main ideas regarding russia absence of warm water ports, diverse ethnic groups russian empire...
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Main Ideas regarding Russia
Absence of warm water ports, Diverse ethnic groups
Russian Empire 1500’s, Westernization 1700’s
Communist Rule – 1917-1991 Command economy
Economic collapse ends Soviet Union (USSR) 1991
Difficult move to democracy and a market economy.
Siberia• Vast land east of
the Ural Mts.
• Spans 77% of Russia’s land area, but only 30% of its population
Home to most of Russia’s natural resources
The Russian Empire dates to the 1500’s when Ivan the Terrible conquered the lands around Moscow and much of present day Russia.
In the 1700’s, Peter the Great wanted to move Russia closer to the West and become more European and industrialized.
He built a new capital on the Baltic and named it St. Petersburg.
The Winter Palace
The Kremlin
The Russian peasants, or serfs, lived a poor, miserable life while the nobility lived a life of luxury.
The last of the Russian Czars (emperor) was Nicholas II. His disastrous entry into WWI cost millions of Russian lives.
He was overthrown by the Russian Revolution, after which the communists came to power.
What happened to the royal family, particularly daughter Anastasia?
The founder and first leader of the Soviet Union was Vladimir Lenin.
The goal of Soviet Communism was to “make everyone equal.” The government would provide your needs.
The symbol of the Soviet Union was the hammer and sickle, representing the factory workers and the farmers.
He was followed by Joseph Stalin (who eventually killed more people than Hitler) who ruled until 1953.
Stalin was the architect of the Soviet Cold War.
The Cold War was a competition between the USA and USSR in economics, space, military and world dominance.
Legacies of the command system were the government controlled Five Year Plans.
The government determined what factories made and what farmers grew.
With the impending collapse of the Soviet Communist economy, the Soviets eased their grip on Eastern Europe and reached out to the West.
The Soviet Union
1917-1991
After Soviet Union collapsed, it was replaced by 15 countries, including the Russian Federation.
While every country in eastern Europe prospered with the fall of communism and a switch to a market economy, the Russian economy actually got worse.
WHY?
Organized crime and official corruption.
The first McDonalds opened in the Soviet Union in the 1980’s. It changed the way Russians did business.
Thousands of Russians stood in long lines to spend a day’s pay for a Big Mac and a Coke.
Under the Soviet communists, women’s rights were guaranteed, but opportunities for all Russians were limited.
Under a free market economy, many Russian women used their athletic skills to build fortunes in the West.
One of Russia’s most famous cultural icons is its “onion dome” architecture. What would be the geographic reason for this particular design?
Russia is one of the largest producers of oil and natural gas in the world.
How has geography hindered Russia’s efforts to sell their resources?
Trouble with Resources…
Problem: Rugged terrain, harsh climate, and poor infrastructure makes it difficult for Russia
to extract & transport resources
Continentality
The further from the ocean, the more extreme temperature changes.
Where are some of the coldest areas in the USA in relation to the ocean?