Ministry Of Communications Of The USSR
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The Ministry of Communications of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) (russian: Министерство связи СССР) was the central state administration body on
communications Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...
in the
Soviet Union 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 national ...
from 1923 to 1991. During its existence it had three names: People's Commissariat for Posts and Telegraphs (1923–32), People's Commissariat for Communications (1932–46) and Ministry of Communications (1946–1991). It had authority over the postal,
telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
and
telephone A telephone is a telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human voice, into e ...
communications as well as
public radio Public broadcasting involves radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing ...
, technical means of radio and
television broadcasting A television network or television broadcaster is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay television providers. Until the mid-1 ...
, and the distribution of
periodicals A periodical literature (also called a periodical publication or simply a periodical) is a published work that appears in a new edition on a regular schedule. The most familiar example is a newspaper, but a magazine or a Academic journal, journal ...
in the country.


History


Posts and Telegraphs (1923–32)

In 1922, the Soviet Union was formed. Its founding document stated that, among different areas, "jurisdiction of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, as represented by its supreme bodies shall be": The same document defined that "the Executive Body of the Central Executive Committee of the Union is 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 ...
of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (CPC Union), elected by the Central Executive Committee of the Union for the term of the latter," and it would comprise the
People's Commissar Commissar (or sometimes ''Kommissar'') is an English transliteration of the Russian (''komissar''), which means 'commissary'. In English, the transliteration ''commissar'' often refers specifically to the political commissars of Soviet and Eas ...
for Posts and
Telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
s. In the Council of People's Commissars of the Union republics, the People's Commissariat for Posts and Telegraphs had "an advisory capacity." Accordingly, after the formation of the Soviet Union, the People's Commissariat for Posts and Telegraphs of the USSR was created in 1923 instead of the similar agency of the
RSFSR The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...
. Regulations on the new Commissariat were approved by the USSR Central Executive Committee session on 12 November 1923. In 1924, the People's Commissariat for Posts and Telegraphs set up a mobile postal service, providing it to rural localities. In 1925, an area inhabited by 68% of the USSR population (27% of the population centres) was covered by home delivery of
mail The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letter (message), letters, and parcel (package), parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid ...
. Regular
radio broadcasting Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...
started in 1924, with radio broadcast stations being established in 1925 in
Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
,
Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
,
Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...
,
Nizhny Novgorod Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət ), colloquially shortened to Nizhny, from the 13th to the 17th century Novgorod of the Lower Land, formerly known as Gork ...
, and other cities. By 1929, the telegraph networks destroyed in the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
of 1918–1920 were restored to the pre-
World War I 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 ...
level. Further improvement of telegraph communication was aimed at a conversion to letter-printing telegraphs. The first
facsimile A facsimile (from Latin ''fac simile'', "to make alike") is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, Old master print, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from ...
communications line was opened in 1929. In the same year, an automatic switching system for 6,000 numbers was opened in
Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East Eu ...
. In 1930, two regional automatic switching systems were launched in Moscow. On 17 January 1932, the Commissariat was re-organised and renamed the ''People's Commissariat for Communications''.


