The most famous traitors in history. Marcus Brutus and Gaius Cassius

18.11.2020

The poisoning of a former intelligence officer who defected to the British brought to mind the most famous traitors of the Soviet era.

Oleg Penkovsky

Penkovsky went through the Soviet-Finnish War. During the Great Patriotic War, his career took off - he was a political instructor and Komsomol instructor, and became the commander of an artillery battalion. In the 60s, he rose to the rank of senior GRU officer.

In 1960, a colonel of the Main Intelligence Directorate worked undercover as deputy head of the Department of Foreign Relations under the Council of Ministers. In this position, he committed treason in exchange for financial reward.

He met with MI6 agent Greville Wynne and offered his services.

Penkovsky returned from his first trip to London on May 6, 1961. He brought with him a miniature Minox camera and a transistor radio. He managed to transfer 111 Minox films to the West, on which 5,500 documents were shot with a total volume of 7,650 pages,

says archival documents.

The damage from his actions is amazing. The documents that Penkovsky transmitted to the West made it possible to expose 600 Soviet intelligence officers, of which 50 were GRU officers.

Penkovsky got burned because of his signalman, who was under surveillance.

In 1962, Penkovsky was sentenced to death. However, there is a version that he was not shot, but burned alive. It is believed that it was his painful death that another Soviet intelligence officer, Viktor Suvorov, describes in his book “Aquarium”.

Victor Suvorov

Suvorov is the pseudonym of former Soviet intelligence officer Viktor Rezun. Officially, he worked in Switzerland for Soviet intelligence, and at the same time he collaborated clandestinely with the British MI6.

The intelligence officer fled to England in 1978. Rezun claimed that he did not plan to cooperate with British intelligence, but he had no choice: allegedly serious mistakes were made in the work of the intelligence department in Geneva and they wanted to make him a scapegoat.

But he was dubbed a traitor not because of his escape, but because of the books in which he described in detail the kitchen of Soviet intelligence and presented his vision of historical events.

According to one of them, the cause of the Great Patriotic War was Stalin’s policies. It was he, according to the writer, who wanted to capture all of Europe so that its entire territory would join the socialist camp. For such views, Rezun, according to his own statement, was sentenced to death in absentia in the USSR.

Now the ex-intelligence officer lives in Bristol and writes books on historical topics.

Andrey Vlasov

Andrei Vlasov is perhaps the most famous traitor of World War II. No wonder his name has become a household name.

In 1941, Vlasov’s 20th Army recaptured Volokolamsk and Solnechnogorsk from the Germans, and a year later, Lieutenant General Vlasov, commander of the 2nd Shock Army, was captured by the Germans. He began advising the German military on how to fight against the Red Army.

However, even with his obliging cooperation, he did not arouse sympathy among the Nazis.

According to some reports, Himmler called him “a runaway pig and a fool,” and Hitler disdained to meet with him in person.

Vlasov organized the Russian Liberation Army from among Russian prisoners of war. These troops took part in the fight against partisans, robberies and executions of civilians.

In 1945, after the surrender of Germany, Vlasov was captured by Soviet soldiers and taken to Moscow. He was accused of treason and hanged.

However, there are those who do not consider Vlasov a traitor. For example, the former editor-in-chief of the Military Historical Journal, retired Major General Viktor Filatov, claims that Vlasov was Stalin’s intelligence agent.

Victor Belenko

Pilot Viktor Belenko escaped from the USSR in 1976. He landed in Japan on a MiG-25 fighter and requested political asylum in the United States.

Needless to say, the Japanese, together with American specialists, immediately dismantled the plane into parts and obtained the secrets of Soviet “friend or foe” recognition technology and other military know-how of that time. The MiG-25 supersonic high-altitude fighter-interceptor was the most advanced aircraft of the Soviet Union. It is still in service with some countries.

The damage from Belenko’s actions was estimated at two billion rubles, since the country had to quickly change all the equipment of the “friend or foe” recognition system. A button has appeared in the fighter's missile launch system that removes the lock on firing at friendly aircraft. She received the nickname “Belenkovskaya”.

Soon after his arrival, he received political asylum in the United States. The permission to grant citizenship was signed personally by President Jimmy Carter.

Belenko later claimed that he made an emergency landing in Japan, demanded that the plane be hidden, and even fired into the air, driving away the Japanese who were greedy for Soviet developments.

In America, Belenko worked as a military consultant on aerospace technology, gave lectures and appeared on television as an expert.

According to the investigation, Belenko had conflicts with his superiors and in his family. After the escape, he did not try to get in touch with his relatives, in particular his wife and son, who remained in the USSR.

According to his subsequent confessions, he escaped for political reasons.

In the USA, he found a new family by marrying a local waitress.

Oleg Gordievsky

Gordievsky was the son of an NKVD officer and collaborated with the KGB since 1963. As he himself said, his disappointment in Soviet politics forced him to enlist as an agent of the British intelligence agency MI6.

According to one version, the KGB became aware of Gordievsky’s treacherous activities from a Soviet source from the CIA. He was interrogated with the use of psychotropic substances, but was not arrested, but taken into custody.

However, the British embassy helped the KGB colonel flee the country. He left the USSR in the trunk of a British Embassy car on July 20, 1985.

A diplomatic scandal soon broke out. Margaret Thatcher's government expelled more than 30 undercover Soviet embassy workers from Britain. According to Gordievsky, they were agents of the KGB and GRU.

British intelligence historian Christopher Andrew believed that Gordievsky was "the largest British intelligence agent in the ranks of the Soviet intelligence services since Oleg Penkovsky."

In the USSR, Gordievsky was sentenced to death under the article “Treason to the Motherland.” He tried to send his family to live with him - his wife and two daughters. But they were able to go to him only in 1991. However, the reunion was followed by a divorce at the initiative of his wife.

In his new homeland, Gordievsky published a number of books about the work of the KGB. He was a close friend of Alexander Litvinenko and took an active part in the investigation of his death.

In 2007, for services to Great Britain, Queen Elizabeth II personally awarded him the Order of St. Michael and St. George.

https://www.ridus.ru/news/272095

Historical characters

Judas Iscariot
Son of Simon, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ, who betrayed him.
The name Judas became a common noun to denote betrayal. For his betrayal, Judas was paid 30 pieces of silver (30 silver shekels), which are also often used as a symbol of the traitor's reward.

Gaius Longinus Cassius
He was a quaestor in the army of Licinius Crassus during his campaign against the Parthians. In 49, with the rank of tribune of the people, he united with Pompey and defeated Caesar's fleet near Sicily, but after the Battle of Pharsalos he went over to the latter's side and became his legate. Julius Caesar, despite his affection for Cassius, did not completely trust him, which little by little aroused his hatred against himself. This was the reason that Cassius formed a conspiracy against Caesar.

The Romans endured cruel arbitrariness, outright sadism and crazy antics of the emperor for about four years. The Senate had no real power. However, the authority of the Senate was also undermined by Caesar's predecessors. A group of senators wanted to regain their former importance and conspired to achieve this goal. The most convinced and decisive of the bearers of republican and national traditions entered into an agreement with each other and decided to kill Yu. Caesar. In order to gain the trust of the people, they lured Brutus to their side.

