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The Trial and Execution of Lavrentiy Beria: The Fall of Stalin’s Secret Police Chief
Lavrentiy Beria was one of the most feared figures of the Stalinist era. As head of the Soviet secret police (NKVD) from 1938 to 1953, he directed mass purges, oversaw a vast network of labor camps, and played a central role in the repression that marked the Soviet Union under Stalin . After Stalin’s death in March 1953, Beria attempted to consolidate power, but within months he was arrested, tried, and executed.
This article examines the downfall, trial, and final moments of the man known as “the Kremlin Monster” — including accounts that he begged for mercy before his execution.
1. The Rise of a Soviet Terror
Beria joined the Communist Party in 1917 and rose through the ranks of the security services, becoming head of the Cheka in Georgia . In 1938, Stalin brought him to Moscow as deputy head of the NKVD. Shortly after, he succeeded Nikolai Yezhov, who was executed, and became the chief of the Soviet secret police .
Under Beria’s leadership, the NKVD administered the Gulag system of forced labor camps and carried out the purges that eliminated millions of Stalin’s perceived enemies . He was also involved in intelligence and counterintelligence operations, and during World War II, he played a key role in raw materials production using camp labor . In 1945, he was made a Marshal of the Soviet Union .
2. The Power Struggle After Stalin
Stalin died on March 5, 1953. In the immediate aftermath, Beria was appointed First Deputy Prime Minister and head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which combined regular police and secret police functions . He appeared to be in a strong position to succeed Stalin.
However, other Soviet leaders feared Beria’s power. Nikita Khrushchev, along with Georgy Malenkov and Vyacheslav Molotov, organized a coalition to remove him . On June 26, 1953, at a meeting of the Communist Party Presidium, Khrushchev launched a blistering attack on Beria, accusing him of being an “imperialist agent” working for British intelligence . Marshal Zhukov and a group of armed officers entered the room and arrested Beria on the spot .
3. The Trial and Sentencing
Beria was held in an underground bunker while his associates were rounded up. The trial took place in December 1953, lasting five days before a special tribunal . The charges included treason, espionage, and anti-Soviet conspiracy .
Some historical accounts suggest that the trial may have been staged after Beria’s death, as multiple witnesses reported hearing gunfire from his prison cell on June 26, 1953, the day of his arrest . Official records maintain that he was tried, convicted, and executed on December 23, 1953 .
4. Final Moments: Begging for Mercy
According to published eyewitness accounts, Beria’s final moments were marked by desperation rather than defiance. Marshal Pavel Batitsky, who carried out the execution, later recounted that Beria went down on his hands and knees, begging to be spared .
Beria also reportedly went on an 11-day hunger strike while awaiting trial, refusing to admit any guilt. The marshal in charge of his guard noted: “He admitted nothing… Then he declared a hunger strike that lasted for 11 days. We had to bend our efforts to make sure the villain survived to face trial.”
Soviet press accounts from 1988 described Beria’s plea for mercy in detail, noting that unlike many of Stalin’s purge victims, he refused to plead guilty but collapsed when faced with execution .
5. Execution
Beria and six of his associates were sentenced to death. According to official records, all seven were shot immediately after sentencing on December 23, 1953 . His remains were cremated, and his ashes were scattered in a forest near Moscow .
Beria’s wife, Nina Gegechkori, and his son, Sergo, were sent to a Siberian labor camp and released in 1954 .
6. The Legacy of a Butcher
Lavrentiy Beria remains one of the most reviled figures in Soviet history. His role in the purges, the Gulag system, and the repression of millions has made his name synonymous with state terror . In 2000, the Russian Supreme Court declined a plea to overturn his conviction, stating that the charges had been correctly applied .
Beria’s final moments—crying and begging for mercy—stand in stark contrast to the cruelty he inflicted on countless victims. His downfall marked the beginning of the end of the Stalinist era, opening the way for Khrushchev’s de-Stalinization campaign .
Primary Sources:
Los Angeles Times — Eyewitness accounts of Beria’s execution (1988)
UPI — Russia upholds Beria conviction (2000)
History Today — Lavrenti Beria Executed (2003)
Time Magazine — Death of a Policeman (1953)
Encyclopaedia Britannica — Lavrenty Beria biography