Yuri Andropov

1982-1984  Leader of the Soviet Union.

Yuri Andropov’s reign lasted only 15 months. It was the era of Gerontocracy. There were three state funerals within only two years.

Background
Lived: 1914-1984.
By the end of Brezhnev’s rule the elite of the Communist party had stagnated, ensured its power and privileges and completely distanced themselves from ordinary people.

Gerontocracy
The ruling clique was an enclosed system. Old party elite was clinging to power and the younger generations could not get near. It was the rule of Gerontocracy.

When Brezhnev died in 1982, at the age of 75, his successor Yuri Andropov was already 68 and very sick. To some extent, he understood the necessity to fight corruption and reform the economy, but it he did not make an attempt to reform the system from within.

Reign
Yuri Andropov’s rule ended after 15 months, when he became so sick that he was rarely seen in public. He wanted his successor to be Mikhail Gorbachev, but he was overruled by the Chernenko-Tikhonov-Ustinov clique.