HISTORY OF RUSSIAAn ancient empire, the cradle of three modern-day nations… This was Kievan Rus – a powerful East Slavic state dominated by the city of Kiev. Shaped in the 9th century it went on to flourish for the next 300 years. The empire is traditionally seen as the beginning of Russia and the ancestor of Belarus and Ukraine. From those ancient times comes a popular proverb “Your tongue will take you to Kiev”. If you’re wondering how or why a part of your body would transport you to a European capital, here’s the story. Legend has it that in 999 a Kiev resident called Nikita Shchemyaka got lost in the far-away steppes and was caught by a militant nomadic tribe. Nikita’s tales of Kiev’s wealth and splendor impressed the tribe’s chief so much, he hooked Nikita by the tongue to his horse’s tail and went to wage war against Kiev. That’s how Nikita’s tongue took him home. But don’t panic if you hear the saying – you won’t share the unfortunate Nikita’s lot. Today, the proverb simply means you can always ask your way around. Back in those ancient times Russia it seems nearly became a Muslim country. The story goes that its ruler at the time, Prince Vladimir, wanted to replace paganism with a new religion. He was tempted by Islam because it allowed men to have several wives. But Vladimir finally decided against it because he thought his people would be unhappy under a religion that prohibits wine. So in 988 Kievan Rus converted to Orthodox Christianity. Tatar invasion In the 13th century Kievan Rus was invaded by the Tatars. Their state, the Empire of the Golden Horde, ruled over Russian lands for almost three centuries. But in 1380 a Muscovite prince, Dmitry Donskoy, won a major battle against the Tatars under the command of Khan Mamai at Kulikovo Field. Donskoy became a popular hero and the words “the slaughter of Mamai” now mean a carnage or terrible defeat. And “Mamai’s invasion” is a name to jokingly describe troublesome or unwelcome visitors. And if you find out that “walking like a pig” has nothing to do with the grunting animals you’ve got another epic battle to blame – the Battle of the Ice in 1242. Hoping to exploit the Russians’ weakness after the Tatar invasion, the Teutonic Knights attacked the city of Novgorod. The German crusaders were defeated in a fight on Lake Peipus, between modern Estonia and Russia. During their retreat, many knights drowned in the lake when the ice broke under the weight of their heavy amour. “The pig” was the Russian way of describing the wedge-shaped formation of the German army, often used in Europe in the 13-15th centuries. Speaking of the “advancing pig”, the medieval Russian chronicles referred to the marching Teutonic knights. Ivan the Terrible Meanwhile, Moscow replaced Kiev as the new centre of spiritual and political power, becoming the Grand Duchy of Moscow. In 1547 Ivan IV (the Terrible), who was also Grand Duke of Moscow, crowned himself the first Tsar. Ivan wasn’t of course born the Terrible. He earned his nickname for his ruthless campaigns against the nobility, confiscating their lands and executing or exiling those who displeased him. It was a drive that strengthened Russia’s monarchy like never before. But he started out as a reformer, reorganizing the military, proclaiming a new legal code and curbing the influence of the clergy. It was Ivan who turned Russia into a multi-ethnic and multi-religious state. In 1552 Ivan crushed the Tatar stronghold of Kazan. The campaign began Russia’s expansion into Siberia, annexing a large Muslim population. One of Moscow’s most famous landmarks is another of Ivan’s legacy. St. Basil’s Cathedral on Red Square was built by his order. The cathedral is a collection of nine chapels put on a single foundation. The central and tallest one commemorates the invasion of Kazan while the rest celebrate other key victories in the Tatar campaign. A popular legend has it that the work was done by two architects – Postnik and Barma (although some say it was one and the same person). When Ivan saw the finished cathedral he liked it so much that he had the architects blinded to prevent them from building anything like it elsewhere. A Brief History of Russia Ancient Russia (800-1200) The early history of Russia, like those of many countries, is one of migrating peoples and ancient kingdoms. In fact, early Russia was not exactly "Russia," but a collection of cities that gradually coalesced into an empire. I n the early part of the ninth century, as part of the same great movement that brough the Danes to England and the Norsemen toWestern Europe, a Scandanavian people known as the Varangians crossed the Baltic Sea and landed in Eastern Europe. The leader of the Varangians was the semilegendary warrior Rurik, who led his people in 862 to the city of Novgorod on the Volkhov River. Whether Rurik took the city by force or was invited to rule there, he certainly invested the city. From Novgorod, Rurik's successor Oleg extended the power of the city southward. In 882, he gained control of Kiev, a Slavic city that had arisen along the Dnepr Riveraround the 5th century. Oleg's attainment of rule over Kiev marked the first establishment of a unified, dynastic state in the region. Kiev became the center of