Marcus Junius Brutus Caepio
(lat. Marcus Junius Brutus Caepio Marcus Junius Brutus Caepio, 85-42 BC) - Roman senator, known as the killer of Caesar.
In 59 BC e. Brutus was falsely accused of plotting against Pompey, but Caesar ensured that the charges were dropped. Brutus was at first an opponent of Pompey, who killed his father in Gaul, but then sided with him when Pompey defended the cause of the optimates (aristocratic faction) in the civil war. However, Brutus then went over to the side of Caesar, who accepted him in a friendly manner and gave him control of Cisalpine Gaul.

And yet Brutus became the head of the conspiracy against Caesar. He received anonymous demands from various sides, reminding him of his origins from Brutus, the liberator of Rome from royal power, and prompting him to break with Caesar. Finally, Gaius Cassius Longinus attracted him to his side. The example of Brutus then prompted many noble Romans to join the conspiracy against Caesar.

March 15, 44 BC e. The conspirators killed Caesar in the Senate meeting room, near the Theater of Pompey. Since each of them individually did not want to take sin on their souls, they agreed that each would deliver at least one blow with a stylus (a wooden writing stick), because entry with weapons into the Senate was prohibited. Surprisingly, the first blows failed to kill Caesar. He tried to resist. When it was Brutus's turn to strike, Caesar shouted in amazement, "And you, Brutus!" and betrayed himself into the hands of murderers. The dictator died from 22 stab wounds.

Mary Stuart
Mary I (née Mary Stuart; 8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587) - Queen of Scotland from infancy until her deposition in 1567, and also Queen of France in 1559-1560 (as consort of King Francis II) and pretender to the English throne.

On February 10, 1567, under mysterious circumstances, the house in Kirk o'Field, a suburb of Edinburgh, where the queen's husband, Lord Darnley, was staying, exploded, and he himself was found murdered in the courtyard, apparently stabbed to death while trying to escape from the burning house. The question of Mary Stuart's participation in organizing the murder of her husband is one of the most controversial in the entire history of Scotland.

After the uprising of the Protestant lords in France, Mary fled to England, where she turned to Queen Elizabeth I for support. She still remained a contender for the English throne, refusing to renounce her rights, which could not but worry Elizabeth I. In England, Mary was kept under surveillance at Sheffield Castle. She had a significant staff of servants; England and France allocated large sums of money for the maintenance of the queen. However, Mary did not cease to intrigue against Elizabeth I, establishing secret correspondence with European powers, but did not take any real part in the uprisings. However, the name of Mary Stuart, the legitimate great-granddaughter of King Henry VII of England, was actively used by conspirators against Elizabeth I. In 1572, the Ridolfi conspiracy was discovered, the participants of which tried to remove Elizabeth and place Mary Stuart on the throne of England. In 1586, Mary Stuart became involved in correspondence with Anthony Babington, an agent of the Catholic forces, in which she supported the idea of a plot to assassinate Elizabeth I. However, the plot was discovered and the correspondence fell into the hands of the Queen of England. Mary Stuart was put on trial and sentenced to death. On February 8, 1587, Mary Stuart was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle.

Ivan Stepanovich Mazepa

Mazepa-Koledinsky (March 20, 1639 - September 22, 1709) - Hetman of Little Russia.
He came from the Belaya Tserkov (Kyiv province) Orthodox gentry. Mazepa was brought up at the court of the Polish king Jan Casimir. Having gone over to the Cossacks, Mazepa entered the service of Hetman Doroshenko and rose to the rank of general clerk. When Mazepa saw that Doroshenko’s cause was lost, he went over to the side of Hetman Samoilovich and became close to him. In 1687 Mazepa was elected hetman. He owed his election to bribing Prince V.V. Golitsyn and generous promises. Mazepa's relations with Moscow were quite correct for a long time. The trip to Moscow, the meeting with Peter in Kyiv, the unquestioning execution of the orders of Peter I - everything gave the latter reason to consider Mazepa among his loyalists.

It is believed that the first thought about treason came to Mazepa in 1705, when he discussed it with the widow Princess Dolskaya, née Vishnevetskaya. Later, Mazepa negotiated with her and with the Polish king Stanislav Leshchinsky, and in October 1707 he opened up to his general clerk, Philip Orlik. Until the very last moment, Mazepa managed to retain Peter's trust. Denunciations against the hetman were sent to Peter from Ukraine more than once, but he ignored them. When the Swedish king Charles XII entered the territory of Ukraine, Mazepa and some colonels went over to his side. Mazepa was anathematized. With the Battle of Poltava, Mazepa's cause was lost. He fled with Charles XII and died on March 18, 1710 in Bendery.

Alexey Petrovich Romanov
(1690-1718), prince, heir to the Russian throne, eldest son of Peter I and his first wife Evdokia Lopukhina.

He was married to Princess Sophia Charlotte of Brunswick-Wolfenbittel, sister of Elizabeth, wife of Emperor Charles VI. Children: Natalya (1714-28) and Peter (1715-30), later Emperor Peter II.

Peter wanted to make his son the successor of his work - the radical reform of Russia, but Alexei avoided this in every possible way. In 1717, Alexei, without his father’s knowledge, traveled to Vienna and Italy and conducted separate negotiations there with European rulers. For this activity and opposition to his father’s innovations, he was deprived of the right to succession to the throne. In exchange for his renunciation and admission of guilt, Peter gave his son his word not to punish him.

But the renunciation did not help, and Alexei’s desire to get away from the political storms did not come true. Peter ordered an investigation into his son's case. Alexey innocently told about everything he knew and planned. Alexey admitted his plan to overthrow the power of Peter, to raise an uprising throughout the country, since the people, in his opinion, stood for the old beliefs and customs, against his father’s reforms.

Morozov Pavel Trofimovich
(1918 - September 1932) - prototype of Pavlik Morozov, a hero of Soviet propaganda.

According to a common version, during the investigation into a criminal case against his father, Chairman of the Gerasimovsky Village Council Trofim Morozov, Pavlik confirmed the testimony of his mother given to her against her husband. After this, Pavel and his young brother Fyodor were caught in the forest and killed by their own grandfather (father of Trofim Morozov) and older cousin Danil.

The story of the murder of minor Pavel Morozov was picked up by Soviet propaganda. In various works, the image of the brave pioneer Pavlik Morozov was depicted, who denounced his father, a kulak, who was hiding grain from the collective farm.

General Andrei Andreevich Vlasov
Vlasov Andrei Andreevich (September 14, 1901 - August 2, 1946) - Soviet lieutenant general (since 1942), who defected to the German side during World War II.

