Soviet political pyramid
It was officially believed that the main socially significant decisions in the USSR were to be made collectively by Soviet citizens represented by councils of different levels (Soviet means "council" in Russian). According to Soviet constitution the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the "leading and guiding force of the Soviet society". Meetings, conferences and congresses were constantly held in all corners of the vast country. For the most part, these events were of a ritual nature, since the last word always remained with a limited circle of nomenklatura headed by the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU.
"Lenin. Party. Komsomol. XIX Congress of the The All-Union Leninist Young Communist League in the Kremlin Palace" Photo by Yuri Lizunov, Moscow, USSR, 1982
"XXVI Congress of CPSU. We follow the party, glorifying homeland with our deeds. Lenin is all the time with us!" Soviet poster, 1981
Communist party meeting at a sobering-up station. Photo by Anatoly Semekhin, USSR, 1987
XXV Congress of the CPSU, 1976
Communist party meeting, 1972
"XXII Congress of the CPSU is the Congress of builders of communism!" Soviet poster, 1961
Deputies in the conference room of the Kremlin during the first session of the USSR Supreme Soviet of the eleventh convocation. Photo by Yuri Abramochkin, 1985
"Speech of the Party Secretary" painting by Kamil Shayakhmetov, 1972" postcard
Members of the Komsomol Young Communist League committee evaluating prospective candidates for "Miss Riga" beauty pageant, Latvian SSR, 1988
Komsomol meeting, 1970s
USSR People's Deputies are heading to the II Congress of People's Deputies in the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, Moscow, USSR, 1989 Photo: Sergei Subbotin / RIA Novosti
"Get ready for the Party Congress!" Soviet poster, 1965
Communist party meeting. Photo by Vladimir Vyatkin, Kiev, Ukrainian SSR, 1982
Committee in charge of deciding which clothes could be sold to Soviet women, Moscow, USSR, 1947 Photo by Robert Capa
Politburo of the Central Committee of Communist Party of the Soviet Union, 1986