a trade route between Scandinavia and Constantinople, and Kievan Rus', as the empire came to be known, flourished for the next three hundred years. the small settlement that would soon become the pre-eminent city in Russia. It was during this time (in 1147 to be exact) that Yuri Dolgorukiy. and the lower reaches of the Volga River. Unfortunately. Oleg's great-grandson Vladimir I was ruler of a kingdom that extended to as far south as the Black Sea. held a feast at his hunting lodge atop a hill overlooking the confluence of the Moskva and NeglinaRivers. Vladimir carefully considered a number of available faiths and decided upon Greek Orthodoxy. the Caucasus Mountains. It is said that Vladimir decided against Islam partly because of his belief that his people could not live under a religion that prohibits hard liquor. they did nothing of the sort. A chronicler recorded the party. he decided in the end to act like Lear. thus providing us with the earliest mention of Moscow. Having decided to establish a state religion.By 989. Of course. whose reign marked the apogee of Kievan Rus'. Yaroslav codified laws. one of the regional princes. thus allying himself with Constantinople and the West. made shrewd alliances with other states. Back To Top . Vladimir was succeeded by Yaroslav the Wise. and encouraged the arts. Kievan Rus' had broken up into regional power centers. Within a few decades of Yaroslav's death (in 1054). Internal divisions were made worse by the depradations of the invading Cumans (better known as the Kipchaks). dividing his kingdom among his children and bidding them to cooperate and flourish. it wasn't until the reign of his grandson. Ivan the Terrible succeeded his father Vasily III as Grand Duke of Moscow in 1533 at the age of three. In 1237 Batu Khan. after another century had passed. However. but was decisively destroyed by the arrival of a new invader--the Mongols. For the next century or so. better known as Ivan the Great. It wasn't until 1480. Moscow felt strong enough to challenge the Tatars directly. In the best news of the era for Russia. launched an invasion into Kievan Rus' from his capital on the lower Volga (at present-day Kazan). a regional branch of the fearsome Teutonic Knights. By the latter part of the century. that Russia became a unified state. The regional princes were not deposed. but they were forced to send regular tribute to the Tatar state. though the Tatar retaliation two years later maintained their rule over the city. the young . both were decisively defeated by the great warrior Alexander Nevsky.Moscow. His mother served as regent until she too died.The Mongols and the Emergence of Moscow (1237-1613) Kievan Rus' struggled on into the 13th century. around the turn of the 14th century. With the Tatars off to the southwest. and in 1380 a Muscovite prince named Dmitri Donskoy had the audacity to attack them. the northeastern cities gradually gained more influence--first Tver. and by the time he tore up the charter binding it to Tatar tribute he was effectively in control of the entire country. when Ivan was eight. Invasions of Russia were attempted during this period from the west as well. Over the next three years the Mongols (or Tatars) destroyed all of the major cities of Kievan Rus' with the exceptions of Novgorod and Pskov. which became known as the Empire of the Golden Horde. For the next eight years. and then. Its ruler at that time was Grand Duke Ivan III. a prince of Novgorod who earned his surname from his victory over the Swedes on the Neva River. that Moscow was strong enough to throw off Tatar rule for good. Ivan IV (the Terrible). Ivan began by subjugating most of Moscow's rival cities. the patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church was transferred to the city. very little seems to have happened in Russia. His decisive victory at Kulikovo Field immediately made him a popular hero. first by the Swedes (1240) and then by the Livonian Brothers of the Sword (1242). making it the spiritual capital of Russia. As a sign of the city's importance. a grandson of Jenghiz Khan. which other than the exorbitant tax requirement was relatively left alone by the Mongols. killing him. who left most of the management of the kingdom to his brother-in-law. Boris Godunov. Godunov died suddenly the next year. Believe it or not. as he grew older his temper worsened. When Fyodor died in 1598. In 1591. until the Russian Revolution brought an end to the Tsarist state. and in 1604 he invaded Russia. and preparing to smite the Tatars. and it was not long before Godunov began to work to secure the succession for himself. having thus destroyed the lingering power of the Golden Horde.Grand Duke endured a series of regents chosen from among the boyars (the nobility). However. claiming to be Dmitri. confiscating their land and executing or exiling those who displeased him. he was succeeded by his son Fyodor. The Romanov dynasty was to rule Russia for the next 304 years. Finally in 1547. . he adopted the title of tsar and set about crushing the power of the boyars. and it was during his reign that the conquest and colonization of Siberia began. In 1581. For the next eight years both the first and a second false Dmitri laid claims