Since 1922, Vlasov held command and staff positions, and was also involved in teaching. In 1929 he graduated from the Higher Army Command Courses. In 1937-1938 he was a member of the military tribunal in the Leningrad and Kiev military districts. In 1938-1939, Vlasov was part of a group of military advisers in China and received the Order of the Golden Dragon from Chiang Kai-shek. In 1940, Vlasov, with the rank of major general, commanded a division and was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. In January 1941, Vlasov was appointed commander of the 4th Mechanized Corps of the Kyiv Military District, and a month later he was awarded the Order of Lenin.

He was captured by the Germans in July 1942. While in the Vinnitsa military camp for captured senior officers, Vlasov agreed to cooperate with the Nazis and headed the “Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia” (KONR) and the “Russian Liberation Army” (ROA), composed of captured Soviet military personnel.
Vlasov wrote an open letter “Why I took the path of fighting Bolshevism.” In addition, he signed leaflets calling for the overthrow of the Stalinist regime and to unite in a liberation army under his, Vlasov, leadership. This German propaganda was subsequently scattered from airplanes at the fronts, and was also distributed among prisoners of war.

There are doubts about the official version of Vlasov’s transition to the side of the Germans in 1942. In some memoirs one can find a version that Vlasov was captured even earlier - in the fall of 1941, surrounded near Kiev - where he was recruited and transferred across the front line. He is also credited with the order to destroy all the employees of his headquarters who did not want to surrender with him.

In May 1945 he was captured by Soviet troops while trying to escape to the western zone of occupation. At the trial, Vlasov stated that thanks to his activities, hundreds of thousands of Russian prisoners of war remained alive, but the court found him guilty. By the verdict of the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR, he was hanged.

Several years ago, letters from Andrei Vlasov were discovered in the FSB archive. Here are just two excerpts from them: “Good afternoon, dear and sweet Alichka! You know my attitude towards you. Now I only live with memories of you, my dear Alichka. Dear Alya, I would have written more, but my pen was all gone. Let’s continue further in in another letter, but for now I kiss you deeply and many times, your Andryusha, who loves you..." On the same day, Vlasov writes another letter to his legal wife Anna Mikhailovna, "Dear Anya!... I ask you, be faithful to me. I am still with you I've been faithful since then. While I'm apart from you, I love you more deeply than ever..."

Vidkun Quisling
Vidkun Quisling (Norwegian Vidkun Abraham Lauritz Jonssøn Quisling, July 18, 1887 - October 24, 1945) - collaborator, Norwegian politician, Nazi. From February 1942 until the end of World War II, he served as Minister-President of occupied Norway. Quisling's name became a symbol of betrayal.

After the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, power passed to the occupying forces, and Joseph Terboven became first the acting prime minister of the puppet government, and then the minister-president of Norway. During the regime of the “Föhrer” Quisling and Terboven in Norway, there were mass arrests and deportation to extermination camps of almost half of the entire Jewish population of Norway, which was done even without initiative on the German side.

Quisling was arrested on May 9, 1945 at his own mansion in Oslo. He was accused of high treason and executed on October 24. Shortly before his execution, Quisling compiled his family tree, in which he traced his ancestry back to the god Odin himself.

Literary and cinematic characters

History often records not the names of heroes, but the names of traitors and defectors. These people cause great harm to one side and benefit to the other. But all the same, they are despised by both. Naturally, one cannot do without complicated cases when a person’s guilt is difficult to prove. However, history has preserved several of the most obvious and classic cases that do not raise any doubts. Today we will talk about the most famous traitors in history who turned away from their comrades and even countries.

And ouda Iscariot

There was even a phobia, a fear of this number. The story goes that Judas was born on April 1, also a rather unusual day. But the history of the traitor is rather unclear and full of pitfalls. The fact is that Judas was the keeper of the treasury for the community of Jesus and his disciples. There was much more money there than 30 pieces of silver. Thus, in need of money, Judas could simply steal it without committing betrayal of his teacher. Not long ago, the world learned about the existence of the “Gospel of Judas,” where Iscariot is depicted as the only and faithful disciple of Christ.

And the betrayal was committed precisely on the orders of Jesus, and Judas took responsibility for his action. According to legend, Iscariot committed suicide immediately after his deed. The image of this traitor is described many times in books, films, and legends. Different versions of his betrayal and motivation are considered. Today, the name of this person is given to those suspected of treason. For example, Lenin called Trotsky Judas back in 1911. He also found his “plus” in Iscariot - the fight against Christianity. Trotsky even wanted to erect monuments to Judas in several cities of the country.

Mark Junius Brutus

Born – June 85 BC, Rome, Italy
Died: October 23, 42 BC. (43 years old), Philippi, Macedonia

Roman politician, praetor 44 BC. e.

But Caesar showered his favorite with honors and titles, endowing him with power. But Brutus' entourage forced him to participate in a conspiracy against the dictator. Mark was among several conspiratorial senators who pierced Caesar with swords. Seeing Brutus in their ranks, he exclaimed with bitterness his famous phrase, which became his last. Wanting happiness for the people and power, Brutus made a mistake in his plans - Rome did not support him. After a series of civil wars and defeats, Mark realized that he was left without everything - without family, power, friend. The betrayal and murder took place in 44 BC, and just two years later Brutus threw himself on his sword.

In ang Jingwei

There Wang served several years, being released in 1911. All this time, Sen kept in touch with him, providing moral support and care. As a result of the revolutionary struggle, Sen and his comrades won and came to power in 1920. But in 1925, Sun-Yat died, and Jingwei replaced him as the leader of China. But soon the Japanese invaded the country. This is where Jingwei committed the real betrayal. He essentially did not fight for the independence of China, giving it over to the invaders. National interests were trampled in favor of the Japanese. As a result, when a crisis broke out in China, and the country most needed an experienced manager, Jingwei simply left it. Wang clearly joined the conquerors. However, he did not have time to feel the bitterness of defeat, since he died before the fall of Japan. But the name of Wang Jingwei found its way into all Chinese textbooks as a synonym for betrayal of his country.

Getman Mazepa

Born – March 20, 1639, Bila Tserkva, Kiev Voivodeship, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Died: October 2, 1709 (age 70), Bendery, Ottoman Empire

This man in modern Russian history is considered the most important traitor, even the church anathematized him. But in modern Ukrainian history, the hetman, on the contrary, acts as a national hero. So what was his betrayal or was it still a feat? The Hetman of the Zaporozhye Army for a long time acted as one of the most loyal allies of Peter I, helping him in the Azov campaigns. However, everything changed when the Swedish king Charles XII spoke out against the Russian Tsar. He, wanting to find an ally, promised Mazepa Ukrainian independence in case of victory in the Northern War. The hetman could not resist such a tasty piece of the pie. In 1708, he went over to the side of the Swedes, but just a year later their united army was defeated near Poltava. For his treason (Mazepa swore allegiance to Peter), the Russian Empire deprived him of all awards and titles and subjected him to civil execution. Mazepa fled to Bendery, which then belonged to the Ottoman Empire, and soon died there in 1709. According to legend, his death was terrible - he was eaten by lice.

