Mikhail Kalinin quotes

Mikhail Kalinin was a Soviet politician and a prominent Bolshevik revolutionary. Known as the nominal head of state of the Soviet Union for many years, he played a significant role in the consolidation of Soviet power. He served as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet and became one of the most recognizable figures of the Soviet regime. Here are 8 of his quotes:

The national question is purely a peasant question...the best way to eliminate nationality is a massive factory with thousands of workers..., which like a millstone grinds up all nationalities and forges a new nationality. This nationality is the universal proletariat.

Mikhail Kalinin

The whole history of my life, and in essence the whole history of the working class consists of this: that we have lived and fought under the leadership of Lenin and Stalin.

Mikhail Kalinin

The Jews will become socialist colonisers with strong fists and sharp teeth, a strong national group within the Soviet family of nations.

Mikhail Kalinin

But even now, after the greatest victory known to history we cannot for one minute forget the basic fact that our country remains the one socialist state in the world. You will speak frankly about this to the collective farmers...Only the most concrete, most immediate danger, which threatened us from Hitlerite Germany, has disappeared.

Mikhail Kalinin

If you are called upon to govern humans, treat them humanely.

Mikhail Kalinin

For thousands of years humankind's finest minds have been struggling with the theoretical problem of finding the forms that would give peoples the possibility, without the greatest of torment, without internecine strife, of living side by side in friendship and brotherhood. Practically speaking, the first step in this direction is only being taken now, today.

Mikhail Kalinin

The contingencies of the moment may justify the omission of certain conveniences in the building of temporary accommodations.

Mikhail Kalinin