Togliatti, l’amico dimenticato. Il leader comunista nella storiografia sovietica e quella russa

Nuova Storia Contemporanea. 2014. No. 2. P. 115–132.

Terekhova N. G.

THE FORGOTTEN FRIEND: PALMIRO TOGLIATTI IN  SOVIET AND RUSSIAN HISTORIOGRAPHY

On the map of Russia there is a city bearing the name of the Italian communist leader, Palmiro Togliatti. But for Russians, even 50 years after his death, he remains a mysterious figure. In fact, from the archives of the Comintern, we have learnt that he was one of Stalin's closest fellows, an obedient executor of his wishes, to the point to have a role in the coordinated extermination of his "comrades" during the terror and repression period. But Togliatti, after his return to Italy in 1944, seems another person: a progressive and talented politician, becoming a very important, necessary figure for the Kremlin. His first and last biography in Russian language was published only in 1983. It presents a canonical, idealized image of the "dear Italian friend".This article by Natalia G.Terekhova discusses the works of Soviet and Russian historians about this interesting figure. Noting the ideological determinism and chronological limitation of most of them, the Author comes to the conclusion of the need of a more systematic and modern research, also by analyzing the controversial activities of the compagno Togliatti. This is of interest of the residents of the Russian Volga city named after him, as the question of renaming this city, remains still open.

Keywords: Comintern, Palmiro Togliatti, History of Soviet-Italian relations, Italian Communist Party, Тольятти, Пальмиро Тольятти, история советско-итальянских отношений, итальянские коммунисты, руководители Коминтерна