Oh ldrich ames

As a result, during his betrayal, Ames gave the enemy of his country information about all the secret agents working in the Soviet Union. The USSR also learned about hundreds of secret military operations carried out by the Americans. For this, the officer received about 4.6 million US dollars. However, everything secret someday becomes clear. Ames was discovered and sentenced to life imprisonment. The intelligence services experienced a real shock and scandal; the traitor became their biggest failure in their entire existence. It took a long time for the CIA to recover from the damage that one single person inflicted on it. But he just needed funds for his insatiable wife. By the way, when everything became clear, she was simply deported to South America.

In idkun Quisling

Norwegian politician and statesman, collaborator, National Socialist, actively collaborated with Germany during the Second World War.

When the Nazis came to Norway in 1940, Quisling invited local residents to submit to them and not resist. Although the politician himself came from an ancient, respected family, the country immediately dubbed him a traitor. The Norwegians themselves began to wage a fierce struggle against the invaders. Quisling then came up with a plan in response to remove Jews from Norway, sending them directly to the deadly Auschwitz. However, history has given the politician who betrayed his people what he deserved. On May 9, 1945, Quisling was arrested. While in prison, he still managed to declare that he was a martyr and sought to create a great country. But justice thought otherwise, and on October 24, 1945, Quisling was shot for high treason.

Prince Andrei Mikhailovich Kurbsky

Born - 1528, Muscovy
Died: May 1583 (55 years old), Miljanovici

Russian commander, politician, writer, translator and philanthropist, the closest associate of Ivan the Terrible. He came from the Smolensk-Yaroslavl branch of the Rurik house, that part of it that owned the village of Kurba in the Yaroslavl region.

This boyar was one of the most faithful companions of Ivan the Terrible. It was Kurbsky who commanded the Russian army in the Livonian War. But with the beginning of the oprichnina of the eccentric tsar, many hitherto loyal boyars fell into disgrace. Kurbsky was among them. Fearing for his fate, he abandoned his family and in 1563 ran to the service of the Polish king Sigismund. And already in September of the following year he came out with the conquerors against Moscow. Kurbsky knew very well how the Russian defense and army worked. Thanks to the traitor, the Poles were able to win many important battles. They set up ambushes, captured people, bypassing the outposts. Kurbsky began to be considered the first Russian dissident. The Poles consider the boyar a great man, but in Russia he is a traitor. However, we should not talk about treason to the country, but about treason personally to Tsar Ivan the Terrible.

Pavlik Morozov

Born – November 14, 1918, Gerasimovka village, Turin district, Tobolsk province, Soviet Russia
Died: September 3, 1932 (13 years old), Gerasimovka village, Tavdinsky urban district, Ural region, RSFSR, USSR

Soviet schoolboy, a student of the Gerasimovskaya school in the Tavdinsky district of the Ural region, who in Soviet times gained fame as a pioneer hero who opposed the kulaks in the person of his father and paid for it with his life.

This boy had a heroic image for a long time in Soviet history and culture. At the same time, he was number one among the child heroes. Pavlik Morozov was even included in the book of honor of the All-Union Pioneer Organization. But this story is not entirely clear-cut. The boy's father, Trofim, was a partisan and fought on the side of the Bolsheviks. However, after returning from the war, the serviceman left his family with four small children and began to live with another woman. Trofim was elected chairman of the village council, but at the same time led a stormy everyday life - he drank and became rowdy.

It is quite possible that in the history of heroism and betrayal there are more everyday than political reasons. According to legend, Trofim’s wife accused him of hiding bread, however, they say that the abandoned and humiliated woman demanded to stop issuing fictitious certificates to fellow villagers. During the investigation, 13-year-old Pavel simply confirmed everything his mother said. As a result, the unruly Trofim went to prison, and in revenge, the young pioneer was killed in 1932 by his drunken uncle and godfather. But Soviet propaganda created a colorful propaganda story out of everyday drama. And the hero who betrayed his father was not inspiring.

Genrich Lyushkov

Born – 1900, Odessa, Russian Empire
Died: August 19, 1945 (age 45), Dalian, Empire of Japan

A prominent figure in the Soviet intelligence services, State Security Commissioner of the 3rd rank, which corresponds to the rank of lieutenant general. In 1938, fearing imminent arrest, he fled to Manchuria and actively collaborated with Japanese intelligence.

In 1937, the NKVD was rampant, including in the Far East. At that time, this punitive body was headed by Genrikh Lyushkov. However, a year later, a purge began in the “organs” themselves; many executioners themselves found themselves in the place of their victims. Lyushkov was suddenly summoned to Moscow, supposedly to appoint him as the head of all the camps in the country. But Heinrich suspected that Stalin wanted to remove him. Frightened by reprisals, Lyushkov fled to Japan. In his interview with the local newspaper Yomiuri, the former executioner said that he really recognized himself as a traitor. But only in relation to Stalin. But Lyushkov’s subsequent behavior suggests just the opposite.

The general told the Japanese about the entire structure of the NKVD and the residents of the USSR, about where exactly the Soviet troops were located, where and how defensive structures and fortresses were built. Lyushkov transmitted military radio codes to the enemies, actively urging the Japanese to oppose the USSR. The traitor personally tortured the Soviet intelligence officers arrested on Japanese territory, resorting to cruel atrocities. The pinnacle of Lyushkov’s activity was his development of a plan to assassinate Stalin. The general personally set about implementing his project. Today, historians believe that this was the only serious attempt to eliminate the Soviet leader. However, she was not successful. After the defeat of Japan in 1945, Lyushkov was killed by the Japanese themselves, who did not want their secrets to fall into the hands of the USSR.

Andrey Vlasov

Born: September 14, 1901, Nizhny Novgorod
Died: August 2, 1946 (44 years old), Moscow, RSFSR, USSR

Soviet military leader, participant in the Battle of Moscow. He commanded the 2nd Shock Army and was captured by the Germans during the Lyuban offensive operation in 1942.

Even the entire “Russian Liberation Army” (ROA) was created on the basis of KONR. It included captured Soviet military personnel. The general showed cowardice; according to rumors, from then on he began to drink a lot. On May 12, Vlasov was captured by Soviet troops in an attempt to escape. His trial was closed, since with his words he could inspire people dissatisfied with the authorities. In August 1946, General Vlasov was stripped of his titles and awards, his property was confiscated, and he himself was hanged. At the trial, the accused admitted that he would plead guilty because he had become cowardly in captivity. Already in our time, an attempt was made to justify Vlasov. But only a small part of the charges against him were dropped, while the main ones remained in force.

Friedrich Paulus

Born – September 23, 1890, Guxhagen, Hesse-Nassau, Prussia, German Empire
Died: February 1, 1957 (age 66), Dresden, East Germany

German military leader and commander of the 6th Army, which was surrounded and capitulated at Stalingrad. One of the authors of the Barbarossa plan.

He believes that the country must have new government leadership. It must stop the war and ensure that the people restore friendship with their current opponents. Paulus even made a revealing speech at the Nuremberg trials, which greatly surprised his former comrades. In 1953, grateful for the cooperation, the Soviet government released the traitor, especially since he was beginning to fall into depression. Paulus moved to live in the GDR, where he died in 1957. Not all Germans accepted the field marshal’s action with understanding; even his son did not accept his father’s choice, eventually shooting himself due to mental anguish.

