Viktoria Brezhneva

First Lady of the Soviet Union (1907–1995)

Виктория Брежнева

Spouse of the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet UnionIn office
14 October 1964 – 10 November 1982Preceded byNina KhrushchevaSucceeded byTatyana Andropova Personal detailsBorn

Viktoria Petrovna Denisova

11 December 1908
Belgorod, Kursk Governorate, Russian EmpireDied5 July 1995(1995-07-05) (aged 86)
Moscow, RussiaNationalitySoviet
RussianPolitical partyCommunist Party of the Soviet UnionSpouse

Leonid Brezhnev

(m. 1928; died 1982)

ChildrenGalina
Yuri

Viktoria Petrovna Brezhneva (Russian: Виктория Петровна Брежнева, IPA: [vʲɪkˈtorʲɪjə pʲɪˈtrovnə ˈbrʲeʐnʲɪvə], née Denisova, Дени́сова, IPA: [dʲɪˈnʲisəvə]; 11 December 1908 – 5 July 1995) was the wife of Soviet politician and longtime General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev. She was the mother of Yuri Brezhnev and Galina Brezhneva.

Biography

She was born in Belgorod in 1908 as Viktoria Petrovna Denisova (Дени́сова).^[1] It is claimed by historian Robert Service that she was of Jewish ancestry but Denisova herself has denied having any Jewish ancestry.^[2] She met Leonid Brezhnev in 1926 and they married in 1928. The following year, Viktoria gave birth to their first child, Galina. Four years later, their second child, Yuri, was born.^[3] Viktoria's relationship with Brezhnev was described as "old fashioned" and one that "without exaggeration [could] be called gentle".^[4]

According to the memoirs of Brezhnev's relatives, Viktoria encouraged Brezhnev's materialistic outlook.^[5] During Brezhnev's General Secretaryship, Viktoria remained at the sidelines; she did not like attracting public attention.^[3] Her last appearance in public was at Brezhnev's state funeral in 1982.^[4] Following the death of Brezhnev, Viktoria lived on for another 13 years, dying after struggling for several years with diabetes in 1995.^[3] She lived in Brezhnev's old apartment for the remainder of her life. Her daughter, Galina, did not attend the funeral although the rest of the family did.^[4]

References

^ Vronskaya, Jeanne (11 July 1995). "OBITUARY: Victoria Brezhnev". The Independent. Archived from the original on 17 August 2022. Retrieved 17 January 2011.
^ Robert Service (2009). History of Modern Russia: From Tsarism to the Twenty-first Century. Penguin Books Ltd. p. 382. ISBN 0-14-103797-0.
^ ^a ^b ^c Виктория Петровна Брежнева [Viktoria Petrovna Brezhnev] (in Russian). All Biography. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
^ ^a ^b ^c Moskvin, Vitaliy. ПОХОРОНЫ БРЕЖНЕВОЙ [Brezhnev's funeral] (in Russian). ZN. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
^ Moskvin, Vitaliy. Виктория Брежнева [Viktoria Brezhnev] (in Russian). Nashekino. Archived from the original on 4 March 2011. Retrieved 17 December 2010.