Mikhail Gorbachev

NAME Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev

WHAT FAMOUS FOR Last leader of the Soviet Union, reformer who introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring), and helped end the Cold War.

BIRTH Gorbachev was born on March 2, 1931, in the village of Privolnoye, in the North Caucasus Krai (later Stavropol Krai) of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. His birth name was Viktor, but his grandfather renamed him Mikhail during his secret baptism.

FAMILY BACKGROUND Gorbachev came from a peasant family of mixed Russian and Ukrainian heritage. His paternal family were ethnic Russians who had moved from Voronezh several generations before, while his maternal family were of Ukrainian heritage and had migrated from Chernihiv. His parents, Sergey Andreyevich Gorbachev and Maria Panteleyevna Gorbacheva (née Gopkalo), were poor and lived as peasants. They had married as teenagers in 1928 and initially resided in an adobe-walled hut. Gorbachev's younger brother, Aleksandr, was born in 1947.

CHILDHOOD Gorbachev's childhood was marked by extreme hardship and trauma. He endured the famine of 1930-1933, which killed two of his paternal uncles and an aunt. During the Great Purge, both of his grandfathers served time in labor camps, and his maternal grandfather was tortured by the secret police, an account that deeply influenced young Mikhail. When he was three years old, Gorbachev moved to live with his maternal grandparents at their collective farm (kolkhoz) 19 kilometers outside Privolnoye.

Gorbachev and his Ukrainian maternal grandparents, late 1930s

During World War II, German forces occupied Privolnoye for four and a half months in 1942. The village school was closed during much of the war, and Gorbachev was unable to attend school for two years because he was needed on the farm. His father fought on the frontlines and was wrongly declared dead during the conflict before returning injured from the Battle of Kursk.

EDUCATION  Despite the disrupted wartime education, Gorbachev excelled academically when school reopened in autumn 1944. He was a voracious reader, progressing from Western novels by Thomas Mayne Reid to works by Vissarion Belinsky, Alexander Pushkin, Nikolai Gogol, and Mikhail Lermontov. He graduated from high school with a silver medal in 1950 at the age of 19.

Gorbachev was accepted into Moscow State University, the premier school in the Soviet Union, without having to take the entrance exam due to his stellar academic record. The university provided him with free living accommodations at a nearby hostel, though he shared a room with 22 others during his first year. He studied law and graduated cum laude with his law degree in 1955. Later, he also obtained an Agricultural Economy Degree from the Stavropol Agricultural Institute in 1967.

CAREER RECORD Gorbachev operated combine harvesters as a teenager on collective farms

1946 Joined the Young Communist League (Komsomol) in 1946 and rose through Komsomol and Party ranks,

1970: Appointed First Party Secretary of the Stavropol Regional Committee

1971: Elected to the Central Committee of the Communist Party

1978: Became Secretary of the party's Central Committee and returned to Moscow

1979: Joined the governing Politburo as a non-voting member

1980: Became a voting member of the Politburo

March 11, 1985: Elected General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union

1990: Became the first and only President of the Soviet Union

December 25, 1991: Resigned as President, effectively ending the USSR

APPEARANCE He was relatively short in stature and had thinning hair that became increasingly sparse with age.

Gorbachev's most distinctive feature was a large red port-wine stain birthmark on his forehead. The mark started high on his head and extended down to just above his right eyebrow, and was prominently featured by cartoonists worldwide. Despite its prominence, Gorbachev made no visible effort to conceal it, though official Soviet portraits often attempted to hide it. 

He was known for his polite and amiable demeanor, a notable contrast to his predecessors.

Gorbachev in 1987 by RIA Novosti archive,

FASHION Gorbachev favored tailor-made suits produced mainly in the USSR and did not follow particular fashion trends. His style was typical of Soviet leaders of his era—practical and understated. Interestingly, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was so impressed by Gorbachev that she named many of her outfits after him, including a "Pink Chanel Gorbachev". (1)

CHARACTER Gorbachev was regarded as a man of unusual decency for a Soviet leader, combining strong principles with what many described as a “messianic utopianism.” He showed courage and vision in driving forward radical reforms, and colleagues often praised his intelligence, charisma, and ability to connect with people from all walks of life. Unlike the rigid, aging apparatchiks who came before him, he was dynamic, personable, and openly engaging—a quality that made him especially admired in the West. At the same time, his idealism could shade into stubbornness, and some of his lofty visions proved impractical. Beyond politics, he was known as a devoted family man, deeply attached to his wife, Raisa.

