The Chernobyl nuclear accident is perhaps the most well-known and worst nuclear accident to have ever occurred. While many factors contributed to the blast, the most interesting aspect of Chernobyl is the way the Soviet Government reported on the … Continue reading →
Soviets to the Rescue? The U.S.S.R. in Afghanistan
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“The Soviet contingent will be completely withdrawn from Afghanistan when the factors that made this action necessary are no longer present.” This quote appeared in a Pravda article on December 31st, 1979 and is an excellent example of how … Continue reading →
Communist Contradicton?
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The Moral Code of the Builder of Communism was crafted as a guide for fully implementing communism in the Soviet Union. Approved by the 22nd Communist Party Congress in 1961, the Code was meant to help transition from the … Continue reading →
Crimean Conundrums
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World War II is relevant to the current situation in Ukraine because it solidified Soviet influence in the Crimean Peninsula. After liberating the peninsula from 2 years of Nazi rule, the Soviets deported many remaining non-ethnic Russians, such … Continue reading →
A Chink in the Armor: Revolution in Hungary
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When examining the history of the Soviet Union, it is easy forget the U.S.S.R. was technically just a conglomerate of multiple ‘autonomous’ nations, bound together by the Warsaw Pact. While Stalin was largely able to manage this large union … Continue reading →
The Start of a Massacre; The Assassination of Kirov
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Image from http://russiapedia.rt.com/prominent-russians/politics-and-society/sergeykirov/ Stalin, a force and leader to be feared since the start of his rule, had not yet shown the true colors of his brutality by the early 1930s. This would all change with the start of … Continue reading →
” All around me there is treachery, cowardice, and deceit. ” The Abdication of Nicholas II
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Image of Nicholas II’s Decree of Abdiction, March 17th 1917 By the morning of March 17th, 1917 the Russian Social-Democratic Party had finally forced the hand of the Tsar. After staying the night in Pskov, away from the riots that had overtaken many cities in Russia, Nicholas II came to decision that only his(…)
Sticking it to Stolypin: Conflicting Views
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Pyotr Stolypin was a major political player during the last decade of the Russian Empire. He rose to power on the back of the Russian Revolution of 1905, and tended to side with the Octoberists, a slightly more conservative group that agreed to back down if the government followed the October Manifesto it had made(…)
The Bashkir Switchman and the Trans-Siberian Railway
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The Trans-Siberian Railway, picture above, was a massive industrial project undertaken during the end of the 19th Century and completed in the early 20th Century. When first announced, I am sure the first problem that came to mind was the vast expanse the railway would cover. Russia was and remains the largest country in the(…)