Review of Russia

Peter The Great

• Peter the Great- modernizes Russia, begins its rise to level of world power

• Gets a new key seaport

• Focuses on culture,

• westernizes the country

Catherine The Great-1729-1762

• Considered “enlightened despot”

• Russia becomes a world power- expands territory westward and southward absorbing various countries,

Poland, Crimea…

• Initiated some

enlightenment ideals

Alexander II-1855-1881

• Not as successful

• Alexander II forced to make widespread reforms – abolish serfdom, taxation, crime and punishment….

• Not enough- workers want more- radicals step in

• More capitalistic, industrializes

Nicholas II

• Last Tsar/Czar of Russia- Coup d’etat by Bolsheviks -overthrow him

• Son is a hemophiliac, daughter Anastasia• Rasputin evil doer- exploits son’s sickness• Withdraws from WWI• Failure of Russo-Japanese war- major loss-

1st time Asian nation beat a European one• October Revolution 1917

Bolsheviks

• Led by Vladimir Lenin

• Overthrow the Czar- bloody revolt

• Reds v. white, Trotsky- reds win

• Communism in theory- all equal- no social classes- in practice dictatorships

• Based on Karl Marx’s Theory- Communist Manifesto- “Workers of the world unite”

• Proletariat = working class

Communist Russia

• Totalitarian/dictatorship state- secret police, violence, death- keep control

• Control all information to people

• Communism- gov’t controls means of production and distribution of resources

Stalin

• 5 year plans- quotas must be met for production- agrarian or industrial

• Takes over after Lenin dies

• Ruthless ruler- KGB secret police– “enemies of the state”

• Ally of the US during WWII- Big Three at Yalta conference- but we don’t trust him

• Kills more people than Hitler

Cold War

• Post WWII- Cold War- high tensions b/w Allies and the USSR/Soviet Union

• Space race- and arms race

• M.A.D. – mutual assured destruction- competition over nuclear weapon arsenals

• Khrushchev takes over after Stalin- Cuban Missile Crisis w/Cuba-1961

80s- Mikhail Gorbachev-

• Glasnost- easing of tensions w/the west

• 1989 Berlin Wall comes down

• 1991- Communism in Russia falls apart-Perestroika- economic reforms