V iktor Suvorov

A writer widely known in the field of historical revisionism.

They allegedly wanted to make him extreme for failure in the work of the Geneva department. Suvorov himself claims that in his homeland he was sentenced to death in absentia for his treason. However, the Russian side prefers not to comment on this fact. The former intelligence officer lives in Bristol and continues to write books on historical topics. Each of them causes a storm of discussion and personal condemnation of Suvorov.

V iktor Belenko

Soviet defector pilot who gained fame as a political refugee.

And for his feat “for the glory of democracy” Belenko himself received political asylum in the United States. However, there is another version according to which the traitor was not such. He was simply forced to land in Japan. Eyewitnesses say that the lieutenant fired a pistol into the air, not allowing anyone to approach the car and demanding that they cover it. However, the investigation took into account both the pilot’s behavior at home and his flight style. The conclusion was clear - the landing on the territory of an enemy state was deliberate. Belenko himself turned out to be crazy about life in America; he even found canned cat food tastier than what was sold in his homeland. From official statements it is difficult to assess the consequences of that escape; moral and political damage can be ignored, but material damage was estimated at 2 billion rubles. After all, in the USSR they had to quickly change all the equipment of the “friend or foe” recognition system.

About tto Kuusinen

Born – October 4, 1881, Laukaa, Grand Duchy of Finland, Russian Empire
Died: May 17, 1964 (age 82), Moscow, USSR

Finnish, Russian and Soviet politician, writer, Marxist theorist, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the so-called. "FDR government" during the Soviet-Finnish war.

And again the situation is when a traitor for some is a hero for others. Otto was born in 1881 and in 1904 joined the Social Democratic Party of Finland. Soon and leading it. When it became clear that there was no chance for communists in the newly independent Finland, Kuusinen fled to the USSR. There he worked for a long time in the Comintern. When the USSR attacked Finland in 1939, it was Kuusinen who became the head of the country's new puppet government. Only now his power extended to the few lands captured by Soviet troops. It soon became clear that it would not be possible to capture all of Finland and the need for the Kuusinene regime disappeared. He subsequently continued to hold prominent government positions in the USSR, dying in 1964. His ashes are buried near the Kremlin wall.

To them Philby

Born: January 1, 1912, Ambala, Punjab, British India
Died: May 11, 1988 (76 years old), Russia

This scout lived a long and eventful life. He was born in 1912 in India, in the family of a British official. In 1929, Kim entered Cambridge, where he joined the socialist society. In 1934, Philby was recruited by Soviet intelligence, which, given his views, was not difficult to accomplish. In 1940, Kim joined the British secret service SIS, soon becoming the head of one of its departments. In the 50s, it was Philby who coordinated the actions of England and the United States to fight the communists. Naturally, the USSR received all the information about the work of its agent. Since 1956, Philby has already served in MI6, until in 1963 he was illegally transported to the USSR. Here the traitorous intelligence officer lived for the next 25 years on a personal pension, sometimes giving consultations.

M ordehai Vanunu

Israeli nuclear technician who gained fame after revealing information about Israel's nuclear program in the British press.

Mordechai Vanunu worked as a nuclear technician in Israel in the 1980s, when it was argued that nuclear energy was being produced solely for civilian use. In 1986, citing his opposition to the weapons of mass destruction program, Vanunu sold details of Israel's nuclear program to the British press, thereby confirming fears that Israel had nuclear weapons.

After this, the Mossad (Israel's political intelligence) lured him to Italy, where he was drugged and captured. He was then returned to Israel and tried behind closed doors. He spent more than eleven years in solitary confinement, and in total he spent 18 years in prison. After his release, many restrictions were imposed on him, moreover, he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in the category “developed” by him: “the only thing I want is freedom.”

Still remaining a traitor, Vanunu is the most “harmless” on this list. After telling the world about a government that was secretly developing weapons of mass destruction, he was internationally hailed as a hero of the nuclear age and received numerous awards, including a Nobel Prize nomination.

Guy Fox

English Catholic nobleman, born in York, the most famous participant in the Gunpowder Plot against the English and Scottish King James I in 1605. In 2002, Fox was ranked thirtieth in the BBC's 100 Greatest Britons poll.

As a young Englishman, Guy Fawkes was a Catholic; he truly believed in Catholicism. He left England and settled in the Netherlands, where he supported the Spanish Catholics fighting the Protestants in the Eighty Years' War. Later on his return, he met with Thomas Wintour and Robert Catesby, who were planning to assassinate the Protestant King James I and his government by bombing the Houses of Parliament.

This later became known as the Gunpowder Plot. Prompted by the anonymous letter, authorities began searching the House of Lords and found Fox guarding 36 barrels of gunpowder. He was sentenced to death by hanging and quartering, but committed suicide to avoid suffering.

In England there is a children's rhyme, which when translated goes like this: “Remember, remember November 5th, gunpowder, treason and conspiracy. I see no reason why high treason can be forgiven.”

Every fifth November is celebrated with bonfires and fireworks, a night known as Guy Fawkes Night, although the emphasis has now shifted slightly away from treason. The name of the holiday shows the extent to which the name Guy Fawkes became synonymous with the Gunpowder Plot, perhaps the greatest act of treason in English history.

O lay down Gordievsky

Former Colonel of the First Main Directorate of the KGB of the USSR

Oleg Gordievsky, the son of an NKVD officer and a graduate of the Moscow Institute of International Relations, collaborated with the KGB since 1963. According to him, he became disillusioned with Soviet politics, so he became an agent of the British MI6 in 1974. There is a version that Gordievsky was betrayed by a Soviet source from the CIA. On May 22, 1985, he was suddenly summoned to Moscow and subjected to interrogation using psychotropic properties. However, the Committee did not arrest him, but took him “under the hood.”

“Kolpak” turned out to be not the most reliable - the defector managed to escape in the trunk of an embassy car on July 20, 1985. That same fall, a diplomatic scandal erupted when Margaret Thatcher's government expelled more than 30 undercover Soviet embassy workers from Britain. Gordievsky claimed that they were agents of the KGB and GRU. He also accused a number of high-ranking British intelligence officers of working for the USSR. Former KGB chairman Semichastny said that “Gordivsky did more harm to the Soviet intelligence services than even General Kalugin,” and British intelligence historian and Cambridge professor Christopher Andrew wrote that Gordievsky was “the largest British intelligence agent in the ranks of the Soviet intelligence services after Oleg Penkovsky.”

Since time immemorial, people have turned away from their comrades and even countries. However, these betrayals were painted in different colors. Firstly, the traitors had various motives, ranging from altruistic to selfish. Secondly, they have different consequences, some affecting only a specific person, while others, based on mass conspiracies, affect entire nations.

