Carbon Neutral 100%
Destinations
Top destinations of the moment in Europe
  • Tour Ideas
Trip Types
  • Travel Style
  • Interests and Activities
  • Tour Ideas by Month
  • Continents and Regions
An update from Evaneos
Russia

Revolutions and violence: the history of Russia

It can be useful to learn more about the history of Russia before a visit to the country. Everything began in 862, when a Viking, King Rourik, founded the first Russian dynasty...

Russia, an independent absolute monarchy

Throughout the ninth century, the Vikings left Scandinavia to colonise the European part of today's Russia. The different peoples of the Russian territory united around the Christian faith. In 1240, Kiev fell into the hands of the Tatar-Mongol invaders: a part of Russia belonged to the Mongol empire, which at the time covered a vast part of the Asian continent. Tsar Ivan III definitively freed Russia of the Mongolian yoke.

In 1613, Michel Romanov founded the Romanov dynasty, which reigned until the October Revolution. The grandson of Michel Romanov, Peter the Great, transformed Russia into an important European power. Catherine the Great, who reigned from 1762 to 1796, seized Crimea, a part of the Ukraine and eastern Poland. At that time Russia became an absolute monarchy. Under the reign of Alexander I, Russia resisted the attacks of Napoleon. Under Alexander II, Russia began its industrial development and started the construction of the famous Trans-Siberian Railway.

The October Revolution and the creation of the USSR

The regime was weakened by the First World War and troubles broke out: a democratic republic was established and Nicolas II was sent into exile. The Bolsheviks, a radical wing of the Social Democratic Labour Party led by Lenin and Leon Trotsky, seized power. Lenin took power during the "October Revolution". In 1922, it was decided to unify all the Soviet republics within the USSR and to control the economy.

When Lenin died in 1924, Stalin succeeded him and banished Leon Trotsky. Stalin introduced the collectivisation of agriculture and economic planning. He led his country under a reign of terror. The USSR was among the winners of World War Two. It then attempted to impose a communist world order, with China for an ally. The Soviet Union launched in an aggressive policy toward non-communist countries. In 1948, the Berlin blockade definitively divided the city in two.

Russian church

The terrible Cold War

A coalition of western nations created NATO against the countries of the East. Stalin died in 1953 and Nikita Khrushchev completed the creation of an economic community in Eastern Europe. Relations between Eastern Europe and Western Europe were extremely tense: this is known as the Cold War. 

In 1964, Khrushchev was forced to resign and was replaced by Leonid Brezhnev. This latter signed the first disarmament treaty, SALT II, with Jimmy Carter, president of the United States. But the invasion of Afghanistan by Soviet troops in 1979 threw oil on the fire. The fight between the Eastern and Western blocks was exemplified by the respective boycotts of the Moscow Olympics in 1980 and the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984.

The rebirth of Russia

Gorbachev was the first leader to launch a policy of openness and reform. He limited electoral mandates to 10 years and established a system of democratic elections. In 1991, Boris Yeltsin was elected the first president of the Republic of Russia. A new constitution was voted.

In 2000, following the wars against the Chechens who demanded their independence, Boris Yeltsin resigned and Vladimir Putin was appointed president. The economic situation improved significantly and foreign investors began to take an interest in Russia. In 2008, Dmitry Medvedev was elected president and Vladimir Putin became head of government. 

78 contributions