With Brezhnev Dead

By 1964, Nikita Khruschev, the First Secretary and the Premier of the Soviet Union, was becoming unpopular. He was old, for one thing, and for another, his agricultural policies were not very successful whatsoever. By March of 1964, the Chairman of the Presidium, Leonid Brezhnev, was gaining support for his overthrow. In October, Brezhnev struck. On the 14th of October, Khruschev was forced to resign. His 'voluntary' resignation was accepted.

On the 15th of October, Brezhnev announced his appointment as the new First Secretary, with Alexei Kosygin, standing behind him, to become Premier.

At that moment, shots rang out. Chaos had erupted. Soon afterward, Brezhnev and three bystanders were found dead, with Kosygin heavily wounded.

This threw the Soviet government into chaos. There were (completely unfounded) rumors of a Khruschev return, but this was not to be. After his recovery, Alexei Kosygin took the position of Premier of the Soviet Union. Former Head of the Committe of State Security, Alexander Shelepin became the new First Secretary. Replacing Brezhnev to become Chairman of the Presidium was the current Head of the Committee of State Security; Vladimir Semichastny.

This sudden shake-up in Soviet leadership would have an amazing effect on history.

Comments, please? This is my first timeline, and my pessimistic mind expects it to be a failure.
 
it is interesting, although I'm not quite sure where this develops.

Lets see. Shelepin seems to have gotten what he wanted in the first place. That said, I don't know if he can last long in that position; he wasn't exactly trusted much IOTL, and if somebody like suslov wonders about the convenience of the assassination...

this raises the question of who killed him off. this isn't exactly the normal means by which a high ranking soviet leader is removed. Is this a Krushechev comeback, a power struggle manifesting itself, a reactionary group? How do the soviets spin it?

One last thought relates to Kosygin. On the one hand, one wonders if he gets sidelined while incapacitated from the shooting. On the other hand, his public image probably gets a immense boost from the attack, which means that he could be well placed for future advancement...
 
I am really getting a lot of comments, aren't I? Oh, and I forgot, Yuri Andropov replaced Vladimir Semichastny as Head of State Security.

Some events that happened afterward as per OTL: Lyndon Johnson was reelected in a landslide against Barry Goldwater. The first American troops landed in Vietnam.

However, the next major communist-capitalist conflict was not to be Vietnam.

In the Dominican Republic, a right-wing military government had been in power since 1963, when it deposed Juan Bosch, a member of the Partido Revolucionario Dominicano (Dominican Revolutionary Party). On April 24, 1965, Bosch returned, and declared himself President. The next day, on April 25, Bosch was assassinated (I love killing off historical characters, in case you haven't noticed).

Riots, the left against the right, broke out all over the Republic. Trying to prevent a "second Cuba", Johnson, on the 26th, asked Congress to give him the right to send troops. Congress agreed. American troops were in the Dominicans the very next day.

Meanwhile, Haiti, the other country on the island of Hispaniola, was controlled by an oppressive right-wing government, under President for Life Francois Duvalier. The Dominican revolution spread there. The island of Hispaniola was in flames.

During the end of April and the beginning of May, the Politburo debated whether or not to support the Hispaniolan revolutionaries. Semichastny and Shelepin were for it. Soon afterward, the Soviets were providing aid to the revolutionaries.

Meanwhile, it must also be noted that while all this was occurring, the Communists, slowly, were winning in the Vietnam War. With Communist fortunes looking up, both in the Caribbean and Southeast Asia, many wondered - could the domino theory be true?

Will the domino theory hold true, resulting in a worldwide revolution? Can the conflict erupt into nuclear war? Meanwhile, resentment against Semichastny and Shelepin, both among the people and among the Politburo, is growing, while the two are developing a rivalry, though this is masked by their agreement on the Dominican issue. Will their government survive, or are they doomed?
 
I am interested in this TL, and willk be following it closely. I'll admit that I know very little about Kruschevite and post-Krushchevite politburo dealing and history, so I'm intrigued and will be unlikely to denounce any part of this as unrealistic.:D
 
Well like the previous poster said, the main question is: who shot Brezhnev? I think the whole thing hinges on that. If you want to get rid of that as a factor, why not have him die in an unfortunate hunting accident? :D
 
Well, basically, shooting Brezhnev was, in my mind, a way to get rid of him. Reading the comments - you people are right. I refuse to change it to an accident of some sort because I don't like changing things - I'll think up something. It'll either be some major government dude or a passing maniac.
 
And yet another update!

Of course, Semichastny and Shelepin were not such morons as to deploy soldiers to Hispaniola - this would lead to nuclear war, and they knew it. Instead, they provided supplies to the Hispaniolan Communists - weapons especially. The situation quickly bogged down into a messy stalemate.

Meanwhile, in the USSR, the mystery of Brezhnev's death was...still a mystery. No leads, no nothing. Until, that is, one day in July 1965, when Shelepin provided evidence (fabricated) that Semichastny orchestrated the assassination, in order to gain power for himself.

It is highly unlikely that Semichastny orchestrated Brezhnev's assassination - Shelepin's accusation was intended to get rid of the Chairman of the Presidium. It worked. Soon after, Politburo orchestrated the removal of Semichastny. As Shelepin expected, it promptly elected him Chairman of the Presidium.

Meanwhile, in Vietnam, the Communists had by now steamrolled over much of South Vietnam. The north seemed poised to win.

In the U.S., Johnson was returning to his old smoking habits. In mid-July 1965, right around the time of Shelepin's rise, L.B.J. died. Hubert Horatio Humphrey, Vice President of the United States, became President. Humphrey appointed Johnson's protege, John B. Connally, Jr., Vice President of the United States. Upon his ascension to the Presidency, Humphrey immediately signed the Social Security Act of 1965, establishing Medicare and Medicaid*.


