The Central Committee, abbreviated in Russian as ЦК, "Tseka", was the highest body of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). Its full name was Центра́льный Комите́т Коммунисти́ческой Па́ртии Сове́тского Сою́за = ЦК КПСС; Tsentralnyy Komitet Kommunistitcheskoy Partii Sovetskogo Soyuza = TSK KPSS, or the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (Russian: Коммунисти́ческая Па́ртия Сове́тского Сою́за = КПСС) was the name used by the successors of the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party from 1952 to 1991, but the wording Communist Party was present in the partys name since 1918 when the Bolsheviks became the All...

According to Party rules, the Central Committee directed all Party and government activities between each Party Congress with the Politburo elected by and reporting to the Central Committee. Members of the committee were elected at the Party Congress every five years. The Congress of the CPSU was the gathering of the delegates of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and its predecessors. ... The Politburo (in Russian: Политбюро), known as the Presidium from 1952 to 1966, functioned as the central policymaking and governing body of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. ...

For most of its existence, the power of the Central Committee was limited by its infrequent meetings and large membership, and true power lay with the Politburo. The Committee functioned as a rubber-stamp to legitimise and give an aura of consensus to Politburo decisions. The Committee would meet only twice a year, with sessions lasting one or two days. Special plenary sessions would be held before a major event, such as a new long-term plan or the selection of a new General Secretary. The elections were façades too, with the membership being selected in advance by the leaders.

From 1917 to 1934, the Central Committee did act as a parliament. But its occasional opposition to Stalin led to a purge of the body between the 17th and 18th Party Congresses (1934-39). Until Stalin's death, its role was therefore almost non-existent. After Stalin's death, there was a period of collective leadership, which revitalised the Committee before it was returned to its compliant role. However the Committee did play a critical role in the career of Nikita Khrushchev. In 1957, the Central Committee played a critical role when it overturned a decision by the Presidium (ie the Politburo) to remove Nikita Khrushchev as party leader. Khrushchev, with the assistance of Marshal Zhukov, rallied the support of the Central Committee against what he called the Anti-Party Group. Seven years later, on October 14, 1964 it was a meeting of the Central Committee that deposed Khrushchev. The Central Committee also made a landmark decision in March 1985 when it elected the reformist Mikhail Gorbachev as the next General Secretary of CPSU with the margin of just one vote more than the hardliner Viktor Grishin. 1917 (MCMXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Iosif (usually anglicized as Joseph) Vissarionovich Stalin (Russian: Иосиф Виссарионович Сталин), original name Ioseb Jughashvili (Georgian: იოსებ ჯუღაშვილი; see Other names section) (December 21, 1879[1] – March 5, 1953) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and leader of the Soviet Union. ... In history and political science, to purge is to remove undesirable people from a government, political party, profession, or from community/society as a whole, usually by violent means. ... 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchof (Khrushchev) (Russian: Ники́та Серге́евич Хрущёв listen â–¶(?), April 17, 1894 â€“ September 11, 1971) was the leader of the Soviet Union after the death of Joseph Stalin. ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union (Russian: Marshal Sovietskogo Soyuza [Маршал Советского Союза]) was in practice the highest military rank of the Soviet Union. ... Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgi Zhukov Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov (Russian: Гео́ргий Константи́нович Жу́ков) (December 1, 1896 - June 18, 1974), Soviet military commander and politician, considered by many as one of the most successful field commanders of World War II. Prewar career Born into a peasant family in Strelkovka, Kaluga... The Anti-Party Group was an epithet used by Nikita Khrushchev to describe Stalinist members of the Presidium of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, led by Vyacheslav Molotov, Lazar Kaganovich and Georgy Malenkov, who attempted to depose him as First Secretary of the Party in May 1957. ... October 14 is the 287th day of the year (288th in Leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Nintendo 64 emulator, see 1964 (Emulator). ... Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (Gorbachyov) â–¶ (help· info) (Russian: ; pronunciation: ) (born March 2, 1931), was leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991. ... The General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (sometimes called First Secretary) was the title synonymous with leader of the Soviet Union after Lenins death in 1924. ... Viktor Grishin (Ви́ктор Васи́льевич Гри́шин) was a Soviet communist, and member of the Politburo. ...

Following the failed coup of August 1991, the Central Committee was dissolved as was the Communist Party itself. 1991 (MCMXCI) is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also Organization of the Communist Party of the USSR General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Became synonymous with leader of the party under Stalin. ...