to the throne. When Ivan the Terrible died in 1584. reorganizing the military. and the "Time of Troubles" began. Basil’s Cathedral was built in commemoration of this victory). Ivan's Tatar campaigns opened vast new areas for Russian expansion. both supported by invading Polish armies. he struck his son and heir Ivan with an iron rod. but his rule was never accepted as entirely legitimate. Demetrius on the Blood. Ivan was not supposed to have been very terrible at all during the early years of his reign. the Poles were ousted from Moscow. Within a few years a pretender arose in Poland. in 1613. and the boyars unanimously elected Michael Romanov as Tsar. and by the 1560s he carried out a pretty horrific campaign against the boyars. a spot now marked by the magnificent Church of St. Godunov was made tsar. Finally. he murdered Fyodor's younger brother Dmitri in the ancient town of Uglich. and in 1556 Astrakhan. in a rage. In 1552 he conquered and sacked Kazan (the famous St. . instigated by Sophia despite her confinement to Novodevichiy. still on tour. tried to improve the manners of the court.Back To Top The Romanovs (1613-1825) For the first few generations. leaving Peter in sole possession of the throne. they launched a coup d'etat. died in 1676 Peter’s brother Feodor became Tsar. the Romanovs were happy to maintain the status quo in Russia. The family of Peter's mother succeeded in having him chosen over his mentally retarded brother Ivan to be Tsar. replaced the church patriarchy with a holy synod answerable to himself. In 1698. Peter's return to Russia hit the country like a hurricane. restrictions. Rather than taking up residence and rule in Moscow. He banned traditional Muscovite dress for all men. with both Peter and Ivan placed under the regency of Ivan's elder sister Sophia. and introduced a hundred other reforms. his response was to embark on a Grand Tour of Europe. but no sooner was he established than the Ivan's family struck back. she was defeated and confined to Novodevichiy Convent. Peter the Great decided to change all of that. He amassed a considerable body of knowledge on western European industrial techniques and state administration. but they did very little to bring Russia up to speed with the rapid changes in economic and political life that were taking place elsewhere in Europe. They continued to centralize power. When his father. introduced military conscription. just as Peter was to come of age. In 1703 he transferred the capital from Moscow to a new city to be built from . The following day he began his program to recreate Russia in the image of Western Europe by personally clipping off the beards of his nobles. and became determined to modernize the Russian state and to westernize its society. Peter the Great Peter was his father's youngest son and the child of his second wife. simplified the alphabet. He spent about two years there. Sophia attempted another coup--this time. established technical schools. Tsar Alexis. In 1689. Gaining the support of the Kremlin Guard. Six years later Ivan died. but his poor health brought an early death in 1682. which resulted in a joint Tsarship. changed his title from Tsar to Emperor. however. Peter received news of yet another rebellion by the Kremlin Guard. not only meeting monarchs and conducting diplomacy but also travelling incognito and even working as a ship's carpenter in Holland. He returned. defeated the coup attempt and hung all of the rebels. changed the calendar. and novelties. scratch on the Gulf of Finland. and he remains one of the most controversial figures in Russian history. Being a bright personality with a strong sense of determination she joined the Russian Orthodox Church. at tremendous human and material cost. Peter himself died in 1725. but both of these reforms were financed at the expense of the peasantry. and it was not until the reign of Catherine the Great that his desire to make Russia into a great European power was in fact achieved. St. Certainly he modernized Russia's military and its administrative structure. Catherine the Great The future Catherine the Great was born a German princess in one of the tiny German states. After Peter's death Russia went through a great number of rulers in a distressingly short time. but turned out to be a powerful and enlightened ruler of the vast Russian Empire. who were increasingly forced into serfdom. Over the next nine years. it is questionable whether his reforms resulted in significant improvements to the lives of his subjects. Many of Peter's reforms failed to take root in Russia. learned the . Although he was deeply committed to making Russia a powerful new member of modern Europe. the heir to the Russian throne (the future Emperor Peter III). In 1745 she was married to prince Carl Peter Ulrich. Petersburg was created. none of whom had much of an opportunity to leave a lasting impression. as well as its territory in Eastern and Central Europe.Russian language and by doing a lot of reading acquired a brilliant education. Catherine became strikingly conservative and increasingly hostile to criticism of her policies. she was succeeded by her son Paul I. . founded academies. Although Catherine did in fact have many lovers. From 1789 until