ニコライ・エジョフ
The Great Purge began under NKVD chief Genrikh Yagoda, but reached its peak between September 1936 and August 1938 under the leadership of Nikolai Yezhov, hence the name "Yezhovshchina". The campaigns were carried out according to the general line of the party, often by direct orders of the politburo headed by Stalin.