Lubyanka Building, Moscow

The Lubyanka Building is a large administrative complex closely associated with the history of Soviet and Russian state-security organizations. Its best-known façade originated with a building constructed in 1897-1898 for the Rossiya Insurance Company, designed by architect Alexander Ivanov.

After the Bolshevik Revolution, the complex was taken over in 1918 by the Cheka, the Soviet secret police, and subsequently served organizations that included the GPU, OGPU, NKVD, MGB, and KGB. The building was substantially enlarged during the Soviet period. Architect Alexey Shchusev was commissioned in 1940 to redesign and expand the complex; construction of the new right-hand portion continued into the 1940s, while the older side of the façade was finally altered in 1983 to create the more symmetrical appearance seen today. The complex also contained the notorious Lubyanka prison, where political prisoners and other detainees were held and interrogated, particularly during the era of Stalinist repression. The name “Lubyanka” consequently became widely used as a shorthand for the Soviet state-security apparatus itself. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the KGB in 1991, the Lubyanka complex continued to be used by Russian security institutions and is today associated with the Federal Security Service (FSB).

Because it remains an active government and security facility, it is not a conventional museum or freely accessible tourist attraction, and access to its interiors is restricted. From the surrounding public areas, visitors can nevertheless view one of the buildings most strongly associated with the history of Soviet intelligence, political repression, and state security.