her death. When Catherine the Great died in 1796. In June 1762 she took an active part in a coup against her husband Emperor Peter III. Paul was succeeded by his son Alexander I. and corresponded with the French Encyclopedists. some of them trusted advisors and confidants. Diderot. One notable effect of this reversal was that. Catherine was also an enthusiastic patron of the arts. further increasing central control over the provinces. while Catherine became Russia's ruler. Catherine went on to become the most powerful sovereign in Europe. commissioned buildings all overRussia. including Voltaire. and libraries. Russia's influence in European affairs. were increased and expanded. Catherine ultimately contributed to the increasingly distressing state of the peasantry in Russia. stories alleging her to have had an excessive sexual appetite are unfounded. She continued Peter the Great's reforms of the Russian state. Paul's reign lasted only five years and was by all accounts a complete disaster. With the onset of the French Revolution. she reversed many of the liberal reforms of her early reign. who is remembered mostly for having been the ruler of Russia during Napoleon Bonaparte's epic Russian Campaign. like Peter the Great. and d'Alembert. journals. He was overthrown and soon killed "in an accident". She built and founded the Hermitage Museum. Having waited until mid-October to depart. Napoleon began his fatal Russian campaign. Napoleon ordered his troops to begin the march home. . the two armies met at Borodino Field. prompting the citizens of Moscow to begin a massive and panicked exodus. and the march was five hundred miles. Instead. devastating the land as they fell back and harassing the flanks of the French. and his force began to decline.Napolean’s Invasion In June of 1812. in the midst of an unusually early and especially cold winter. food was almost non-existent. hunger. Napoleon enteredRussia at the head of the largest army ever seen. a meager comfort in the face of the oncoming winter. Having gathered nearly half a million soldiers. Because the route south was blocked by Kutuzov's forces (and the French were in no shape for a battle) the retreat retraced the long. fires broke out in the city that night. Napoleon's massive supply lines were stretched ever thinner. When Napoleon's army arrived on September 14. devastated route of the invasion. they found a city depopulated and bereft of supplies. much worse. the French Army had been reduced by more than two thirds from fatigue. The Russians. with winter closing in and the French army only 70 miles (110 km) from the city. 108. they began a defensive campaign of strategic retreat. its internal tensions began to increase. By September. and the invasion of Russia was an attempt to force Tsar Alexander I to submit once again to the terms of a treaty that Napoleon had imposed upon him four years earlier. and he withdrew his forces. from France as well as all of the vassal states of Europe. without having engaged in a single pitched battle. and raids by Russian forces. As the summer wore on. a landmark in the history of the destructive potential of warfare. Ten thousand men survived. and on September 7. Nonetheless. and by the next day the French were lacking shelter as well. Yet even as Russia emerged more powerful than ever from the Napoleonic era. desertion. Moscow would be Napoleon's in a matter of weeks. The Tsar insisted upon an engagement. under Marshal Kutuzov.000 men had died--but neither side had gained a decisive victory. After waiting in vain for Alexander to offer to negotiate. Virtually all of continental Europewas under his control. the exhausted French army soon found itself in the midst of winter--in fact. The campaign ensured Napoleon's downfall and Russia's status as a leading power in post-Napoleonic Europe. it was clear that unless the Russians engaged the French Army in a major battle. Cossacks attacked stragglers and isolated units. Temperatures soon dropped well below freezing. could not realistically hope to defeat him in a direct confrontation. Kutuzov realized that any further defense of the city would be senseless. To make matters much. By the end of the day. . Alexander II. By the time of Catherine the Great. Attempts by the lower classes to gain more freedom provoked fears of anarchy. Serfdom. and . its inventor. as this latter system was known. both of these relationships were under attack. the Russian Tsars enjoyed virtually autocratic rule over their nobles. he abolished serfdom. Nicholas' successor. a group of young. They failed utterly. seemed by contrast to be amenable to reform. though the emancipation didn't in fact bring on any significant change in the condition of the peasants. reformist military officers attempted to force the adoption of a constitutional monarchy in Russia by preventing the accession of Nicholas I. In 1861. its political system experienced even greater strain. As the country became more industrialized. and Nicholas became the most reactionary leader in Europe. who by this time had been reduced to a state closer to slavery than to peasantry. the Russian Tsars had followed a fairly consistent policy of drawing more political power away from the nobility and