Lavrenty Beria

Born in Georgia, Caucasus, Beria began his career in Georgia in the Cheka (the early Soviet secret police) and became party secretary in that region. In 1938 Stalin made him head of the KGB, the Soviet Union's secret police force. He was a member of the Politburo from 1946.

Beria considered himself to be the natural successor to Stalin, but 9 months after Stalin's death in 1953 Beria was ousted by Nikita Khrushchev, arrested, tried, and shot.