born Sept. 7, 1911, Pravets, near Botevgrad, Bulg.
died Aug. 5, 1998, Sofia
Bulgarian politician.
The son of poor peasants, he drifted to the Bulgarian capital of Sofia in his youth and, in the late 1920s, joined the Komsomol, the youth league of the outlawed Communist Party. During World War II he organized a resistance movement, and after the war, he held posts in the Soviet-sponsored government, including head of the People's Militia. He became first secretary of the Bulgarian Communist Party in 1954, the youngest leader in the Soviet bloc, then served as premier (196271) and president (197189). He hewed closely to the Soviet line but encouraged industrialization and improved the country's living standard. When democratization reached Bulgaria, Zhivkov resigned (1989). Convicted of embezzlement, he was sentenced to house arrest in 1992.