into their own hands. However. By the nineteenth century.The Path to Revolution (1825-1920) Since the reign of Ivan the Terrible. This centralization of authority in the Russian state had usually been accomplished in one of two ways--either by simply taking power from the nobles and braving their opposition (Ivan the Terrible was very good at this). had increased steadily in Russia from the time of Ivan the Terrible. In the Decembrist revolt in 1825. or by compensating the nobles for decreased power in government by giving them greater power over their land and its occupants. they had in a sense purchased this power by granting those nobles virtually autocratic power over the serfs. and the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway (constructed from 1891-1905) linked the European Russia with its new eastern territories. and his government became more reactionary than ever. took place right on Russia's western doorstep. and Nicholas countered it with increased repression. then called Petrograd. the increasing Russian presence in the far east provoked the hostility of Japan. it was at least remote.the government remained extremely conservative. Russia had expanded its territory and its power considerably over the nineteenth century. As Russia became more industrialized. united under the Social Democratic party. To make matters worse. the Social Democrats split into two camps--the radical Bolsheviks (“bolshe” means bigger) and the comparatively moderate Menshiviks (“menshe” means smaller). In January of 1905. No fool. and soon suffered an economic collapse. It was soon clear that Nicholas possessed no support. The foundation of the port cities of Vladivostok and Port Arthur there had opened up profitable avenues for commerce. Nicholas attempted to reverse the new freedoms. that had forced Nicholas to accept reforms in 1905. . and the garrison there mutinied. Riots broke out in St. however. The industrialization of the major western cities and the development of the Batu oil fields had brought together large concentrations of Russian workers. Workers’ soviets were set up. and Russia experienced a series of defeats that dissolved the tenuous support held by Nicholas' already unpopular government. Petersburg. After the war with Japan was brought to a close. including most notably a constitution and a parliament. Michael renounced his claim the next day. another disastrous war once again brought on a crisis. The power of the reform movement was founded on a new and powerful force that entered Russian politics. and it had acquired extensive territory on the Pacific coast. or Duma. At the same time. In 1912. and they soon began to organize into local political councils. In 1894 Nicholas II acceded to the throne. the inadequacies of autocratic Tsarist rule became increasingly apparent. and the Duma approved the establishment of a Provisional Government to attempt to restore order in the capital. the Japanese attacked. Unprepared militarily or industrially. the workers and soldiers had had enough. If the Russo-Japanese war had been costly and unpopular. It was in large part the power of the soviets. The First World War. larger. By February of 1917. Its borders extended to Afghanistan and China. Nicholas was forced to grant concessions to the reformers. or soviets (“soviet” means council or advice). the country suffered demoralizing defeats. and far more complicated. suffered severe food shortages. and on March 2 he abdicated the throne in favor of his brother Michael. and his ministers were almost uniformly reactionaries. He was not the most competent of political leaders. By the twentieth century conditions were ripe for a serious convulsion. Popular discontent gained strength. In 1914. led by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin. they stormed the Winter Palace and deposed the Kerensky government. On October 25. In the meanwhile. For the next three years the country was devastated by civil strife. Petersburg and Moscow. Back To Top . They succeeded in taking Russia out of the war (though on very unfavorable terms). For the next 9 months.The Provisional Government set up by the Duma attempted to pursue a moderate policy. unsuccessfully attempted to establish its authority. they were by no means in control of the country as a whole. first under Prince Lvov and then under Alexandr Kerensky. the Provisional Government. However. but within months civil war broke out throughout Russia. until by 1920 the Bolsheviks had finally emerged victorious. Although the Bolsheviks enjoyed substantial support in St. it was unwilling to endorse the most pressing demand of the soviets--an immediate end to the war. calling for a return to order and promising reform of worker's rights. the Bolsheviks gained increasing support from the ever more frustrated soviets. allowing the young Soviet government to consolidate its political position and rebuild the country's infrastructure. state-run farms. destroyed. By the latter part of the decade. to be replaced by an economic plan dictated from the top. The NEP was scrapped. Industrial development was pushed along at breakneck speed. Agricultural lands were collectivized. His New Economic Policy. Lenin's death in 1924 was