*For those of you who are about to shout 'butterflies will butterfly it away!', the Great Society was planned in 1963, and the general idea of Medicare and Medicaid was around for far longer.

Oh, and when I get up, I'm going to see comments. Lots and lots of comments.
 
Last edited:
Nice, im interested to seeing where this will go, i like your way of writing btw, much less formal than what im used to (but i dont know much so yeah).

You know i think if Castro can afford to send troops to Africa, he would get in on the action if its only a few islands away and has a chance of working.
 
Interesting... you really are going to have to come up woth some leads on who shot JR.... er I mean Brezhnev though, its implausible that there could be absolutely no leads whatsoever.

A new leadership might continue Khruschev's social liberalisation while not allowing the economy to stagnante. All in all, this could be good for the USSR. contrary to what a lot of people say, collapse wasn't inevitable and without the stagnation of the 70s , the SU could still be here today.
 
Could Ukrainian nationalists be responsible? Frederick Forsyth's "The Devil's Alternative" had a scenario where Ukrainians assassinated the KGB Chairman. Of course that book was set in the 1980s. Vosem's TL is ca. 1960s. No idea about the status of Ukrainian nationalists in the 60s. Still, could be interesting if true ITTL. Just a thought.
 
Near the end of 1965, the War in Vietnam began heating up. The United States Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, recommended U.S. military intervention. With the war on Hispaniola crunching into a bloody stalemate, this was far easier said than done.

Meanwhile, Fidel Castro, the Cuban communist, had finally decided to land troops in Hispaniola. They made landfall on September 14th, quickly taking the city of Jeremie, part of Haiti.

In the U.S., opposition to the War in Hispaniola began to catch fire...literally, when Norman Morrison set himself on fire outside of the apartment building where Robert McNamara lived. This inflamed a peace movement. It was led, in Congress, by Senator Eugene McCarthy, a Democrat of Minnesota.

Meanwhile, in the U.S.S.R., Shelepin had taken for himself the position of General Secretary, which had been basically vacant since Khruschev had been sacked.

In both the U.S. and the U.S.S.R., support for the War in Hispaniola was thinning. Finally, the Peace of Port-au-Prince was signed, ending the war*.

The Haitian departments of Grand'Anse, Sud, Nippes, Sud-Est and Artibonite were to be annexed by Cuba. The Republic of Haiti, under the Duvalier regime, wound maintain its control of the department of Ouest. The remaining four departments (Centre, Nord, Nord-Est and Nord-Ouest), were to form the new Democratic Republic of North Hispaniola, a capitalist nation.

The Dominican Republic was split in two ways: the country's north was given to the Democratic Republic of North Hispaniola, while the south became the People's Republic of Hispaniola. (Once again, these are modern provinces, not the boundarys from the '60s).

Dominican provinces given to the Democratic Republic of North Hispaniola:

  • northern half of the Distrito Nacional
  • Dajabon
  • Duarte
  • Elias Pina
  • Espaillat
  • Hato Mayor
  • Hermanas Mirabal
  • La Vega
  • Maria Trinidad Sanchez
  • Monte Cristi
  • Monte Plata
  • Puerto Plata
  • Samana
  • San Juan
  • Sanchez Ramirez
  • Santiago de los Caballeros
  • Santiago Rodriguez
  • Valverde

And to the People's Republic of Hispaniola:

  • southern half of the Distrito Nacional
  • Azua
  • Baoruco
  • Barahona
  • El Seibo
  • Independencia
  • Isla Beata
  • Isla Catalina
  • Isla Saona
  • La Altagracia
  • La Romana
  • Monsenor Nouel
  • Pedernales
  • Peravia
  • San Cristobal
  • San Jose de Ocoa
  • San Pedro de Macoris
  • Santo Domingo
The War in Hispaniola had been short, but it had transformed the island from having two nations - Haiti and the Dominican Republic - to three (Haiti, North Hispaniola, P.R. Hispaniola) and some Cuban territory.

In Russia, many were beginning to see Shelepin as overambitious. Some were preparing for a Khruschev-ite overthrow. Still, Shelepin had his supporters...

In the U.S., the 1966 elections saw the Republicans gain 3 seats in the Senate and...47 in the House. Although the election was mild in the Senate, the Republican gains in the House were very, very large, though the Democrats maintained the majority. America was losing patience with Humphrey and McNamara.

Quickly afterwards, Republican politicians began gearing toward a run for President in 1968. Odd rumors were swirling...rumors of a...Nixon comeback?




*I'm going off modern divisions of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, which may look nothing like the divisions from the '60s.
 
I dont see why the USSR would get tired of the war in Hispaniola, cause they arnt actually fighting. And i dont think ether side on the island would settle for a division. Also i like the fire puns. :D
Well its your tl, so keep up the updates, very intresting to read. :)
 
I refuse to change it to an accident of some sort because I don't like changing things...


Vosem,

Then why ask for our comments? After all, our comments are going to contain suggested changes.

Here's a change you should mull over; How is the USSR going to supply the Dominican rebels with arms? This isn't Vietnam, Hispaniola can easily be blockaded by the USN and USAF. This isn't Cuba either, the Dominican rebels are not a recognized government and the USSR is trying to hide it's involvement so innocent Soviet freighters aren't going to be making peaceful visits.

Finally, the idea that the US would allow Castro's Cuba to annex portions of another Caribbean island only 3 years after the Missile Crisis is unabashedly ASB.


Bill
 
Top