Khorloogiin Choibalsan, Mongolian general and politician, 12th Prime Minister of Mongolia (b. 1895)
Khorloogiin Choibalsan (Mongolian: Хорлоогийн Чойбалсан, spelled Koroloogiin Çoibalsan between 1931 and 1941 and before 1931; 8 February 1895 – 26 January 1952) was the leader of Mongolia (Mongolian People's Republic) and Marshal (general chief commander) of the Mongolian People's Army from the 1930s until his death in 1952. His rule marked the first and last time in modern Mongolian history that an individual had complete political power. Sometimes referred to as the "Stalin of Mongolia", Choibalsan oversaw Stalin-ordered purges in the late 1930s that resulted in the deaths of an estimated 30,000 to 35,000 Mongolians. Most of the victims were Buddhist clergy, intelligentsia, political dissidents, ethnic Buryats and Kazakhs, and others perceived as "enemies of the revolution."
While Choibalsan's alliance with Joseph Stalin helped preserve his country's fledgling independence during the early years of the Mongolian People's Republic (MPR), it also brought Mongolia closer to the Soviet Union. Throughout his rule, Mongolia's economic, political, and military ties to the USSR deepened, infrastructure and literacy rates improved, and international recognition of Mongolia's independence expanded, especially after World War II.