10. Mordechai Vanunu

9. Gaius Cassius Longinus

Early in his career, Cassius demonstrated his hatred of tyranny. Over time, as he grew older and gained more and more power, his views only grew stronger. During the great Roman civil war, he sided with the optimates and Pompey, while at the same time fearing that Julius Caesar might become a dictator. He heard about Pompey's defeat at Pharsalus and fled to the Hellespont, however, on the way he was captured by Caesar's troops. Caesar was very merciful and appointed him legate. After the war, Cassius spent two years in Rome.

“He has a very hungry look, he thinks too much, and such people are extremely dangerous,” is how Shakespeare described Julius Caesar. Longinus planned to assassinate the appointed dictator and brought Brutus to his side. After the assassination of Caesar, Antony came to power, and Cassius committed suicide two years later. In Dante's Inferno, he is considered one of three people who are so worthy of infamy that they burn in Satan's hell.

8. Judas Iscariot

“The Son of Man said: “Woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for him not to have been born at all." Judas, who betrayed him, answered: "It's not me, is it, Rabbi?" He answered: "You yourself said everything."

Judas Iscariot is certainly one of the worst traitors of all time. By the time of the Last Supper, he had already betrayed Jesus to the Sanhedrin for thirty pieces of silver. He then led them to Jesus in the garden and gave the Son of Man to the soldiers. Later, filled with remorse, Judas returns the money and kills himself. He turned his back on his friend, his mentor, his God.

Today it is often discussed what motivated Judas to betray. Money, Roman patriotism or obsession? Also discussed was whether he was cursed, and if so, whether it was due to Jesus' betrayal or his subsequent suicide. In Dante's Inferno he was in the deep pit of hell. His name is a recognized symbol of betrayal throughout the entire Christian world.

7. Ephialtes

Not much is known about Ephialtes, but almost everyone is familiar with his heinous act of treason. Thermopylae is a narrow passage located in Greece. It was here, in 480 BC, that the Persian army, numbering hundreds of thousands of soldiers (and possibly more than one million), faced the Greeks, led by Leonidas, who numbered less than seven thousand, and maybe even just a few hundred.
For two days the Spartans bravely held off the Persians until a local shepherd, Ephialtes, showed Xerxes a narrow road that would lead to an opportunity to outflank the Greeks. On the third day of the battle, the Persians used this passage, surrounded the Greeks and completely destroyed them. However, the Spartans threw everything into defending the crossing, even their lives.

The motivation for his action was a promised reward from Xerxes, which he never received. He was later killed, and the man who did it was rewarded by the Spartans. For a long period of time, Ephialtes was notorious in Greece. His name was synonymous not only with betrayal, but also with nightmare.

6. Guy Fawkes

In England there is a children's rhyme that, translated, goes like this: "Remember, remember November 5th, gunpowder, treason and conspiracy. I see no reason why high treason can be forgiven."

5. Benedict Arnold

Early in the Revolution, Arnold was a successful American commander: he helped capture Fort Ticonderoga and also played a significant role in the Battle of Saratoga, considered the turning point of the war. However, Arnold's successes were not noted by anyone, and he was greatly humiliated by his opponents. Feeling contempt for the United States because of this, he made a nefarious proposal to the British: he could sell them West Point, the possible key to winning the war.
The plot was discovered when British intelligence officer John Andre was captured. Arnold escaped and joined the British army conducting raids against the Americans. According to legend, on his deathbed in London he regretted his betrayal: “Let me die in this old uniform in which I went through battles. May God forgive me for putting on another.” However, to this day, Arnold's name remains synonymous with treason among both Americans and British.

4. Marcus Junius Brutus the Younger

Brutus's family was known for their hatred of tyrants, and one of their ancestors is known to have overthrown the King of Rome. As soon as Marcus took up his post in the Senate, he contacted the optimates. During Rome's great civil war, Julius Caesar was merciful to him: in fact, he ordered his officers not to fight him for fear of hurting him. After the war, he was reinstated as Caesar's political advisor, but was soon convinced by Cassius to take part in one of the most famous assassinations in history.
As Plutarch relates, when Caesar saw Brutus among the murderers, he covered his head with a toga and resigned himself to his fate. Legend has it that Caesar's strong feelings towards Brutus were due to the fact that Caesar may have been his father, adding to the heinousness of the crime. Although it's debatable, the two of them definitely had a fairly close relationship. He joins Judas and his accomplice Cassius, who are currently in the three mouths of Satan in Dante's Inferno.

3. Wang Jingwei

Wang Ching-wei started out as a member of the leftist Kuomintang Party, the Chinese Nationalist party that existed during the Republic period. He was a close associate of Sun Yat-sen before Sun's death. After this, he unsuccessfully fought Chiang Kai-shek for power in the party. Despite his regular disagreement with party policies in general and with Chiang in particular, he still did not leave the Kuomintang.

Everything changed when the Japanese invaded in 1937. He accepted the Japanese proposal to establish a puppet government in Nanjing, which became known as the Reorganized National Government.

“Against the corrupt government and support the Nanjing government” was the propaganda of Wang Jing-wei, who opposed the republic in China and for its Imperial Japanese puppet state. Wang died in 1944, and his collaborationist regime ceased to exist after the surrender of Japan. Today he is spoken of as a traitor to the Chinese. Like the names of other famous traitors, his name has become synonymous with betrayal.

2. Vidkun Quisling

Quisling was a Norwegian official serving in the Ministry of Defense. In 1933, Quisling founded the National Assembly, a fascist party. The Nazis invaded Norway in 1940 and cleverly overthrew the Kingdom by recognizing the Quisling National Assembly as a puppet government while true power lay with the Reichskommissariat. Germany surrendered on May 8, 1945, and Quisling was arrested on May 9. He was executed, but before that he said: “Believe me, in ten years I will become the new Saint Olaf.”
Fortunately, he was wrong. His name is still used to describe various European puppet regimes that collaborated with the Nazis, and is also used as an insult for anyone who cares more about the interests of a foreign country than their own.

1. Mir Jafar

Mir Jafar was an ambitious leader and Nawab of Bengal. In 1757, Robert Clive of the East India Campaign made a deal with Mir Jafar. They agreed to hand over the Bengal army at the Battle of Plassey in exchange for control of the new puppet state. This new puppet state, led by Mir Jafar, paid huge sums to East India Campaign officials.
Two years later, Jafar realized that the British had taken total control of the Indian subcontinent. He tried to ally with the Danes to stop the British, but this did not end well for Mir and he was overthrown. His "follower" also tried to deprive Britain of dominance, but failed and was also overthrown. Mir Jafar managed to win back the favor of the British, he again took the throne and remained there until his death in 1765.

Mir Jafar was the last ruler of Bengal to have any degree of autonomy, and after his death the British were in complete control of the region for two hundred years until it achieved "Pakistani independence". Therefore, Mir Jafar and his betrayal of Bengal is seen as the beginning of the British government in India. He is known as a traitor to the true faith and his name is still synonymous with treason among both Bengalis and Urdu.

These people cause great harm to one side and benefit to the other. But in any case, they are despised by both. History has preserved several of the most obvious and classic cases that do not raise any doubts. Let's talk below about the most famous traitors in history.

Judas Iscariot.

