Nikolai Tikhonov - Later Life and Death

Later Life and Death

After his forced resignation from active politics in 1989, Tikhonov wrote a letter to Mikhail Gorbachev which stated that he regretted supporting his election to the General Secretaryship. This view was strengthened when the Communist Party was banned in the Soviet Union. After his retirement, he lived the rest of his life in seclusion at his dacha. As one of his friends noted, he lived as "a hermit" and never showed himself in public and that his later life was very difficult as he had no children and because his wife had died. Prior to the dissolution of the Soviet Union Tikhonov worked as a State Advisor to the Supreme Soviet. Tikhonov died on 1 June 1997 and was buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery.

According to Time magazine, Tikhonov was a "tried and tested yes man" who had very little experience in foreign and defence policy when he took over the Premiership from Alexei Kosygin. A bust dedicated to Tikhonov can be found in Kharkiv, his birthplace. Tikhonov, when compared to other Soviet premiers, has made little impact on post-Soviet culture and his legacy is remembered by few today. During his lifetime Tikhonov was awarded several awards; he was awarded nine Order of Lenins, two Order of the Red Banner of Labour, one Red Star, two Stalin Prizes and several medals and foreign awards.