followed by an extended and extremely divisive struggle for power in the Communist Party. Stalin purged all opposition to himself within the party as well as all opposition to party policy in the country. By the end of the 1930s. Futurism. brought about a period of relative prosperity. Religion was violently repressed. as churches were closed. developing the radical new styles ofConstructivism. there was a widespread sense of optimism and opportunity. or NEP. Joseph Stalin had emerged as the victor. Lenin decided at its end that a partial return to a market economy would help the country recover from the destruction of the previous three years. and Suprematism. the Soviet Union had become a country in which life was more strictly regulated than ever before. creating large. and production was almost entirely diverted from consumer products to capital equipment. or converted to other uses. Although the Bolsheviks had maintained complete control of the economy during the civil war. Experimentation had ended.The Soviet Era The first few years of Soviet rule were marked by an extraordinary outburst of social and cultural change. and the radical energy of the Russian Avant-Garde was replaced by the solemn grandeur of Soviet realism. and discipline was the rule of the day. Although the country still faced enormous challenges. This was also the period during which the Russian Avant-Garde reached its height. and he immediately set the country on a much different course. . Art and literature were placed under much tighter control. had become the next prominent Soviet leader. Under the leadership of Nikita Khruschev. and advanced to within a few hundred miles of Moscow. many of the repressive policies that he had instituted were dismantled. As the Cold War got underway. Khruschev was permitted to quietly retire. In a notable break with historical traditions. Petersburg (having been renamed once again as Leningrad). a relieving force managed to encircle the attackers and compel the surrender of the entire force. it had gained considerable territory and now ranked as one of the two great world powers along with the United States. as general secretary of the Communist party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). Stalin remained in power until 1953. the Soviet Union emerged from World War II considerably stronger than it had been before the war. the Soviets were caught by surprise by the invasion of June 1941. and in 1964 he was ousted. From that point onward. Although the country suffered enormous devastation and lost more than twenty million lives. agricultural failures produced widespread famine.With the outbreak of the Second World War. the Soviet Union found itself unprepared for the conflict. Political purges had stripped the military of much of its experienced leadership. Leonid Brezhnev. but in the summer of 1942 the Germans launched a new invasion against the southern front in an attempt to gain control of the rail center of Stalingrad on the Volga and the vital Caucasus oil fields. By the end of the year. political controls were to some degree relaxed. His tenure was marked by a determined emphasis on domestic stability and an aggressive . However. when he died of a cerebral hemorrhage. Berlin fell. Although its non-aggression pact with Germany (1939) served for a while to forestall an attack by Hitler. and cultural life experienced a brief period of revival. Almost immediately after the death of Stalin. the Russian army remained on the attack. Industrial production was once again concentrated on heavy industry. political freedoms were restricted even further. By the 1970s. and on May 2. By 1944 they had driven the Germans back to Poland. an increasing proportion of the Soviet Union's resources were funneled into military projects. marking a decisive turning point in the war. surrounded St. a Russian counteroffensive pushed back the advance on the capital. Despite an overwhelming disadvantage in numbers and inferior weaponry. opposition to Khruschev gradually gained strength within the party. With tremendous effort. and industrial production was slow in converting from civil to military production. Nonetheless. the Russian army succeeded in holding out against the enormous German army. 1945. In November. further exacerbating the quality of life. life in the country continued to suffer. As was the case with the Napoleonic Wars. and another huge wave of purges was carried out. the Germans had seized most of the Soviet territory in the west. the enormous mismanagement of the country's resources. the need for reforms was pressing. fell one after the other in a rapid series of revolutions culminating in the fall of the Berlin wall. neither of whom managed to survive long enough to effect significant changes. The country entered a decade-long period of stagnation. In March of 1985. when Mikhail Gorbachev became general secretary. The governments of the Soviet satellite states in Eastern Europe. Gorbachev's platform for a new Soviet Union was founded on two now-famous terms--glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring). its rigid economy slowly deteriorating and its political climate becoming increasingly pessimistic. subjected to the same rising tide