SPEAKING VOICE Gorbachev was an excellent orator who differed from his predecessors by speaking freely without notes and engaging directly with people on the streets. Unlike previous Soviet leaders who read prepared speeches mechanically, Gorbachev spoke with passion and conviction. 

SENSE OF HUMOUR Gorbachev displayed dry wit, once joking to Margaret Thatcher at their first meeting that he had “no instructions from the Politburo to persuade her to join the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.” (2)

Gorbachev also demonstrated self-deprecating humor about his domestic policies. During a speech in the US, he joked about his decision to limit vodka sales: he told of three men waiting in line to buy vodka, with one becoming so exasperated that he left to assassinate Gorbachev at the Kremlin, only to return later saying "The line was even longer there!".  (3)

He was also the subject of numerous Soviet political jokes that played on his policies and birthmark.

RELATIONSHIPS Mikhail Gorbachev married Raisa Titarenko on September 25, 1953. Their wedding was registered at the Sokolniki Registry Office in Moscow, Russia. After the ceremony, they moved in together at the Lenin Hills dormitory in Moscow, where both were students at Moscow State University.

Their relationship was described as extraordinarily close and loving, with Gorbachev once telling Vogue magazine: "One day we took each other by the hand and went for a walk in the evening. And we walked like that for our whole life". Raisa accompanied him on his travels and they discussed policy and politics together. 

When she died in 1999, Gorbachev wept openly at her funeral, and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl said, "Much of what he achieved is simply unimaginable without his wife".  (4)

Raisa Gorbachev in 1985 By RIA Novosti archive,

They had one daughter, Irina, born in the 1950s.

MONEY AND FAME After his presidency, Gorbachev turned to public speaking, writing, and media appearances both to support his foundation and to earn a living. He founded the Gorbachev Foundation in 1992 to continue his work on political and humanitarian issues, but financial struggles in post-Soviet Russia forced him into unconventional ventures. Most famously, he appeared in a 1997 Pizza Hut commercial filmed in Moscow, in which diners debated his legacy after spotting him in the restaurant. The ad was widely mocked but also helped fund his foundation. He later appeared in a 2007 Louis Vuitton campaign, which again drew criticism but kept him in the public eye as both a global celebrity and advocate for reform. 

Despite his Nobel Peace Prize and international respect, he remained a polarizing figure at home.

FOOD AND DRINK The Gorbachevs generally ate modestly, consuming high-calorie or rich meals only on festive occasions, when chefs would prepare lamb, wild game, sturgeon, and bester.  (5)

His attempts at food reform included a "new food program" aimed at providing Soviets with a diet comparable to American citizens.

Gorbachev implemented a controversial anti-alcohol campaign in 1985, cutting alcohol production and sales hours and imposing stiff fines on public drunkenness. This "dry law" was extremely unpopular and led to widespread poisonings from people drinking cologne and cleaning solutions. 

MUSIC AND ARTS Music provided him with personal enjoyment and stress relief throughout his life. Gorbachev was passionate about classical music and could identify the works of great European composers such as Chopin, Haydn, Bach, and Beethoven by listening to the melodies. 

He was also a fairly good singer himself and once told a BBC team that "Raisa loved my singing". (6)

His policies of glasnost led to a flowering of previously suppressed artistic and cultural expression.

LITERATURE Gorbachev had a lifelong passion for reading, particularly history and Russian literature. He was an avid reader and often spoke of how his love for literature influenced his political thought and his desire to change the Soviet system.

The glasnost period he initiated led to a renaissance in Russian literature, with previously banned works being published.

NATURE During his youth, he worked as a combine harvester operator alongside his father, sometimes working 20-hour days during summer harvests.

Gorbachev developed a deep connection to nature from his peasant upbringing. Raised in a farming community, he wrote: "I grew up in a village and perceived the dying of rivers and land erosion as personal pain". This early environmental consciousness later influenced his post-political career when he became a prominent environmentalist, founding Green Cross International in 1993. He received Germany's Environmental Award in 2010 for his work on environmental protection.