The name of this man has been a symbol of betrayal for about two thousand years. At the same time, the nationalities of people do not play a role. Everyone knows the biblical story when Judas Iscariot betrayed his teacher Christ for thirty pieces of silver, dooming him to torment. But then 1 slave cost twice as much! The Kiss of Judas has become a classic image of duplicity, meanness and betrayal. This man was one of the twelve apostles who were present with Jesus at his Last Supper. There were thirteen people and after that this number began to be considered unlucky. There was even a phobia, a fear of this number. The story goes that Judas was born on April 1, also a rather unusual day. But the history of the traitor is rather unclear and full of pitfalls. The fact is that Judas was the keeper of the treasury for the community of Jesus and his disciples. There was much more money there than 30 pieces of silver. Thus, in need of money, Judas could simply steal it without committing betrayal of his teacher. Not long ago, the world learned about the existence of the “Gospel of Judas,” where Iscariot is depicted as the only and faithful disciple of Christ. And the betrayal was committed precisely on the orders of Jesus, and Judas took responsibility for his action. According to legend, Iscariot committed suicide immediately after his deed. The image of this traitor is described many times in books, films, and legends. Different versions of his betrayal and motivation are considered. Today, the name of this person is given to those suspected of treason. For example, Lenin called Trotsky Judas back in 1911. He also found his “plus” in Iscariot - the fight against Christianity. Trotsky even wanted to erect monuments to Judas in several cities of the country.

Marcus Junius Brutus.

Everyone knows the legendary phrase of Julius Caesar: “And you, Brutus?” This traitor is known, although not as widely known as Judas, but is also one of the legendary. Moreover, he committed his treason 77 years before the story of Iscariot. What these two traitors have in common is that they both committed suicide. Marcus Brutus was the best friend of Julius Caesar; according to some data, this could even be his illegitimate son. However, it was he who led the conspiracy against the popular politician, taking direct part in his murder. But Caesar showered his favorite with honors and titles, endowing him with power. But Brutus' entourage forced him to participate in a conspiracy against the dictator. Mark was among several conspiratorial senators who pierced Caesar with swords. Seeing Brutus in their ranks, he exclaimed with bitterness his famous phrase, which became his last. Wanting happiness for the people and power, Brutus made a mistake in his plans - Rome did not support him. After a series of civil wars and defeats, Mark realized that he was left without everything - without family, power, friend. The betrayal and murder took place in 44 BC, and just two years later Brutus threw himself on his sword.

Wang Jingwei.

This traitor is not so well known here, but he has a bad reputation in China, the largest country in the world. It is often unclear how ordinary and normal people suddenly become traitors. Wang Jingei was born in 1883, when he turned 21, he entered a Japanese university. There he met Sun-Yat Sen, the famous revolutionary from China. He influenced the young man so much that he became a real revolutionary fanatic. Together with Sen, Jingwei became a regular participant in anti-government revolutionary protests. It is not surprising that he soon went to prison. There Wang served several years, being released in 1911. All this time, Sen kept in touch with him, providing moral support and care. As a result of the revolutionary struggle, Sen and his comrades won and came to power in 1920. But in 1925, Sun-Yat died, and Jingwei replaced him as the leader of China. But soon the Japanese invaded the country. This is where Jingwei committed the real betrayal. He essentially did not fight for the independence of China, giving it over to the invaders. National interests were trampled in favor of the Japanese. As a result, when a crisis broke out in China, and the country most needed an experienced manager, Jingwei simply left it. Wang clearly joined the conquerors. However, he did not have time to feel the bitterness of defeat, since he died before the fall of Japan. But the name of Wang Jingwei found its way into all Chinese textbooks as a synonym for betrayal of his country.

Hetman Mazepa.

Aldrich Ames.

This high-ranking CIA officer had a brilliant career. Everyone predicted a long and successful career for him, and then a well-paid pension. But his life turned upside down, thanks to love. Ames married a Russian beauty, it turned out that she was a KGB agent. The woman immediately began to demand that her husband provide her with a beautiful life in order to fully comply with the American dream. Although officers in the CIA earn good money, it was not enough to pay for the constantly required new jewelry and cars. As a result, the unfortunate Ames began to drink too much. Under the influence of alcohol, he had no choice but to start selling secrets from his work. A buyer quickly appeared for them - the USSR. As a result, during his betrayal, Ames gave the enemy of his country information about all the secret agents working in the Soviet Union. The USSR also learned about hundreds of secret military operations carried out by the Americans. For this, the officer received about 4.6 million US dollars. However, everything secret someday becomes clear. Ames was discovered and sentenced to life imprisonment. The intelligence services experienced a real shock and scandal; the traitor became their biggest failure in their entire existence. It took a long time for the CIA to recover from the damage that one single person inflicted on it. But he just needed funds for his insatiable wife. By the way, when everything became clear, she was simply deported to South America.

Vidkun Quisling.

This man's family was one of the most ancient in Norway; his father served as a Lutheran priest. Vidkun himself studied very well and chose a military career. Having risen to the rank of major, Quisling was able to enter the government of his country, holding the post of Minister of Defense there from 1931 to 1933. In 1933, Vidkun founded his own political party, National Accord, where he received a membership card number one. He began to call himself Föhrer, which was very reminiscent of the Fuhrer. In 1936, the party collected quite a lot of votes in the elections, becoming very influential in the country. When the Nazis came to Norway in 1940, Quisling invited local residents to submit to them and not resist. Although the politician himself came from an ancient, respected family, the country immediately dubbed him a traitor. The Norwegians themselves began to wage a fierce struggle against the invaders. Quisling then came up with a plan in response to remove Jews from Norway, sending them directly to the deadly Auschwitz. However, history has given the politician who betrayed his people what he deserved. On May 9, 1945, Quisling was arrested. While in prison, he still managed to declare that he was a martyr and sought to create a great country. But justice thought otherwise, and on October 24, 1945, Quisling was shot for high treason.

Prince Andrei Mikhailovich Kurbsky.

Pavlik Morozov.

This boy had a heroic image for a long time in Soviet history and culture. At the same time, he was number one among child heroes. Pavlik Morozov was even included in the book of honor of the All-Union Pioneer Organization. But this story is not entirely clear. The boy's father, Trofim, was a partisan and fought on the side of the Bolsheviks. However, after returning from the war, the serviceman left his family with four small children and began to live with another woman. Trofim was elected chairman of the village council, but at the same time led a stormy everyday life - he drank and became rowdy. It is quite possible that in the history of heroism and betrayal there are more everyday than political reasons. According to legend, Trofim’s wife accused him of hiding bread, however, they say that the abandoned and humiliated woman demanded to stop issuing fictitious certificates to fellow villagers. During the investigation, 13-year-old Pavel simply confirmed everything his mother said. As a result, the unruly Trofim went to prison, and in revenge, the young pioneer was killed in 1932 by his drunken uncle and godfather. But Soviet propaganda created a colorful propaganda story out of everyday drama. And the hero who betrayed his father was not inspiring.

Genrikh Lyushkov.