of public criticism. Its own constituent republics began to issue declarations of independence. For some peculiar reason. the first open elections since 1917 were held. Radical reform leaders emerged. Glasnost. corruption. Backed into a corner on Chernobyl.foreign policy. and prominent dissidents like Andrei Sakharov were able to voice their views for the first time. Gorbachev countered with the dramatic removal of all controls on reporting--and at that point the fresh air really began to howl. and a host of other problems and grievances were raised. the Soviet Union itself began to unravel. Soviet troops were withdrawn from Afghanistan. lost some credibility right at the outset when it was discovered in April 1986 that the government had waited several days before admitting to the infamous nuclear disaster at Chernobyl--a reactor explosion that had thrown radioactive material over a wide area of the country. Early in 1989. For the first time in decades. including the new Moscow Party chief Boris Yeltsin. however. Like Khruschev. Yeltsin was elected chairman of the Parliament. and generally allowing for a little fresh air. In 1990. the problems of the country became subjects for open public discussion. relaxing control of the economy. In the spring of 1989. Restructuring began in earnest. with a vigorous housecleaning of the bureaucracy and a significant investigation into corruption. opening some room for new ideas. When Breshnev died in 1982 he was succeeded as general secretary first by Yuri Andropov. head of the KGB. but it also found that it wasn't any longer in much a position to do anything but try to move with the flow of events. the unpopularity of the Afghan war. allowing voters a novel choice of more than one candidate for seats in the Congress of People's Deputies. Poverty. and then by Konstantin Chernenko. Large scale strikes shattered the Communist Party's . In the Russian Republic. taking a lead in the independence movement. the government found that it was the target of most of the criticism. Gorbachev intended to revitalize the Soviet economy by loosening up a bit on social control. After three days the attempted coup had collapsed. Gorbachev resigned. The next morning the coup leaders issued the announcement that Gorbachev had resigned and that a state of emergency had been declared. criticism of Gorbachev intensified. On August 18. was the overwhelming victor in June elections for the Russian presidency. and the crime rate began to skyrocket. failed to satisfy either side. food shortages became a problem. Gorbachev. the radical reform movements became strong enough to openly defy the government. to be replaced by a Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). on the other hand. After he refused to support the imposition of military law. but they were met with overwhelming popular protest led by Yeltsin and the other presidents of the republics. Yeltsin. the head of state was placed under house arrest. The economy worsened. A group led by Defense Minister Dmitry Yazov and Vice President Gennady Yanayev detained Gorbachev at his country retreat in the Crimea. Gorbachev was reinstated.traditional claim to be the representative of workers' rights. Military units were dispatched to enforce the authority of the new government. In the press. Demonstrations against the government and the party intensified. caught between popular demands for more radical reform and party demands for the re-imposition of strict control. and on midnight of December 31. By the end of the year the Soviet Union had been voted out of existence. the Soviet flag atop the Kremlin was replaced by the Russian tricolour. party conservatives made a desparate bid for power. The following summer. only to realize that his position had become completely obsolete. . On December 25. qualified specialists and know-how has been lost. Lithuania. and find new markets to adjust to the new post-Cold War and post-Soviet era. and it was often impossible for them to quickly retool equipment. Both politics and economics were radically changed inRussia and the former Soviet Union . severe unemployment. and the loss or reduction of many established social services. In the late 1980s. the military-industrial complex employed at least one of every five adults in the Soviet Union . In the process of conversion an enormous body of experience. and the current situation in Chechnya are not discussed here. countries of central Asia. In some regions of Russia . The first major problem facing Russia was the legacy of the Soviet Union 's enormous commitment to the Cold War. life in the former Soviet Union failed to improve for the vase majority of its people. (The comparable U. unfortunately resulting in massive inflation and economic collapse in the early 1990s and again in 1998.) The end of the Cold War and the cutback in military spending hit such plants very hard. the Soviet Union devoted a quarter of its gross economic output to the defense sector (at the time most Western analysts believed that this figure was 15 percent). retrain workers.S. Several fundamental problems faced the Soviet Union in its attempt to convert from communism to capitalism. as the plants were sometimes switching from