Hans Johannes Kruus (22 October 1891 – 30 June 1976) was an Estonian historian, academic and politician. As well as sitting in the

Estonian parliament The Riigikogu (; from Estonian ''riigi-'', of the state, and ''kogu'', assembly) is the unicameral parliament of Estonia. In addition to approving legislation, the Parliament appoints high officials, including the Prime Minister and Chief Jus ...

and the Supreme Soviet of the

Estonian SSR The Estonian SSR,, russian: Эстонская ССР officially the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic,, russian: Эстонская Советская Социалистическая Республика was an ethnically based adminis ...

, he was Deputy Prime Minister of Estonia in 1940 and Foreign Minister of the Estonian SSR between 1944 and 1950. He was also Rector of the

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; et, Tartu Ülikool; la, Universitas Tartuensis) is a university in the city of Tartu in Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is the only classical university in the country, and also its biggest ...

in 1940–41 and in 1944.

Early life and education

Kruus was born on 22 October 1891 in

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after the Northern European country's political and financial capital, Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 91,407 (as of 2021). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of ...

,Jaan Toomla,
Valitud ja Valitsenud: Eesti parlamentaarsete ja muude esinduskogude ning valitsuste isikkoosseis aastail 1917–1999
' (

National Library of Estonia The National Library of Estonia ( et, Eesti Rahvusraamatukogu) is a national public institution in Estonia, which operates pursuant to the National Library of Estonia Act (). It was established as the parliamentary library () of Estonia on Decembe ...

, 1999), pp. 276. to Hans Kruus (1847–1929), a woodworker in a table factory, caretaker and housekeeper, and his wife Anu Matsi (1846–1929), the daughter of a tenant farmer. In 1900, he moved with his family to a farm his father had purchased. Educated at Tartu Teachers' College between 1907 and 1911, Kruus worked as a teacher until he joined the History Faculty at the

in 1914. He served in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in the Estonian Regiment of the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...

from 1916, and first became involved with politics in this time."Kruus, Hans", in Toivo Miljan, ''Historical Dictionary of Estonia'' (Lanham, Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield, 2015), pp. 260–262.

Career

Early politics and return to academia

Kruus was elected to the

Estonian Provincial Assembly The Estonian Provincial Assembly ( et, Eestimaa Kubermangu Ajutine Maanõukogu, (Ajutine) Maanõukogu, Eesti Maanõukogu, (Eesti) Maapäev) was elected after the February Revolution in 1917 as the national diet of the Autonomous Governorate of E ...

which governed the newly formed

Autonomous Governorate of Estonia In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy, from , ''autonomos'', from αὐτο- ''auto-'' "self" and νόμος ''nomos'', "law", hence when combined understood to mean "one who gives oneself one's ow ...

in July 1917, but also sat on the Estonian Soldiers' Supreme Soviet. He was a founding member of the pro-independence and

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

Estonian Socialist Revolutionary Party The Estonian Socialist Revolutionary Party ( et, Eesti sotsialistide-revolutsionääride partei, ESRP) was a political party in Estonia during the early 20th century. History The ESRP was founded in Estonia in 1905 as a branch of the Russian So ...

, which he led from September 1917 to 1921. When Estonia gained independence following the end of the

Estonian War of Independence The Estonian War of Independence ( et, Vabadussõda, literally "Freedom War"), also known as the Estonian Liberation War, was a defensive campaign of the Estonian Army and its allies, most notably the United Kingdom, against the Bolshevik westwa ...

, he was elected to sit on the

Constituent Assembly A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...

and became chairman of the central committee of his party, reformed as the

Independent Socialist Workers Party The Independent Socialist Party ( cs, Neodvislá socialistická strana) was a political party in Czechoslovakia. The party was founded in March 1923.Collegium Carolinum (Munich, Germany), and Karl Bosl. Die erste Tschechoslowakische Republik als mul ...

. He also sat as a member of the first legislature of the

Riigikogu The Riigikogu (; from Estonian ''riigi-'', of the state, and ''kogu'', assembly) is the unicameral parliament of Estonia. In addition to approving legislation, the Parliament appoints high officials, including the Prime Minister and Chief Jus ...

(1920–23), but resigned on 3 October 1922 to focus on academia; he was replaced by Jaan Kalla. He completed an undergraduate degree in 1923 and eventually received at

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

nine years later from the University of Tartu. He became a professor of history there, and in 1934 became Professor of Nordic History and Pro-Rector of the University (holding the latter post until 1937).

Soviet politics, academic legacy and later life

Kruus was in favour of the

Soviet occupation of Estonia The Estonian SSR,, russian: Эстонская ССР officially the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic,, russian: Эстонская Советская Социалистическая Республика was an ethnically based adminis ...

in 1940, served as

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

21 June 1940 to 25 August 1940 and was a member of the

Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR The Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR ( Estonian: ''Eesti NSV Ülemnõukogu'') was the rubber stamp "legislative assembly" of the Estonian SSR – an administrative subunit of the Soviet Union in 1940–1991. After its first democratic election ...

as a member of the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

. He based himself in the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

during the

German occupation German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...

(1941–44) and then resumed his interest in Estonian politics when the Soviets reoccupied the territory; he continued to serve in the second Supreme Soviet, which sat from 1947 to 1951 and was

Foreign Minister A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

between 28 October 1944 and 8 June 1950. However, he was removed from these offices and his academic positions in 1950 and imprisoned for adhering to "

bourgeois nationalism In Marxism, bourgeois nationalism is the practice by the ruling classes of deliberately dividing people by nationality, race, ethnicity, or religion, so as to distract them from engaging in class struggle. It is seen as a divide-and-conquer st ...

". Released in 1954, he worked at the History Institute at the

USSR Academy of Sciences The Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union was the highest scientific institution of the Soviet Union from 1925 to 1991, uniting the country's leading scientists, subordinated directly to the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union (until 1946 ...

for four years, when he returned to Estonia as senior librarian in the History Institute of the

Academy of Sciences An academy of sciences is a type of learned society or academy (as special scientific institution) dedicated to sciences that may or may not be state funded. Some state funded academies are tuned into national or royal (in case of the Unite ...

. Kruus's academic career had also included spells as Rector of the University of Tartu (1940–41, 1944) and as President of the Estonian SSR's Academy of Sciences (1946–50). Estonian historians have been critical of his politics and his role played in the Soviet occupation,''Rektor Hans Kruus''
(University of Tartu, 2017), p. 5. but he was a major influence on the formation of historical scholarship in Estonia and "despite his variegated political career, Kruus is honoured among Estonian historians as one of the founders of the professional scholarly study of history in Estonia". His books included ''Linn ja Kula Eestis'' (1920), ''Eesti Ajaloo Lugemik'' (1924–29) and ''Vene-Liivi soda'' (1924). He was editor of ''Ajaloo Ajakiri'' between 1932 and 1936. Kruus died on 30 June 1976 in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

Early life and education

Career

Early politics and return to academia

Soviet politics, academic legacy and later life

References

Further reading