Leonid Alexandrovich Govorov was born on February 10, 1897, in the village of Butyrki in the Yaran district of the Vyatka province into a peasant family. His father, Alexander Grigorievich Govorov, worked as a burlak, a sailor, and a clerk at a real school in Yelabuga, while his mother, Maria Alexandrovna, was a housewife. Leonid was the eldest of four sons.

After graduating from a vocational school in Yaran, Leonid entered the Yelabuga Real School, which he completed in 1916. In the same year, he became a student in the shipbuilding department of the Petrograd Polytechnic Institute. In December 1916, he was drafted into the Russian Imperial Army and began his studies at the Konstantinov Artillery School. In June 1917, Govorov was promoted to the rank of ensign and was assigned as a junior officer of a mortar battery in the Tomsk garrison.

In March 1918, Leonid was demobilized and returned to Yelabuga, where he worked in a cooperative. In September 1918, with the arrival of the People's Army of Komuch in Yelabuga, he, along with his younger brother Nikolai, joined its ranks and was assigned to the artillery battery of the 8th Kama Rifle Division. In Soviet questionnaires, Govorov indicated that he had been mobilized. He participated in the Spring Offensive of Admiral Kolchak's Eastern Front armies, fighting near Ufa, Zlatoust, Chelyabinsk, and on the Tobol River. On July 13, 1919, by order of Admiral Kolchak, Govorov and his brother Nikolai were promoted to second lieutenants. In December 1919, Govorov deserted from his unit and took part in the uprising against the White authorities in Tomsk.

On December 22, 1919, Tomsk came under the control of the Red Army, and in January 1920, Govorov voluntarily joined the 51st Rifle Division under the command of Blucher, where he became the commander of an artillery battalion. The division was transferred to the Southern Front, where it participated in battles against Wrangel's army. In 1920, Govorov was wounded twice: in August near the village of Serogozы and in September near Antonovka. For his bravery in battles against Wrangel's army, he was awarded the Order of the Red Banner in 1921.

In October 1923, Govorov became the chief of artillery of the 51st Perekop Rifle Division, and from November 1924, he commanded the artillery regiment of this division. The residents of Odessa elected him as a deputy to the city council. From May 1931, he held the position of chief of artillery of the Rybnitsa fortified area, and from July 1934, he was the chief of artillery of the 14th and 15th rifle corps. In 1936, he became the head of a section in the artillery department of the Kyiv Military District.

Govorov actively engaged in self-education. In 1926, he graduated from the Artillery Courses for Command Staff Improvement, in 1930, from the Higher Academic Courses at the Frunze Military Academy, and in 1933, he completed the full course of this academy by correspondence. He independently studied the German language and passed the exam to become a military translator. In 1936, Govorov was awarded the rank of brigadier and became a student at the Academy of the General Staff of the Red Army. In 1938, he graduated early and was appointed a tactics instructor at the Dzerzhinsky Artillery Academy of the Red Army. In 1939, he completed his first scientific work on the topic of attacking and breaking through fortified areas.

In January 1940, Govorov was appointed chief of artillery of the 7th Army, which participated in the war with Finland. For his preparation and artillery support of the breakthrough of the Mannerheim Line, he was awarded the Order of the Red Star and received the rank of major general. In March 1940, he was appointed deputy chief inspector of artillery of the Main Artillery Directorate of the Red Army. In May 1941, a month before the war began, he took command of the Dzerzhinsky Artillery Academy of the Red Army.

At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, Govorov was on the Western Front, where he organized anti-tank defense and prepared for the Yelnya offensive operation. In October 1941, he participated in organizing the Mozhaisk defense line and soon took command of the 5th Combined Arms Army, which was engaged in heavy fighting on the approaches to Mozhaisk. In November, he organized a deep defense on the approaches to Moscow. For his contribution to the December counteroffensive near Moscow, Govorov was awarded a second Order of Lenin.

In April 1942, Govorov was hospitalized with appendicitis, and I. I. Fedjuninsky became the commander of the 5th Army. In April, he took command of the Leningrad group of troops of the Volkhov Front, and in June, he became the commander of the Leningrad Front. Govorov focused on counter-battery warfare and strengthening the defense of Leningrad. In January 1943, the "Spark" operation began, during which the blockade of Leningrad was broken. For this operation, Govorov was awarded the Order of Suvorov 1st class.

In June 1944, the Leningrad Front began the Vyborg-Petrozavodsk operation, which led to Finland's exit from the war. For successes in this operation, Govorov was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union. In September 1944, he participated in the liberation of Estonia and the blockade of the Courland grouping of German troops.

In January 1945, Govorov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In May, he directed the actions of the Soviet fronts against the Courland grouping, which capitulated on May 8. In July, he became the commander of the troops of the Leningrad Military District. In 1946, Govorov was appointed chief inspector of the Ground Forces, and in 1947, chief inspector of the Armed Forces of the USSR. Since 1948, he also headed the country's air defense, where he carried out reorganization and introduced new weapons.

In 1952, Govorov became a candidate member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. In 1953, he was appointed chief inspector of the Ministry of Defense of the USSR, and in 1954, the first commander of the Air Defense Forces of the USSR. However, his health deteriorated due to hypertension and stress. In the summer of 1954, he suffered a stroke. Leonid Alexandrovich Govorov passed away on March 19, 1955, at the Barvikha sanatorium. His ashes were buried in the Kremlin wall on Red Square in Moscow.