Many were terrified of Stalin in the USSR. On the other hand, was there anyone who terrified Stalin?

 

Stalin was the most feared man in the Soviet Union, but he had a secret: he was actually scared of his top general, Georgy Zhukov. During World War II, Zhukov led the Russian armies to victory and became a massive hero. The Russian people loved him. In a country where Stalin wanted to be the only "superstar," Zhukov's fame made Stalin very nervous.

The actual breaking point was the 1945 Victory Parade. Zhukov rode a beautiful white horse through Red Square, appearing every bit the leader. Stalin looked on from the side and was jealous. He was terrified that Zhukov would use the army to seize the government. He couldn't just kill a national hero, though, because the soldiers might have started a revolt.

Instead, Stalin played dirty. He accused Zhukov of stealing furniture and art from Germany to make him look like a common thief. In 1946 he kicked Zhukov out of his high ranking job and sent him to a lonely post in the city of Odessa. It was a humiliating time out to make everyone forget him. But it didn't work forever. After Stalin's death in 1953, Zhukov returned to Moscow. He himself led the arrest of the secret police boss who had helped Stalin mistreat him. In the end, the hero Stalin tried to hide outlived him.