Gonchigiin Bumtsend ( mn, Гончигийн Бумцэнд; 11 September 1881 – 23 September 1953) was a Mongolian revolutionary who held several high level positions within the Mongolian government in the 1940s and early 1950s. He was Chairman of the Presidium of the State Little Khural (titular head of state) of the

Mongolian People's Republic The Mongolian People's Republic ( mn, Бүгд Найрамдах Монгол Ард Улс, БНМАУ; , ''BNMAU''; ) was a socialist state which existed from 1924 to 1992, located in the historical region of Outer Mongolia in East Asia. It w ...

from July 1940 until his death, 1953.

Early life and career

Bumtsend was born on 11 September 1881 in Züünbürenhanuul Hoshuu,

Tüsheet Khan Tüsheet Khan (Mongolian language, Mongolian: Түшээт хан; ) refers to the territory as well as the Descent from Genghis Khan, Chingizid dynastic rulers of the Tüsheet Khanate, one of four Khalkha Mongols, Khalka khanates that emerged fro ...

Province (present day Yeröö district,

Selenge Province Selenge ( mn, Сэлэнгэ) is one of the 21 aimags (provinces) of Mongolia, located in the north of the country. The name is derived from the Selenge river. The capital is Sükhbaatar. The province of Darkhan-Uul Darkhan-Uul ( mn, Дарх ...

). The son of a poor herding family, Bumtsend taught himself to read and write

Mongolian script The classical or traditional Mongolian script, also known as the , was the first writing system created specifically for the Mongolian language, and was the most widespread until the introduction of Cyrillic in 1946. It is traditionally writte ...

at age 13 and helped illiterate herdsmen in his area write petitions to the government. In his youth he worked as a woodworker and a cart driver at a horse relay station. During the Bogd Khanaate he worked as a laborer in Khüree (present day Ulaanbaatar). Bumtsend made his first contact with Mongolian revolutionaries in 1920 while working for the administration of his local hoshuu. He helped collect winter clothing for the partisan army and was involved in propaganda work. He was made a unit commander in the Mongolian partisan army commanded by

Damdin Sükhbaatar Damdin Sükhbaatar ( mn, Дамдины Сүхбаатар, Damdinii Sühbaatar, ; February 2, 1893 – February 20, 1923) was a Mongolian communist revolutionary, founding member of the Mongolian People's Party, and leader of the Mongolia ...

during the

Mongolian Revolution of 1921 The Mongolian Revolution of 1921 (Outer Mongolian Revolution of 1921, or People's Revolution of 1921) was a military and political event by which Mongolian revolutionaries, with the assistance of the Soviet Red Army, expelled Russian White Guar ...

and played a role in the defeat of the Chinese garrison at

Kyakhta Kyakhta (russian: Кя́хта, ; bua, Хяагта, Khiaagta, ; mn, Хиагт, Hiagt, ) is a town and the administrative center of Kyakhtinsky District in the Republic of Buryatia, Russia, located on the Kyakhta River near the Mongolia–Russi ...

in March 1921. After Mongolian partisans and Soviet

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

troops successfully entered Khüree in July of that year, Bumtsend's unit participated in several mop up guerrilla operations against remnants Baron

Roman von Ungern-Sternberg Nikolai Robert Maximilian Freiherr von Ungern-Sternberg (russian: link=no, Роман Фёдорович фон Унгерн-Штернберг, translit=Roman Fedorovich fon Ungern-Shternberg; 10 January 1886 – 15 September 1921), often refer ...

's forces. His unit then suppressed counterrevolutionary uprisings in eastern Mongolia. He joined the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party in 1923 and spent much of the 1920s working as a police chief while strengthening the administrative structures of the revolution in his home district. Through most of the 1930s he supervised cooperatives in

and, as head of the local party cell, was directly involved in efforts to expropriate property of local nobles and the expel Chinese traders from the country.

Head of state

Bumtsend was chosen to serve as chairman of the Presidium of the State Small Khural (titular head of state) at the Tenth Party Congress in 1940. It was an honorary role, with power residing in the hands of the prime minister,

Khorloogiin Choibalsan Khorloogiin Choibalsan ( mn, Хорлоогийн Чойбалсан, spelled ''Koroloogiin Çoibalsan'' before 1941; 8 February 1895 – 26 January 1952) was the leader of Mongolia (Mongolian People's Republic) and Marshal (general chief com ...

. He became a member of the country's

Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the executive committee for communist parties. It is present in most former and existing communist states. Names The term "politburo" in English comes from the Russian ''Politbyuro'' (), itself a contraction ...

in 1943 and chairman of the Great Khural in 1951. He died in office on September 23, 1953, aged 72. He was twice awarded the Order of Sukhbaatar and received the Soviet Order of Lenin.

Sources

*Sanders, Alan J. K., ''Historical Dictionary of Mongolia'', 1996, Scarecrow Press, , p. 29. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bumtsend, Gonchigiin 1881 births 1953 deaths People from Selenge Province Speakers of the State Great Khural Mongolian People's Party politicians Stalinism Anti-revisionists Mongolian communists Heads of state of Mongolia Communism in Mongolia Recipients of the Order of Lenin