In 1937, the NKVD was rampant, including in the Far East. At that time, this punitive body was headed by Genrikh Lyushkov. One year later, a purge began in the “organs” themselves; many executioners themselves found themselves in the place of their victims. Lyushkov was suddenly summoned to Moscow, supposedly to appoint him as the head of all the camps in the country. But Heinrich suspected that Stalin wanted to remove him. Frightened by reprisals, Lyushkov fled to Japan. In his interview with the local newspaper Yomiuri, the former executioner said that he really recognized himself as a traitor. But only in relation to Stalin. But Lyushkov’s subsequent behavior suggests just the opposite. The general told the Japanese about the entire structure of the NKVD and the residents of the USSR, about where exactly the Soviet troops were located, where and how defensive structures and fortresses were built. Lyushkov transmitted military radio codes to the enemies, actively urging the Japanese to oppose the USSR. The traitor personally tortured the Soviet intelligence officers arrested on Japanese territory, resorting to cruel atrocities. The pinnacle of Lyushkov’s activity was his development of a plan to assassinate Stalin. The general personally set about implementing his project. Today, historians believe that this was the only serious attempt to eliminate the Soviet leader. However, she was not successful. After the defeat of Japan in 1945, Lyushkov was killed by the Japanese themselves, who did not want their secrets to fall into the hands of the USSR.

Andrey Vlasov.

This Soviet lieutenant general became known as the most important Soviet traitor during the Great Patriotic War. Back in the winter of 41-42, Vlasov commanded the 20th Army, making a significant contribution to the defeat of the Nazis near Moscow. The people called this general the main savior of the capital. In the summer of 1942, Vlasov took the post of deputy commander of the Volkhov Front. However, his troops were soon captured, and the general himself was captured by the Germans. Vlasov was sent to the Vinnitsa military camp for captured senior military officials. There the general agreed to serve the fascists and headed the “Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia” they created. Even the entire “Russian Liberation Army” (ROA) was created on the basis of KONR. It included captured Soviet military personnel. The general showed cowardice; according to rumors, from then on he began to drink a lot. On May 12, Vlasov was captured by Soviet troops in an attempt to escape. His trial was closed, since with his words he could inspire people dissatisfied with the authorities. In August 1946, General Vlasov was stripped of his titles and awards, his property was confiscated, and he himself was hanged. At the trial, the accused admitted that he would plead guilty because he had become cowardly in captivity. Already in our time, an attempt was made to justify Vlasov. But only a small part of the charges against him were dropped, while the main ones remained in force.

Friedrich Paulus.

There was also a traitor on the part of the Nazis in that war. In the winter of 1943, the German 6th Army under the command of Field Marshal Paulus capitulated near Stalingrad. His subsequent history can be considered mirror in relation to Vlasov. The German officer's captivity was quite comfortable, because he joined the anti-fascist national committee "Free Germany". He ate meat, drank beer, received food and parcels. Paulus signed an appeal “To the prisoners of war of German soldiers and officers and to the entire German people.” There, the field marshal said that he called on all of Germany to eliminate Adolf Hitler. He believes that the country must have new government leadership. It must stop the war and ensure that the people restore friendship with their current opponents. Paulus even made a revealing speech at the Nuremberg trials, which greatly surprised his former comrades. In 1953, grateful for the cooperation, the Soviet government released the traitor, especially since he was beginning to fall into depression. Paulus moved to live in the GDR, where he died in 1957. Not all Germans accepted the field marshal’s action with understanding; even his son did not accept his father’s choice, eventually shooting himself due to mental anguish.

Victor Suvorov.

This defector also made a name for himself as a writer. Once upon a time, intelligence officer Vladimir Rezun was a GRU resident in Geneva. But in 1978 he fled to England, where he began writing very scandalous books. In them, an officer who took the pseudonym Suvorov argued quite convincingly that it was the USSR that was preparing to strike Germany in the summer of 1941. The Germans simply forestalled their enemy by several weeks by launching a preemptive strike. Rezun himself says that he was forced to cooperate with British intelligence. They allegedly wanted to make him extreme for failure in the work of the Geneva department. Suvorov himself claims that in his homeland he was sentenced to death in absentia for his treason. However, the Russian side prefers not to comment on this fact. The former intelligence officer lives in Bristol and continues to write books on historical topics. Each of them causes a storm of discussion and personal condemnation of Suvorov.

Victor Belenko.

Few lieutenants manage to go down in history. But this military pilot was able to do it. True, at the cost of his betrayal. You could say that he acted as a kind of bad boy who just wants to steal something and sell it to his enemies at a higher price. On September 6, 1976, he flew the top-secret MiG-25 interceptor. Suddenly the senior lieutenant abruptly changed course and landed in Japan. There the plane was disassembled in detail and subjected to careful study. Naturally, it could not have happened without American specialists. The plane was returned to the USSR after careful examination. And for his feat “for the glory of democracy” Belenko himself received political asylum in the United States. However, there is another version according to which the traitor was not such. He was simply forced to land in Japan. Eyewitnesses say that the lieutenant fired a pistol into the air, not allowing anyone to approach the car and demanding that they cover it. However, the investigation took into account both the pilot’s behavior at home and his flight style. The conclusion was clear - the landing on the territory of an enemy state was deliberate. Belenko himself turned out to be crazy about life in America; he even found canned cat food tastier than what was sold in his homeland. From official statements it is difficult to assess the consequences of that escape; moral and political damage can be ignored, but material damage was estimated at 2 billion rubles. After all, in the USSR they had to quickly change all the equipment of the “friend or foe” recognition system.

Otto Kuusinen.

And again the situation is when a traitor for some is a hero for others. Otto was born in 1881 and in 1904 joined the Social Democratic Party of Finland. Soon and leading it. When it became clear that there was no chance for communists in the newly independent Finland, Kuusinen fled to the USSR. There he worked for a long time in the Comintern. When the USSR attacked Finland in 1939, it was Kuusinen who became the main puppet of the country's new government. Only now his power extended to the few lands captured by Soviet troops. It soon became clear that it would not be possible to capture all of Finland and the need for the Kuusinene regime disappeared. He subsequently continued to hold prominent government positions in the USSR, dying in 1964. His ashes are buried near the Kremlin War.

Kim Philby.

The most famous traitors in history. Marcus Brutus and Gaius Cassius

The poisoning of a former intelligence officer who defected to the British brought to mind the most famous traitors of the Soviet era.

Oleg Penkovsky

Victor Suvorov

Andrey Vlasov

Victor Belenko

Oleg Gordievsky

And ouda Iscariot

Mark Junius Brutus

In ang Jingwei

Getman Mazepa

Oh ldrich ames

In idkun Quisling

Prince Andrei Mikhailovich Kurbsky

Pavlik Morozov

Genrich Lyushkov

Andrey Vlasov

Friedrich Paulus

V iktor Suvorov

V iktor Belenko

About tto Kuusinen

To them Philby

M ordehai Vanunu

Guy Fox

O lay down Gordievsky

Interesting articles

Interesting articles