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Communist Party of Estonia

For the later political party, see Communist Party of Estonia (1990).

The Communist Party of Estonia (Estonian: Eestimaa Kommunistlik Partei, abbreviated EKP; in Russian: Коммунистическая партия Эстонии) was a regional branch of the Soviet communist party which in 1920–1940 operated illegally in Estonia and, after the 1940 occupation and annexation of the country by the Soviet Union, was formally re-merged into the USSR's All-Union Communist Party (bolsheviks) and operated as part of the CPSU until 1990.

Communist Party of Estonia
Eestimaa Kommunistlik Partei
LeaderKarl Säre (1940–1943)
Nikolai Karotamm (1943–1950)
Johannes Käbin (1950–1978)
Karl Vaino (1978–1988)
Vaino Väljas (1988–1990)
Founded5 November 1920
Dissolved26 March 1990
Succeeded byEstonian Democratic Labour Party
Youth wingELKNÜ
IdeologyCommunism
Marxism–Leninism
Political positionFar-left
National affiliationCommunist Party of the Soviet Union (1940–1990)

History

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The predecessor of EKP was formed on 5 November 1920, when the Central Committee of the Estonian Sections of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) was separated from its mother party. During the first half of the 1920s the Bolsheviks' hopes for an immediate world revolution were still high, and communists and their sympathizers in Estonia had their own hopes of restoring power, and these hopes were supported by the widespread economic and social crisis at the time. Activists of the party had not only to support the agenda, but also to be ready to participate in the illegal actions, such as organising conspirative apartments, transporting weapons and communist propaganda material, hide undercover activists and collect information for the revolutionaries. It resulted in a standing conflict situation with the Estonian government and authorities. As EKP was not oriented towards official political action within the established democratic political system, the organisation never tried to legalise itself in the independent Republic of Estonia in 1920–1940, nor did it ever abandon calls for an armed uprising to unite Estonia with the USSR.

Although by early 1920s EKP had dropped much below from its 1917 level of popularity, it still had significant support amongst the industrial proletariat and it held a strong position within the Estonian trade union movement. In the parliamentary elections EKP's front organisations took always more than 5% of the vote. However, following the 1 December 1924 failed coup attempt by the Estonian communists, the party rapidly lost support, its membership fell to around 70–200 people and remained low until 1940. According to the EKP's own records, there were only 150 party members remaining by the time of the Soviet invasion and occupation of Estonia in June 1940.

Like in the rest of the Russian empire, the RSDLP branches in the Governorate of Estonia had been ravaged by division between Bolsheviks and Mensheviks. In 1912 the Bolsheviks started a publication, Kiir, in Narva. In June 1914, the party took a decision to create a special Central Committee of RSDLP(b) of Estonia, named the Northern-Baltic Committee of the RSDLP(b) (Estonian: VSDT(b)P Põhja-Balti Komitee).

After the February Revolution, as in the rest of the empire, Bolsheviks started to gain popularity with their demands to end the war immediately, as well as their support for fast land reform and originally even ethnic claims (to introduce Estonian as an official language parallel to Russian). During the summer of 1917, elected Bolshevik members along with their supporters, achieved a controlling majority in the Tallinn city council.

By the end of 1917, Estonian Bolsheviks were stronger than ever — holding control over political power and having significant support — remarkably more than in Russia. In the elections into the Russian Constituent Assembly, their list got 40.2% of the votes in Estonia and four of six seats allocated to Estonia. The support for the party did however start to decline, and the Constituent Assembly election of January 1918 was never completed. Moreover, the party faced the situation in which it had difficulty building alliances. Their opponents, the Democratic Bloc, was able to initiate cooperation with the Labour Party, Mensheviks and the Socialist-Revolutionary Party. Those parties supported different ideas but were united around the demand for an independent, or Finland-linked, Estonia and wished to redistribute land to the landless and small farmers. In the first question the Estonian Bolsheviks, although having introduced Estonian as an official language after their takeover, promoted the idea of Estonia as a part of Soviet Russia. In the land reform policy, Estonian Bolsheviks continued to support immediate collectivisation.

Bolshevik rule in Estonia was ended by the German invasion in the end of February 1918. The party branch continued to function in exile in Soviet Russia.

After the German revolution in November 1918, when an independent Estonian national government took office, the Estonian Bolsheviks supported the Lenin's Soviet Russian regime's armed invasion against the new democratic country. By this time, the level of local Estonian popular support for the Bolsheviks had markedly fallen, and they failed to mobilise mass support for "revolutionary warfare". A pro-Leninist puppet government ("Estonian Workers' Commune") was set up in areas occupied by the Red Army, but it had very limited influence. At this time the party branch had been reorganized into the Central Committee of the Estonian Sections of the RCP(b) (Estonian: Venemaa Kommunistliku (bolshevike) Partei Eesti Sektsioonide Keskkomitee). After the war a reorientation was found to be necessary (since Estonia was now an independent state) by the central leadership of the RCP(b) and thus on 5 November 1920 the Communist Party of Estonia (EKP) was founded as a separate party. In the rigged 1940 Estonian parliamentary election, the EKP candidates were included in the "Estonian Working People's Union" bloc.

Merger with the CPSU

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In 1940, EKP was merged into the All-Union Communist Party (bolsheviks). The territorial organization of the AUCP(b) in the Estonian SSR became known as Communist Party of Estonia (bolsheviks) (EK(b)P).

The EK(b)P was purged in 1950 of many of its original native leaders they were replaced by a number of prominent Estonians who had grown up in Russia,[1] see "Yestonians".

When the AUCP(b) changed its name in 1952 to CPSU, the EK(b)P removed the (b) from its name.

Split of 1990

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EKP was divided in 1990, as the pro-sovereignty majority faction of EKP separated itself from the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and became the Estonian Democratic Labour Party (Estonian United Left Party). The remaining pro-Soviet faction reconstituted themselves as the Communist Party of Estonia (CPSU platform).

First Secretaries of the Communist Party of Estonia

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No. Name

(Birth–Death)

Took office Left office Notes
1 Karl Säre
(1903–c.1943) 		August 28, 1940 circa 1943 German prisoner from September 3, 1941
– Nikolai Karotamm
(1901–1969) 		September 3, 1941 September 28, 1944 Acting (nominally for absent Säre). In Russian SFSR exile to September 22, 1944.
2 September 28, 1944 March 26, 1950
3 Johannes Käbin
(1905–1999) 		March 26, 1950 July 26, 1978
4 Karl Vaino
(1923–2022) 		July 26, 1978 June 16, 1988
5 Vaino Väljas
(1931–2024) 		June 16, 1988 March 25, 1990 "Leading role" of the Party abolished February 24, 1990.
6 Enn-Arno Sillari
(born 1944) 		March 25, 1990 August 22, 1991 First secretary of independent Party.
– Lembit Annus
(1941–2018) 		December 1990 August 22, 1991 First secretary of pro-Moscow breakaway faction.

Second Secretaries of the Communist Party of Estonia

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Chairman of the Estonian Communist Party

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No. Name

(Birth–Death)

Took office Left office Notes
1 Vaino Väljas
(1931–2024) 		March 25, 1990 August 22, 1991 "Leading role" of the Party abolished February 24, 1990.

Prominent Estonian communists

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "The Baltic States, years of dependence, 1940-1990", by Romuald J. Misiunas, Rein Taagepera, 1993, ISBN 0520082281, p. 149
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