With General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev’s introduction of Perestroika in 1986 and Glasnost in 1988, Soviet citizens were able to experience new freedoms for the first time in centuries. A few months later, Gorbachev began replacing old Communist leaders throughout the Soviet…
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Week 9 Posts
Blogpost: The City of Tol’iatti
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The city of Tol’iatti was conceptualized to be an ideological representation of Leninist Communism. While the city was being constructed, the automobile plant for the VAZ company was being constructed on the river nearby. Both construction sites were to be…
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Comrades' Corner, Week 8 Posts
Blogpost: The Siberian City of Akademgorodok
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By 1956 De–Stalinization was in full swing, and two Soviet intellectuals, M. A. Lavrentiev and S. A. Khristianovich, imagined a “City of Science” where Soviet scientists would be free to pursue their interests without fear of persecution by Soviet authorities. Less than a year later,…
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Week 7 Posts
Blogpost: The Massacre at Katyn
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During the early summer of 1940, the Soviet Union’s secret police began to covertly execute thousands of Polish nationals. The pinnacle of these executions took place on March 5, 1940 near the Katyn Forest. Under direct orders of Joseph Stalin,…
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Special Interest
The Soviet Zoological Experiment
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In the mid 19th century, three biologists from the Moscow State University established the Society for Acclamation of Plants and Animals. Near central Moscow, the society began construction for the Moscow Zoological Garden. Widely touted as an open air museum, the garden was…
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Week 5 Posts
Blogpost: The Subjugation of Central Asian Soviet States
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On October 16, 1924, the Government of the RSFSR passed a law in pursuance of its struggle against “traditional” offenses in the Autonomous Republics and Regions. “Traditional” offenses included abduction, Kalym, forced marriage, polygamy, and rape. These offenses were often…
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Week 3 Posts
Blogpost: Retreat of the Russian Army
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With the outbreak of World War I throughout Europe, the Russian Empire was forced into yet another war. Fortunately for the Tsar, the common people were untied as a wave of nationalism swept the country – quelling protests against the…
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Special Interest
The Russaki within the Revolution
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For centuries, the Kussaki, or Germans, have been a staple of the Russian community. By 1914, there were nearly 2.4 million Germans living within the Russian Empire. As the Russian Empire was trying to recover from the disastrous Crimean and…
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Red Star, Week 2 Posts
Blogpost: The Rise of the Maximalist
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As the Russo-Japanese war was in full swing, unrest in Russia was mounting due to repeated loses at the hands of the Japanese. By, January 1905, revolts began to appear across the country in opposition to the war, and by…
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Greatest Hits, Red Star, Week 1 Posts
Blogpost: The Turkmen of Late Imperial Russia
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As the Russian Empire expanded, Central Asia increasingly came under Russian control. Much of Turkestan in Central Asia was colonized by Russian forces in 1865, which resulted in the formation of the Turkestan Oblast. The territory of Turkestan would see new…
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