Stalin's Loyal Executioner: People's Commissar Nikolai Ezhov, 1895-1940

"In 1998, the military Collegium of the Russian Supreme Court ruled that justice had been served by the secret trial and execution of Nikolai Ezhov, "enemy of the people." Using Ezhov's own papers meticulously documenting his loyalty to Stalin, the book reveals the full human tragedy encompassed in Ezhov's meteoric and bloody career. The following questions rivet our attention to an unprecedented era of bureaucratic madness: was Ezhov operating outside the scope of Stalin's authority or "just following orders"?; how were Stalin's "national operation" implemented?; how, in 1938, did Ezhov suddenly lose favor with Stalin?; what police actions were the aftermath of Ezhov's brief reign of terror?; and how did Soviet national policies shift after 1938?"--BOOK JACKET.