1932–1946

The Commissariat was organised on 17 January 1932 by renaming from the People's Commissariat for Posts and Telegraphs of the USSR. Over the years of the pre-World War II five-year plans (1929–1940), there was a rapid development of the Soviet communication system and industry. High-frequency equipment was introduced for long-distance communication. Use of such equipment allowed to transmit three, four, or 12 telephone calls over a pair of wires or 16 telegrams over a single telephone channel. In 1939, construction of a high-frequency three-channel line between Moscow and
Khabarovsk Khabarovsk ( rus, Хабaровск, a=Хабаровск.ogg, r=Habárovsk, p=xɐˈbarəfsk) is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative centre of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia,Law #109 located from the China ...
(8,600 km) provided dependable communication between the USSR central regions and the
Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...
. By late 1940, the Moscow Central Telegraph Office had 22
facsimile A facsimile (from Latin ''fac simile'', "to make alike") is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, Old master print, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from ...
lines. In 1941, a 12-channel line between Moscow and
Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
was put into operation that meant the concurrent transmission of 12 telephone calls over a single pair of wires. In the 1930s, the rural (intraraion) telephone communication was first set up. In 1940, it reached 70% of the areas under rural soviets, 76.3% of the sovkhozes, and 9.2% of the kolkhozes. The
radio broadcasting network There are two types of radio network currently in use around the world: the one-to-many (simplex communication) broadcast network commonly used for public information and mass-media entertainment, and the two-way radio (duplex communication) type u ...
experienced significant expansion. In the early 1930s, the
Comintern The Communist International (Comintern), also known as the Third International, was a Soviet Union, Soviet-controlled international organization founded in 1919 that advocated world communism. The Comintern resolved at its Second Congress to ...
Radio Station, with a power of 500 kW, was constructed along with a number of other stations with a power of 100 kW each. The receiving network was augmented, while a system for wired broadcasting via rebroadcasting centres was arranged. Regular television programming was initiated in 1939. During the
Great Patriotic War The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of conflict between the European Axis powers against the Soviet Union (USSR), Poland and other Allies, which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltics), and Sout ...
of 1941–1945, steady communication was organised between the General Headquarters of the Supreme Command and the fronts. Soviet postal service administered by the People's Commissariat for Communications of the USSR delivered billions of
letters Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech; any of the symbols of an alphabet. * Letterform, the graphic form of a letter of the alphabe ...
via the postal network and the military postal units of the army in the field. Up to 70 million
parcels Parcels are an Australian electropop five-piece formed in Byron Bay, Australia, in 2014. Today they are based in Berlin, Germany. The band's line-up is composed of keyboardist Louie Swain, keyboardist/guitarist Patrick Hetherington, bassist Noa ...
per month were delivered to the
Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...
front from the rear under extremely difficult and often very dangerous conditions. Because of the war time, almost half the telephone offices became inoperative but were restored soon after the war. By 1948, telephone system capacity and number of installed telephone sets exceeded the prewar level. In the postwar times, mail service had undergone quantitative and qualitative changes. In 1946, the People's Commissariat for Communications of the USSR was transformed into the ''Ministry of Communications''.


As a ministry (1946–1991)

It was originally set up as an all-Union ministry, and in December 1954 transformed into a Union-Republican one. The Ministry of Communications of the USSR was responsible for the maintenance and further development of all types of communications in general use, and technical means of radio and television broadcasting. It was also in charge of the periodicals distribution as well as the provision of technological progress in the industry, the quality of communication services, and the most complete and continuous needs of the country media and communication services. Additionally, the Ministry was responsible for issuing postage stamps and postal stationery (
envelope An envelope is a common packaging item, usually made of thin, flat material. It is designed to contain a flat object, such as a letter or card. Traditional envelopes are made from sheets of paper cut to one of three shapes: a rhombus, a shor ...
s,
postcard A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. There are novelty exceptions, such as wood ...
s, etc.), which were used in the
postal system The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal syst ...
of the Soviet Union. The Ministry was terminated on 26 December 1991 due to the abolition of the Soviet Union. All Ministry assets, premises and other facilities in the territory of the
Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
were delegated to the Ministry of Communications of the Russian Federation. telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
sendings at the time of the Ministry of Communications of the USSR"> File:StampedPostcard1956-1961.jpg, Address side of a 1956 illustrated stamped
postcard A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. There are novelty exceptions, such as wood ...
marked with a surcharge of the new price in 1961 File:Official mail cover USSR Odessa 1975.jpg,
Official mail Official mail is mail sent from, or by, an authorized department of government, governmental agency or international organizationHorning (1970), pp. 97–98 and normally has some indication that it is official; a certifying cachet, return address ...
cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...
postmarked in
Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...
on 12 April 1974. The auxiliary postal marking states: "Official / Ministry of Communications" (russian: СЛУЖЕБНОЕ / МИН-ВО СВЯЗИ) File:USSR Telegram Form F-TG1a, 1988.jpg, A blank telegram form (1988)


