The Communist University of the National Minorities of the West (KUNMZ - ''Kommunistichesky Universitet Natsionalnykh Menshinstv Zapada''; КУНМЗ - Коммунистический университет национальных меньшинств Запада), was created by a 28 November 1921 decree of the

Council of People's Commissars The Councils of People's Commissars (SNK; russian: Совет народных комиссаров (СНК), ''Sovet narodnykh kommissarov''), commonly known as the ''Sovnarkom'' (Совнарком), were the highest executive authorities of ...

and charged with training party cadres from the western regions of Russia and the

Volga Germans The Volga Germans (german: Wolgadeutsche, ), russian: поволжские немцы, povolzhskiye nemtsy) are ethnic Germans who settled and historically lived along the Volga River in the region of southeastern European Russia around Saratov a ...

. The first rector of the university was the Polish communist

Julian Marchlewski Julian Baltazar Józef Marchlewski (17 May 1866 – 22 March 1925) was a Polish communist politician, revolutionary activist and publicist who served as chairman of the Provisional Polish Revolutionary Committee. He was also known under the al ...

, which the university was later named after.

History

In 1929–1930, it began to admit representatives of the communist parties of the Central European, Scandinavian, and Balkan countries, as well as Italy. It turned into an international school for the preparation and education of the "fraternal" communist parties' reserve cadres, aimed at the best political émigrés to study in a 2-3 year special program. Afterward they would have been sent to work in their countries of origin. Political émigrés already living in the USSR, Moscow, KUNMZ organized night courses to study special subjects, i.e. history of the CP of the countries of origin, mass work and party construction. A similar institution was the

Communist University of the Toilers of the East The Communist University of the Toilers of the East (KUTV) (russian: link=no, Коммунистический университет трудящихся Востока; also known as the Far East University) was a revolutionary training scho ...

also known as the Far East University was established in 1921 in Moscow by the

Communist International The Communist International (Comintern), also known as the Third International, was a Soviet-controlled international organization founded in 1919 that advocated world communism. The Comintern resolved at its Second Congress to "struggle by ...

as a training college for communist cadres in the colonial world. KUNMZ was dissolved following the decision of the Executive Committee of the Communist International's Secretariat of 7–8 May 1936.

Notable alumni

Prominent alumni of the KUNMZ include: * Josip Broz Tito, Secretary-General (later President) of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia (1939–80) *

Edvard Kardelj Edvard Kardelj (; 27 January 1910 – 10 February 1979), also known by the pseudonyms Bevc, Sperans and Krištof, was a Yugoslav politician and economist. He was one of the leading members of the Communist Party of Slovenia before World War II ...

, Slovene communist political leader *

Ante Ciliga Ante Ciliga (20 February 1898 – 21 October 1992) was a Croatian politician, writer and publisher. Ciliga was one of the founders of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (KPJ). Imprisoned in Stalin's Gulags in the 1930s, he later became an ardent ...

Peder Furubotn Peder Furubotn (29 August 1890 – 28 November 1975) was a Norwegian cabinetmaker, politician for the Communist Party and resistance member during World War II. Early and personal life Furubotn was born in Brekke, Sogn og Fjordane, the son o ...

* Arvid G. Hansen * Jovan Mališić *

Yrjö Sirola Yrjö Elias Sirola (born Yrjö Elias Sirén; 8 November 1876 – 18 March 1936) was a Finnish socialist politician, writer, teacher, and newspaper editor. He was prominent as an elected official in Finland, as minister of foreign affairs in the 1 ...

Heinrich Vogeler Heinrich Vogeler (December 12, 1872 – June 14, 1942) was a German painter, designer, and architect, associated with the Düsseldorf school of painting. Early life He was born in Bremen, and studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf from 1 ...

References

Educational institutions established in 1921 Universities and institutes established in the Soviet Union Defunct universities and colleges in Russia Education in the Soviet Union Universities and colleges in Moscow 1936 disestablishments 1921 establishments in Russia Foreign relations of the Soviet Union {{soviet-stub

History

Notable alumni

See also

References