A Timeline of Russian History

9th century – Slavic people from Ukraine and Belarus migrate into Russia, founding Veliky Novgorod, converting to Christianity, and adopting the Cyrillic alphabet

10-15th centuries – Golden age of Kievan Rus continues until the Mongol descendants of Ghenghis Khan invade

17th century – Time of troubles 1603-1613: the Swedes and Poles invade. Russia acquires new Siberian territory. First Romanov is elected a Tsar

1703 – Peter the Great founds St Petersburg, which becomes the new Russian capital in 1712

1725 – A princess from Germany marries into the Romanovs, becoming Catherine the Great (1762-1796). Famous for progressive reform, infamous for her lovers

1812 – Russia defeats Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon wanted to torture Czar Alexander I for the way that he lead the Continental System, but Alexander knew Napoleon wanted war and instead of attacking head on with his army, Alexander and his troops retreated deeper and deeper into Russian territory, eventually leading Napoleon and his troops into a trap

1825 – Decembrists uprising: soldiers and nobles revolt against Czar Nicholas, who executes and exiles the dissenters

1894 – Nicholas II takes over as Czar and during his reign, Imperial Russia went from being one of the greatest powers in the world to an economic disaster

1905 – Bloody Sunday: national uprising against Tsarist rule. Prompts the establishment of a national parliament (Duma) in 1906

1914 – The first World War erupted between Russia, Austria, and Germany. Eventually a number of other nations, including the United States, joined the war effort, which became one of the most extreme conflicts in history.

1916 – Wild-eyed, womanizing Rasputin, a Siberian peasant monk, who has the Czarina Alexandra under his spell, is murdered by Prince Felix Yusupov in St Petersburg

1917 – Czar Nicholas II and the Russian government were removed from power by Russian revolutionaries.

1918 – The last ruling family of Russia, including Czar Nicholas, his wife, and their five children were executed.

1922-1940 – Under Stalin, the Soviet Union (USSR) becomes a world power but Stalin’s regime of camps and purges throws Russia into terror

1941-1945 – The USSR and its allies defeat Nazi Germany in WWII, known in the USSR as The Great Patriotic War.

1953 – Stalin dies

1959 – U.S. President Richard Nixon and Nikita Khrushchev, Secretary of the Communist party, argued the merits of communism and capitalism. This discussion is known as the Kitchen Debate.

1961 – The first Russian astronaut, Yuri Gagarin, was sent into space.

1985 – New leader Gorbachev’s reforms of perestroika (restructuring) and glasnost (openness) improve Western relations

1991-1999 – Yeltsin becomes the first elected president of the new Russian Federation in 1991. Economic crisis and instability ensues and war with Chechnya results in numerous victims

1999-2009 – Native St Petersburger Vladimir Putin takes over and is credited for re-establishing the rule of law during his eight years in office. Russia becomes more stable and prosperous, thanks to gas and oil exports. Putin’s popularity knows no boundaries. Another local, Dmitry Medvedev is elected President in March 2008 with overwhelming support

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This entry was posted on May 3, 2010 at 8:43 am.

Posted in the All About Russia category