Yezhovshchina

Soviet history

Also known as: Ezhovshchina

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July 15, 2026

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The Yezhovshchina, or Great Purge, was the most severe phase of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin's purges. Lasting from 1936 to 1938, it was administered by Nikolay Ivanovich Yezhov, then chief of the Soviet security police (NKVD).1

This period saw the ruthless elimination of Stalin's perceived enemies, initially within the Communist Party and state apparatus, and later extending to the general population. Millions were arrested, and many were executed or sent to labor camps. The terror reached its peak in 1937-1938, with extra-legal tribunals sentencing vast numbers of people. Yezhov himself eventually fell victim to the purges, arrested in 1939 and executed in 1940.21

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Soviet Union
Internal, 1930–37
…Nikolay Yezhov, from whom the Yezhovshchina, the worst phase of the terror in 1937–38, took its name. A new group, headed by Grigory (Yury) Pyatakov, was now arrested, figuring in the second great trial in January 1937. This time the charges included espionage, sabotage, and treason, in addition to terrorism.
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…Nikolay Yezhov, from whom the Yezhovshchina, the worst phase of the terror in 1937–38, took its name. A new group, headed by Grigory (Yury) Pyatakov, was now arrested, figuring in the second great trial in January 1937. This time the charges included espionage, sabotage, and treason, in addition to terrorism.
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Nikolay Ivanovich Yezhov
…the great purges, known as Yezhovshchina (or Ezhovshchina).
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…the great purges, known as Yezhovshchina (or Ezhovshchina).
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