Heydar Aliyev
Heydar Alirza oghlu Aliyev (Azerbaijani: Heydər Əlirza oğlu Əliyev (Latin), Һејдәр Әлирза оғлу Әлијев (Cyrillic), IPA: [hejˈdæɾ æliɾˈzɑ oɣˈlu æˈlijef]; Russian: Гейда́р Али́евич Али́ев, IPA: [ɡʲɪjˈdar ɐˈlʲijɪvʲɪtɕ ɐˈlʲijɪf]; 10 May 1923 – 12 December 2003) was an Azerbaijani politician who was the third president of Azerbaijan from October 1993 to October 2003, and a Soviet party boss in the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic from 1969 onwards.
Heydar Aliyev | |
|---|---|
| Heydər Əliyev | |
Official portrait | |
| 3rd President of Azerbaijan | |
| In office 10 October 1993 – 31 October 2003 Acting: 24 June – 10 October 1993 | |
| Prime Minister | Surat Huseynov Fuad Guliyev Artur Rasizade Ilham Aliyev |
| Preceded by | Abulfaz Elchibey |
| Succeeded by | Ilham Aliyev |
| Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Azerbaijan | |
| In office 15 June 1993 – 5 November 1993 | |
| President | Abulfaz Elchibey Himself |
| Prime Minister | Surat Huseynov Fuad Guliyev |
| Preceded by | Isa Gambar |
| Succeeded by | Rasul Guliyev |
| Chairman of the Supreme Assembly of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic | |
| In office 17 November 1990 – 9 October 1993 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Vasif Talibov |
| First Deputy Premier of the Soviet Union | |
| In office 24 November 1982 – 23 October 1987 | |
| President | Vasili Kuznetsov (acting) Yuri Andropov Vasili Kuznetsov (acting) Konstantin Chernenko Vasili Kuznetsov (acting) Andrei Gromyko |
| Premier | Nikolai Tikhonov Nikolai Ryzhkov |
| Preceded by | Ivan Arkhipov |
| Succeeded by | Andrei Gromyko |
| Full member of the 26th, 27th Politburo | |
| In office 22 November 1982 – 21 October 1987 | |
| First Secretary of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan | |
| In office 14 July 1969 – 3 December 1982 | |
| Preceded by | Veli Akhundov |
| Succeeded by | Kamran Baghirov |
| Candidate member of the 25th, 26th Politburo | |
| In office 5 March 1976 – 22 November 1982 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Heydar Alirza oğlu Aliyev 10 May 1923 Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan SSR, Transcaucasian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Died | 12 December 2003 (aged 80) Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
| Resting place | Alley of Honour |
| Political party | Communist Party of the Soviet Union (1945–1991) New Azerbaijan Party (1992–2003) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Sevil Aliyeva Ilham Aliyev |
| Alma mater | Baku State University |
| Awards | Hero of Socialist Labour (twice) |
| Signature | |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Soviet Union |
| Branch/service | Committee for State Security of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Years of service | 1941–1969 |
| Rank | Major General |
He was a high-ranking official in the KGB of the Azerbaijan SSR, serving for 28 years in Soviet state security organs (1941–1969). He governed Soviet Azerbaijan from 1969 to 1982 as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan. He held the post of First Deputy Premier of the Soviet Union from 1982 to 1987. He rose through the ranks due to his close associations with Leonid Brezhnev and Yuri Andropov.
Aliyev was installed as president of Azerbaijan after the 1993 military coup ousted President Abulfaz Elchibey. Elchibey was a prominent Soviet dissident and Azerbaijani nationalist leader who had been elected as president in independent Azerbaijan's first free election in 1992. Aliyev's installation as president put an end to Azerbaijan's short post-independence democratic interlude. Shortly after taking charge, Aliyev organized a presidential election where he won nearly 99% of the vote.
His regime in Azerbaijan has been described as dictatorial, authoritarian, and repressive. He was also said to have run a heavy-handed police state where elections were rigged and dissent was repressed. A cult of personality developed around Aliyev, which has continued after his death in 2003. Shortly before his death, his son Ilham Aliyev was elected president in a fraudulent election and continues to lead Azerbaijan to this day.