957.
^Unofficial rank of Commissar General of State Security converted to Marshal of the Soviet Union, 9 Jul 1945; arrested, 26 Jun 1953; stripped of rank and expelled from all offices, 18 Dec 1953; executed, 23 Dec 1953.
^Reduced to candidate member, 22nd Central Committee, 1961.
^Resigned as premier, 27 Mar 1958; expelled from Central Committee and stripped of rank, Sep 1958; expelled from Presidium, 12 Nov 1958; retired, Feb 1960.
^Birstein, Vadim (November 2013). SMERSH: Stalin's Secret Weapon. ISBN9781849546898. Retrieved 29 September 2021. On July 9, 1945, the heads of all security structures received military ranks. Beria was promoted to marshal [...]
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