Yuri Vladimirovich Andropov was a Soviet politician and the fourth General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Following the 18-year rule of the late Leonid Brezhnev, Andropov served in the post for only 15 months, from November 1982 until his own death in February 1984. Earlier in his career, Andropov served as the Soviet ambassador to Hungary from 1954 to 1957, during which time he was involved in the suppression of the 1956 Hungarian Uprising, and then Chairman of the KGB from 1967 until 1982.