Biography[]
Early-life[]
Kosygin was born in the city of Saint Petersburg in 1904 to a Russian working-class family. During the Russian Civil War, Kosygin was conscripted into the Bolshevik labour army. After the war was over, he became a textile mill director in Siberia.
Political career[]
In the 1930s, Kosygin returned to Saint Petersburg (now Leningrad) where he quickly rose up the Soviet hierarchy. His trustworthiness and brilliance were noted by the Soviet leadership. When the German invasion collapsed Soviet authority in Russia, Kosygin played a key role in evacuating industry to the east.
Trivia[]
- Kosygin was originally depicted as the leader of the liberal Union of Young Reformers in Komi, before being moved to Irkutsk, as it made little sense for a committed socialist like him to become a right-winger.