Political Territoriality and the End of the USSR

Territoriality is fundamental to political power anywhere in the world. It is especially important in democracies but, as this paper reveals, it was also significant in Soviet politics, particularly during and after the Brezhnev years from 1964 to 1991. Brezhnev strongly encouraged patronage among Communist Party officials and the 'untouchable' territorial fiefdoms that they spawned. Whether deliberate or unwitting, Gorbachev's actions helped to eliminate these regional bastions and the seilschaften that moulded them. Although he, like Putin today, naturally aspired to nurture his own political territory, Gorbachev weakened that of his rivals. This research suggests that the debilitation of the political territories of the powerful members of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) represents one more explanation for the unravelling of the USSR.