producing hi-tech military equipment to making kitchen utensils. at least half of the workforce was employed in defense plants. Estonia. figures were roughly one-sixteenth of gross national product and about one of every sixteen in the workforce. .Back To Top Post-Communism to the Present **Apology: the breaking off of Latvia. While personal liberties took a turn for the better following the fall of communism. At the time. including health care. When the Soviet Union collapsed and the economic ties were severed. Roughly half of Russia 's cities had only one large industrial enterprise (ie: glass manufacturing). After so many years of working under a system that rewarded obedience over creativity and did not tolerate questions or suggestions for improvement. the production in the whole country dropped by more than 50%. You first walk up to the meat counter. One person takes the receipt. Consequently. When you’ve ordered everything. there was the problem of human capital. another puts your meat into a bag for you. . Finally. tell one person what you want. which were the mainstay of employment. educational. the average Soviet worker was not well prepared to work within a market economy. The problem was not that the Soviet population was uneducated. You take the receipt back to the meat counter. and three fourths had no more than four. Thirdly. economic transformation created severe problems in maintaining social welfare since local governments were unable to assume financial responsibility for these functions. for the provision of basic social services. the adjustment has been quite difficult. Since Russian industrial firms were traditionally responsible for a broad range of social welfare functions—building and maintaining housing for their workforces. post-Soviet Russia did not inherit a functioning system of social security and welfare from the USSR . and for packaged things like coffee there are people just standing behind the counter waiting to hand you your items… and this is after the end of communism!). Understandably. recreational. Literacy was nearly universal. you go to the cashier. and the educational attainment level of the Soviet population was among the highest in the world with respect to science. This process is repeated for other food types that you want to buy. creativity and improvements. They give you a ticket with the price. engineering.A second obstacle had to do with the distribution of workers and resources. and similar facilities— the towns possessing few industrial employers were left heavily dependent on these firms. During communism. and is still in process. most workers needed to radically shift their mindset to encompass a competitive market economy. and technical specialties. They give you a receipt. The system struggled (and still struggles) with concepts such as cost-effectiveness. You pay. and managing health. Thus. However. the need to create employment led to huge inefficiencies and redundancies in the workforce (a favorite example: you go to the store. They ring you up. efficiency. the decrease in production caused tremendous unemployment and underemployment. the economic condition has stabilized and the Russian population has begun to work toward building a new culture that again attempts to define what it is to be Russian. While in the 1980s Russia had suffered from supply shortages. . Careful estimates by the World Bank based on both macroeconomic data and surveys of household incomes and expenditures indicate that whereas 1. but this wealth is distributed primarily in Moscow . communism and now capitalism. was hit further by a financial crash of 1998. throughout the 1990s as imported goods flooded into the country. Russia's turbulent and powerful past is evidenced in the rich and complicated culture that still maintains concepts from imperialism.5 percent of the population was living in poverty (defined as income below the equivalent of $25 per month) in 1988. However.1993 between 39 percent and 49 percent of the population was living in poverty. As of 2004 the average income has risen to more than $100 per month. Stores that had previously stood empty were now stocked with all sorts of goods that no one could afford to buy. The most striking consequence of the economic reform has been the sharp increase in the rates of poverty and inequality. since the late 1990s. by mid. the disparity in income within Russia is now one of the largest in the world. The great paradox of Russia's impressive gains during the early years of the USSR and it's current condition make it a challenging and sometimes frustration culture to understand. and then began to recover in 1999-2000. from $72 to $32. the fall of Tsarism.Economic depression and social decay Russia 's economy sank into deep depression by the mid-1990s. which have grown sharply since the end of the Soviet era. and the Russian Civil War. Average per capita monthly income had fallen. Russians could no longer afford most goods. Russia's economic decline is far more severe and more protracted than was the Great Depression that nearly paralyzed world capitalism following 1929 and about half as severe as the catastrophic drop borne out of the consequence of the First World War. in dollar terms.