Marshal of the Soviet Union 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 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
Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union all between 1939 and 1952. After the death of Joseph Stalin, the congresses were held every five years. Information on congresses, number of delegates, number of people elected to CCs, party membership, the individual who presented the Political Report and information on when the congress was convened can be found in these sources: "Articles and journals:" Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union The Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union () was the supreme decision-making body of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Its meetings served as convention of all party delegates and their