Philatelic policy


1923–1932

The Commissariat was the central office responsible for issuing postage
stamps of the Soviet Union Stamps of the Soviet Union were issued in the period 1923 to 1991. They were labeled with the inscription russian: "Почта СССР" ("Post of the USSR"). In the thematics, Soviet stamps reflected to a large extent the history, politics, ec ...
. In addition to overprinting older issues, the government created new
postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...
s. Between 1922 and 1930, there were also stamps meant to raise money for famine relief,
child welfare Child protection is the safeguarding of children from violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect. Article 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child provides for the protection of children in and out of the home. One of the ways to e ...
and other charity purposes.. The government also tried to generate money from stamp sales abroad. However, at the beginning this amount was quite small as compared, for example, to the total of 522.6 million rubles for all Soviet
export An export in international trade is a good produced in one country that is sold into another country or a service provided in one country for a national or resident of another country. The seller of such goods or the service provider is an ...
s during 1923–1924. Since 1929, the Soviet government had started paying more attention to this revenue source and selling more stamps abroad. Such sales had both financial and
propagandistic Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
objectives. File:НКПТ СССР крышка люка 1929.JPG, Another telephone hatch version, with the official emblem of the Commissariat, Kharkov, 1929 File:A s popov zegel kl.jpg,
Revenue stamp A revenue stamp, tax stamp, duty stamp or fiscal stamp is a (usually) adhesive label used to designate collected taxes or fees on documents, tobacco, alcoholic drinks, drugs and medicines, playing cards, hunting licenses, firearm registration, ...
issued by the Commissariat to support radio broadcasting that depicts , 1926


1932–1946

The People's Commissariat for Communications of the USSR was responsible for issuing
postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...
s. It also sold stamps to philatelic organisations and collectors. By 1939–1940, the
revenue In accounting, revenue is the total amount of income generated by the sale of goods and services related to the primary operations of the business. Commercial revenue may also be referred to as sales or as turnover. Some companies receive reven ...
from stamp sales through philatelic organisations was significant. In that same year, it secured over 85% of the total income of the Commissariat (or 17.28 million rubles of 19.833 million rubles). The Soviet government was not an exception among the other states in terms of deriving a profit from the postage stamp trade. In fact, many governments around the world developed similar policies for issuing stamps: File:Postcar.jpg, Soviet postal truck in the 1930s File:1944TelegramNKSKharkov.jpg, Telegramme of the People's Commissariat for Communications sent to freed Kharkov, 1944 File:USSR stamp 1945 CPA 978.jpg, Stamp issued by the People's Commissariat for Communications to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the invention of radio by A.S. Popov, 1945 File:1946 Харьковский почтамт уш.jpg,
Letterhead A letterhead is the heading at the top of a sheet of letter paper (stationery). It consists of a name, address, logo or trademark, and sometimes a background pattern. Overview Many companies and individuals prefer to create a letterhead template ...
of the Kharkov City Post Office, People's Commissariat for Communications, 1946


Departments

The Ministry included two major departments: * ''General Directorate of Post'', whose administrative tasks were organization and management of the postal system in the USSR, and * ''General Directorate of Periodicals Distribution Soyuzpechat'' (later, the Central Retail and Subscription Agency Soyuzpechat and since 1994, JSC 'Agency Rospechat') that was also in charge of organizing trade of philatelic materials through its unit, the (CPA).


People's Commissars and Ministers


Publications

Under the auspices of the USSR Ministry of Communications and Soyuzpechat, the following periodicals and publications were issued: * magazine ''Vestnik Sviazi'' (russian: «Вестник связи»; ''Communications Journal''), * magazine ''
Filateliya SSSR ''Filateliya''. (''Philately'') or formerly ''Filateliya SSSR''. (''Philately of the USSR'') is a Russian central philatelic magazine. It first appeared in 1966 as the monthly bulletin ''Filateliya SSSR'' and was issued by the USSR Ministry of Comm ...
'' (russian: «Филателия СССР»; ''
Philately Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is poss ...
of the USSR''), jointly with the (russian: Всесоюзное общество филателистов), *
stamp catalog A stamp catalog (or stamp catalogue) is a catalog of postage stamp types with descriptions and prices. The stamp catalog is an essential tool of philately and stamp collecting. Stamp catalogs are part of philatelic literature. Similar catalog ...
s, and price sheets of stamps of the USSR and other philatelic materials.


See also


References


Citations


Sources

*


External links

* * {{authority control
Communications Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...
1946 establishments in the Soviet Union 1991 disestablishments in the Soviet Union Soviet Union, Communications Communications in the Soviet Union
Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
Postal history of Russia Postage stamps of the Soviet Union