# Vladimir Kryuchkov

> Soviet politician, chairman of KGB (1924-2007)

**Wikidata**: [Q382145](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q382145)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Kryuchkov)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/vladimir-kryuchkov

## Summary
Vladimir Kryuchkov was a Soviet politician best known for serving as chairman of the KGB and for his role in the 1991 State Committee on the State of Emergency (GKChP), the hard‑line body that attempted to halt Mikhail Gorbachev’s reforms. His actions placed him at the center of the final crisis of the Soviet Union.

## Biography
- Born: 1924  
- Nationality: Soviet  
- Education:  
- Known for: Chairman of the KGB; key figure in the 1991 State Committee on the State of Emergency  
- Employer(s): KGB (Chairman); State Committee on the State of Emergency (Member)  
- Field(s): Politics, intelligence, state security  

## Contributions
- Leadership of the KGB: Directed the Soviet Union’s primary security and intelligence agency during the late Soviet era, overseeing internal security, foreign intelligence, and counter‑espansive operations.  
- State Committee on the State of Emergency (GKChP): As a member of this emergency body, he helped shape its formation on 18 August 1991, which sought to preserve the Soviet Union by reversing Gorbachev’s liberalization policies; the committee’s brief existence marked a decisive moment in the USSR’s dissolution.  

## FAQs
**What positions did Vladimir Kryuchkov hold within the Soviet security apparatus?**  
He served as the chairman of the KGB, the Soviet Union’s chief intelligence and security service, a role that placed him at the pinnacle of the state’s internal and external security apparatus.

**What was Vladimir Kryuchkov’s involvement in the 1991 State Committee on the State of Emergency?**  
He was a member of the GKChP, the hard‑line committee formed on 18 August 1991 to oppose Gorbachev’s reforms; the committee’s attempt to seize power ultimately failed and accelerated the Soviet collapse.

**What are the known aliases of Vladimir Kryuchkov?**  
His aliases include Vladimir Aleksandrovich Kryuchkov and Vladimir Alexandrovich Kryuchkov, as recorded in structured data sources.

**How is Vladimir Kryuchkov described in Wikidata?**  
The Wikidata entry describes him as a “Soviet politician, chairman of KGB (1924‑2007)” and assigns him the Wikipedia title “Vladimir Kryuchkov.”

**What is the sitelink count associated with Vladimir Kryuchkov’s Wikipedia entry?**  
His Wikipedia page has a sitelink count of 33, indicating the number of language‑linked articles about him.

**What details are known about the State Committee on the State of Emergency that he joined?**  
The committee was a USSR government organization inaugurated on 18 August 1991, based in Moscow (headquarters ), employing roughly eight staff, and linked to the Russian state (country ) with a sitelink count of 30.

## Why They Matter
Vladimir Kryuchkov’s leadership of the KGB placed him at the heart of Soviet state security during a period of mounting political and economic strain. His participation in the 1991 GKChP coup attempt represented the last major effort by hard‑liners to preserve the Soviet Union through force; the failure of that attempt discredited the old guard, empowered reformist and separatist movements, and hastened the formal dissolution of the USSR later that year. Consequently, his actions are viewed as a pivotal catalyst in the end of the Cold War era and the emergence of the post‑Soviet political landscape.

## Notable For
- Served as chairman of the KGB, the Soviet Union’s premier security agency.  
- Key member of the 1991 State Committee on the State of Emergency (GKChP).  
- Recognized under the aliases Vladimir Aleksandrovich Kryuchkov and Vladimir Alexandrovich Kryuchkov.  
- Wikipedia entry carries a sitelink count of 33.  
- Associated with the State Committee on the State of Emergency, which had an inception date of 19 August 1991, headquarters in Moscow, eight employees, and a sitelink count of 30.  

## Body

### Early Life
Vladimir Kryuchkov was born in 1924. No further details about his place of birth or early education appear in the supplied source material.

### KGB Career
He attained the position of chairman of the KGB, the Soviet Union’s Committee for State Security. The exact dates of his chairmanship are not provided, but his tenure occurred within his lifespan (1924‑2007) and placed him at the apex of the Soviet intelligence and security apparatus during the final decades of the USSR.

### State Committee on the State of Emergency (GKChP)
On 18 August 1991, the State Committee on the State of Emergency was established as a USSR government organization aimed at preserving the Soviet state amid rising political turmoil. Vladimir Kryuchkov was listed as a member of this committee. The committee’s attributes, as given in the source, are:
- Inception: +1991-08-18T00:00:00Z  
- Country:  (Russia)  
- Headquarters:  (Moscow)  
- Employees: 8.0  
- Sitelink count: 30  

### Later Life and Death
Vladimir Kryuchkov lived until 2007, as indicated by the lifespan notation in the raw description (1924‑2007). No additional details about his activities after the GKChP episode or the circumstances of his death are supplied.

### Legacy and Recognition
His biographical record includes:
- Aliases: Vladimir Aleksandrovich Kryuchkov; Vladimir Alexandrovich Kryuchkov  
- Wikipedia title: Vladimir Kryuchkov  
- Wikidata description: “Soviet politician, chairman of KGB (1924‑2007)”  
- Sitelink count across language versions of Wikipedia: 33  

These identifiers reflect the extent of his documentation in collaborative knowledge bases and underscore his historical prominence as a Soviet political and security figure.

## References

1. International Standard Name Identifier
2. Virtual International Authority File
3. Integrated Authority File
4. Encyclopædia Britannica Online
5. SNAC
6. Find a Grave
7. Munzinger Personen
8. [Source](http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/obituaries/articles/2007/11/27/vladimir_kryuchkov_helped_plot_soviet_coup/)
9. Google Knowledge Graph
10. [LIBRIS. 2012](https://libris.kb.se/katalogisering/20dgj2rl0q3h20j)