PETS In his later years, Gorbachev had a favorite cat named Willy. There is video footage of the former Soviet president stroking his cherished pet, and the cat was immortalized in a painting by artist Nikolai Sednin. According to popular legend, Willy once got into a fight with then-President Dmitry Medvedev's cat Dorofei and won. (7)

HOBBIES AND SPORTS Gorbachev's favorite hobby was chess, a passion that began in his school days. Coming from a poor family, he and his friends carved chess pieces from wood to play the game. He was also interested in classical music and reading. 

Gorbachev was known to enjoy walking and hiking. He was a fan of football (soccer) and supported his local team, Dynamo Stavropol.

SCIENCE AND MATHS Gorbachev showed aptitude for mechanics as a teenager and operated farm machinery.

Gorbachev understood the importance of science and technology for the modernization of the Soviet economy. His reforms aimed to break from the centrally planned system and spur innovation to catch up with the West.

His approach to nuclear disarmament was influenced by scientific advisers and his understanding of nuclear dangers, particularly after the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.

PHILOSOPHY & THEOLOGY Gorbachev's philosophical beliefs were rooted in reformed Communism. He sought to create "socialism with a human face" and believed in a democratic and pluralistic version of socialism.

He allowed churches to reopen, and by the end of his rule church members outnumbered Communist Party members 10 to 1.

Gorbachev was secretly baptized by his mother and grandmother, who read him the Bible during Stalin's rule. His mother, Maria, had been a deaconess in the Russian Orthodox Church.  

Though officially an atheist as a Soviet leader, he sometimes made surprising spiritual references. In 1996 he acknowledged God in an interview, a striking remark for a man raised in a communist system.

LEADER OF THE SOVIET UNION Mikhail Gorbachev was, by any measure, a most unusual Soviet leader. He was the last General Secretary of the Communist Party and, somewhat accidentally, the only President the Soviet Union ever had—occupying the post just long enough to watch the whole country vanish like a snowbank in April. From 1985 until the USSR’s dissolution in 1991, he presided over one of the most dramatic six-year stretches in modern history, attempting nothing less than to reform an empire that had been creaking under its own weight for decades.

Gorbachev’s signature inventions were glasnost (“openness”) and perestroika (“restructuring”). These were phrases that sounded airy and hopeful in Russian and—much to everyone’s surprise—actually meant what they said. Glasnost relaxed censorship, encouraged newspapers to print more than propaganda, and let ordinary people admit that things were not, in fact, going wonderfully. Perestroika attempted to untangle the Soviet economy by loosening central control, modernizing industry, and dabbling with market mechanisms. He even allowed for a measure of democratization, reducing the Communist Party’s monopoly and creating the Congress of People’s Deputies. To the average Russian, this was nothing short of revolutionary: suddenly they could both vote and complain.

Equally radical was Gorbachev’s approach to the outside world. He ended the disastrous Soviet adventure in Afghanistan, signed arms reduction treaties with Ronald Reagan (whose smiles were almost as famous as Gorbachev’s birthmark), and made a conscious decision not to send tanks rolling into Eastern Europe when communism there collapsed in 1989. For a nation that had maintained its empire at gunpoint, this was astonishing. In fact, it effectively ended the Cold War, earning him the Nobel Peace Prize and the gratitude of nearly everyone who had ever worried about mushroom clouds.

But openness is a tricky thing. Once you let people start talking, they rarely stop at polite applause. Gorbachev’s reforms triggered demands for independence across the Soviet republics, and in August 1991, Communist hardliners attempted a coup to restore the old order. They failed spectacularly, thanks to Boris Yeltsin, who stood on a tank and stole much of the limelight. Though Gorbachev returned to Moscow, his authority never recovered. On Christmas Day 1991, he resigned as President—an office that ceased to exist the same evening. The red Soviet flag was lowered from the Kremlin for the last time, replaced by the Russian tricolor.

