The first East Slavic state, Kievan Rus', adopted Christianity from the Byzantine Empire in 988 and Slavic culture eventually became the Russian culture.
In the 12th century the Principality of Muscovy was founded. It survived through 200 years of Mongol domination (13th-15th centuries).
It gradually conquered all surrounding principalities and in the 17th century Romanov’s Dynasty seized more territories throughout Siberia to the Pacific ocean. Tzar Peter the Great (ruled 1682-1725) continued expansion policy around the Baltic Sea shore and founded the Russian Empire which expanded territories in Europe and Asia in the 19th century.
Russia’s first major defeat was in World War I in the early 20th century. The subsequent Revolution of 1905 caused general chaos, collapse of the empire and new state reforms. The Russian Empire was completely destroyed in 1917 by Bolshevik’s Revolution, when the Communists under Vladimir Lenin seized power and established the USSR.
The subsequent years of Socialism were a tough experience: Stalin’s purges, devastating World War II, slow recovery of Soviet economy, Communist domination, Brezhnev’s stagnation. After Mikhail Gorbachev’s (1985-91) perestroika (restructuring) which galvanized glasnost (openness), the USSR collapsed being split into Russia and 14 other independent CIS and Baltic republics.
Russia has lived through one more Coup and severe economic crisis during presidency of Boris Yeltsin. President Vladimir Putin came to power at the turn of the century to inspire some hope for the changes towards economic growth.
|
