Karl Säre

Karl Säre
Portrait of Säre, 1941
First Secretary of the Communist Party of Estonia
In office 12 September 1940 – September 1941
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	Nikolai Karotamm
Personal details
Born	(1903-07-02)2 July 1903 Tartu, Russian Empire
Died	14 March 1941(1941-03-14) (aged 37) Neuengamme concentration camp, Nazi Germany
Citizenship	Soviet
Nationality	Estonian
Political party	All-Union Communist Party (b) (1927-1941)
Alma mater	Communist University of the National Minorities of the West International Lenin School

Karl Säre (July 2, 1903 – March 14, 1945) was an Estonian communist politician. He was the first first secretary of the Central Committee of the Estonian Communist Party ie the de facto leader of the Estonian SSR. During World War II, he was arrested by Nazi Germany and taken to Sachsenhausen concentration camp, where he died. Until the end of the Soviet period, the mention of Säre's name in public sources was avoided, as he disclosed to Nazi Germany information about the communist organization that remained in Estonia during the war.^[1]

Biography[]

Born in to the family of brewery worker, Säre joined the communist movement at a young age and became a member of the Union of Communist Youth of Estonia in 1917.^[1]

In 1921 he left Estonia for Soviet Russia and began his studies at a rabfak and later on the Communist University of the National Minorities of the West.

Säre became a member of the OGPU and later NKVD apparatus and was sent to work in the Soviet embassy in China. He was later sent to conduct underground activities in Estonia and participated in the restoration of the party. He became a member of the Communist Party of Estonia in 1927 and became secretary of the Union of Communist Youth of Estonia.^[1]

He was sent back to Moscow and continued his studies at the International Lenin School and later on was sent to conduct illegal activities in countries like Britain, United States, Denmark and Sweden as a Comintern agent.

In 1938 he returned to Estonia and remained there clandestinely. In 1940 he was preparing for the annexation of Estonia and On September 12, 1940, he entered the Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Estonia and was elected 1st secretary of the Central Committee of the CPE and became the de-facto leader of the country.^[2]

Säre (right, foreground) with other Estonian Communist Party officials in Tallinn, July 1940.

In 1941 he became a candidate member of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (b) and a deputy of the Supreme Soviet. After the German invasion, from, July to August 1941, he was Chairman of the . He was lse underground to organize armed resistance to the Nazi occupiers.^[3]

He was arrested by the German occupiers and after extensive investigation he gave the information of his fellow underground resistance fighters.^[4]

After the Soviet military intelligence network led by Richard Sorge was exposed and detained in Japan in 1942, German intelligence sent a special plane to Tallinn and took Säre from Tallinn Central Prison to Berlin, Germany.  From there he was sent to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Karl Säre was last seen in the public in Denmark in March 1943 in the for the murder of fellow communist Paul Eltermann where he was in the role of accused.^[5]

Further information of him is still a subject of investigation. According to the researchers of the Estonian Institute of Historical Memory he was sent to Neuengamme concentration camp, where on 14 March 1945 he died as a result of heart failure.^[6]

References[]

Bibliography[]

• Olaf Kuuli, Karl Säre ja 1940. aasta Eestis. Poliitika (1990) nr 3, lk. 51–64.
• Voldemar Pinn. Kes oli Nikolai Karotamm? 1, Kultuuritragöödia jälgedes: kompartei kolmest esimesest sekretärist Karl Särest, Nikolai Karotammest, Johannes Käbinist, Haapsalu: V. Pinn, 1996.
• Laar, Mart. Säre, Karl. Eesti ajalugu elulugudes. 101 tähtsat eestlast. / (Allan Liim, Ago Pajur, Sulev Vahtre... jt); koostanud Sulev Vahtre. Tallinn : Olion, 1997
• Mai Vöörman, Pool sajandit võõra nime all, Luup (1997) nr. 19 (50), September 15.
• Külli Niidassoo, Valdur Ohmann. Eestimaa Kommunistlik Partei – 1930. aastad kuni juuli 1940: varjusurmast ajalooareenile. Tuna (2000) nr 3, lk 68–75.
• Erik Nørgaard. Kongelundeni mõrv: dokumentatsioon, mis sisaldab seni salajas hoitud materjale Kongelundenis vastlapäeval 1936 aset leidnud poliitilise mõrva kohta ja lugu sellest, kuidas kommunistid 1940. aastal Eestis võimu haarasid, Tallinn: 2001, tõlkinud Arvo Alas.
• Valdur Ohmann, EKP Keskkomitee I sekretäri Karl Säre arreteerimisest, reetlikkusest ja tema saatusest Tuna, (2001) nr 4, lk 38–47.
• Helme, Rein. Karl Säre ja kambajõmmid mõrvatööl // Eesti Ekspress, January 30, 2002
• Olev Remsu, "Elitaarne mees Harry Männil", Tln, Tänapäev, 2011

External links[]

• Сярэ Карл Янович (Karl Säre) (vene keeles)
• Eesti biograafiline andmebaas ISIK
• Valdur Ohmann. Vendade Karl ja Artur Säre elukäigu salaniidistik., Tuna, (2003) nr 3, lk 64–77.