Gorbachev left behind a complicated legacy. To much of the world, he was a peacemaker who helped end the Cold War without bloodshed, a man whose “new thinking” replaced fear with dialogue. To many in Russia, however, he was the leader who dismantled their empire and left them with empty shelves and economic chaos. Either way, his six years at the helm changed the course of the 20th century, proving that even the mightiest superpower could collapse almost overnight—and that one man with vision, stubbornness, and a fondness for reformist slogans could make it happen.

POLITICS Gorbachev's political career was defined by his reformist agenda. He promoted perestroika to decentralize economic decision-making and introduced glasnost to allow greater freedom of speech, information, and political participation. He also ended the one-party rule of the Communist Party. His policies, while intended to save the Soviet Union, ultimately contributed to its collapse and the independence of its constituent republics.

SCANDAL The major scandal of Gorbachev's career was the failed August Coup of 1991. Hardline Communist officials attempted to overthrow him while he was vacationing at his Crimean dacha. The coup plotters detained Gorbachev but failed to gain control of the country, with Boris Yeltsin leading the resistance. The failed coup accelerated the collapse of the Soviet Union and marked the end of Gorbachev's effective political power. 

MILITARY RECORD Although conscription in the Soviet Army was required for most able-bodied Soviet males upon turning 18, Gorbachev was able to continue his university studies at Moscow State University uninterrupted.

As General Secretary, he presided over significant military reforms, including the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan in 1988. He worked with US President Reagan to reduce nuclear arsenals and ended Soviet military intervention in Eastern European countries when they abandoned communist rule in 1989. Under his leadership, the Soviet military was gradually reduced in size and influence. 

 Reagan awards Gorbachev the first ever Ronald Reagan Freedom Award By Courtesy Ronald Reagan Library, 

HEALTH AND PHYSICAL FITNESS Gorbachev suffered from diabetes from his early thirties onward, which caused him to be hospitalized numerous times for various complications. His diabetes eventually led to kidney failure requiring years of dialysis. 

HOMES While in power, he lived in a modest Moscow apartment. 

Gorbachev's most famous residence was his holiday home, the state dacha "Zarya" (officially State Dacha No. 11) in Foros, Crimea, where he was detained during the 1991 coup attempt. The complex, built in the 1980s, included several buildings, a tennis court, helipad, cinema, billiards room, and gymnasium. The dacha was built at great expense (estimated at 100-150 million dollars) and was located in a landslide-prone area, requiring construction on sturdy piles anchored to rock. After the Soviet collapse, the residence came under Ukrainian control and later returned to Russian control after Crimea's annexation. (8)

TRAVEL Gorbachev made numerous international trips as Soviet leader, visiting countries across Europe, Asia, and North America. His most significant diplomatic travels included summit meetings with US President Ronald Reagan in Geneva (1985), Reykjavik (1986), and Washington. He also made important visits to European countries, helping to transform East-West relations. His travels continued after leaving office, though he faced restrictions due to his controversial status in Russia.

DEATH Mikhail Gorbachev died on August 30, 2022, at the age of 91 at the Moscow Central Clinical Hospital after a long illness. He had been suffering from acute diabetes and kidney failure. 

His funeral was held on September 3, 2022, and he was buried at Moscow's Novodevichy Cemetery next to his wife Raisa. Notably, Russian President Vladimir Putin did not attend the funeral, citing scheduling conflicts.

APPEARANCES IN MEDIA Beyond his official political media presence, Gorbachev appeared in several documentaries about the Cold War and his role in it. 

Gorbachev's most famous media appearance was in a 1998 Pizza Hut commercial filmed in Moscow's Red Square. The advertisement showed him in a restaurant where diners debated his political legacy before toasting him for bringing them Pizza Hut. He used the money from this commercial to fund his foundation. The commercial has been described as both a symbol of capitalism's victory in Russia and a poignant illustration of a former world leader's reduced circumstances. 

ACHIEVEMENTS Ended the Cold War peacefully.

Introduced reforms that gave Soviet citizens freedoms they had never known.

Won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990.

Founding Green Cross International, a major environmental organization

Oversaw the dissolution of the Soviet Union—whether triumph or tragedy depends on whom you ask.

Sources: (1) Sky News (2) Encyclopaedia of Trivia (3) Charles Stuart University (4) Independent (5) Russia Beyond (6) BBC (7) Gateway to Russia (8) Kalinka