Vyacheslav Alexandrovich
Malyshev
1902-1957
Vyacheslav Alexandrovich Malyshev was a Soviet statesman, one of the cohort of “Stalin’s People’s Commissars,” who, alongside I.F. Tevosyan, B.L. Vannikov, D.F. Ustinov, and A.N. Kosygin, led the creation of the Soviet Union’s industry in the late 1930s and early 1950s, and was a Hero of Socialist Labor. He was a key figure in building the industrial might of the USSR. He proved himself a talented organizer whose activities during the Great Patriotic War largely predetermined the victory, and in the post-war years ensured the country’s technological sovereignty. Starting his career at 16, he rose from being a locomotive driver to a student at the Bauman Moscow Higher Technical School (MVTU), from which he graduated in 1934. His talent as an engineer and organizer quickly propelled him to leadership positions, and by 1939, at the age of 37, he headed the People’s Commissariat of Heavy Engineering of the USSR. The true historical significance of Malyshev’s personality was revealed during the war. As the People’s Commissar of the Tank Industry (1941-1942, 1943-1945), he achieved what seemed impossible: in the shortest possible time, he organized the evacuation and deployment of gigantic production facilities in the Urals. He oversaw not only mass production but also the continuous improvement of the legendary T-34 and KV tanks, ensuring close cooperation between factories, design bureaus, and the front. The result of his titanic work was the production of 102,000 units of armored vehicles during the war years – an achievement that gave the Red Army a decisive advantage. In 1944, he was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor for these services. In the post-war period, Malyshev, as Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, was responsible for key sectors of the defense industry complex. He joined the Special Committee and directly supervised the creation of Plant No. 813 (now the Ural Electrochemical Plant) – one of the fundamental enterprises of the Soviet atomic project. Subsequently, he headed the ministries of shipbuilding, transport, and heavy industry, as well as the Committee on New Technology, coordinating the introduction of advanced technologies into all branches of the national economy. Vyacheslav Malyshev was awarded the highest state honors, including four Orders of Lenin, the military orders of Suvorov and Kutuzov 1st Class, and two Stalin Prizes. His name is immortalized in Moscow in the name of a street in the Tekstilshchiki District of the South-Eastern Administrative Okrug. A memorial plaque is installed on the house in Moscow at Romanov Lane, building 3, structure 7, where he lived.
Address: Moscow, Romanov lane, 3, building 7
