Slide 1
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Geography: Unit 5
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Slide 2
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Worlds largest country
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Home to 280 million
◦ Baltic Sea to Pacific Ocean
◦ 1/6 of worlds land mass
◦ Approx. 150 million live West of the Urals.
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11 Time Zones
89 Separate provinces
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8½ million square miles
15 Republics
Over 100 different ethnic groups
Population Triangle: St. Petersburg, Moscow & Rostov Na Don
Russians have a Slavic heritage
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Russian Orthodox religion
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◦ w/separate governments
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◦ “Slavic” means Slave of the Viking
◦ Breakoff of Eastern Orthodox (Greece)
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Slide 3
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Russia through its many years of expansion has gathered in a wide
variety of people and cultures
Russians make up the majority of the population (80%)
70 other cultural peoples live in Russia
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◦ Including Finnish, Turkish, and Mongolian people
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Slide 4
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Many religions are present throughout Russia
Early on, the Eastern Orthodox Christianity spread through Russia
As USSR spread many more religions were included in the society
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Judaism was also an important religion but has declined due to
persecution
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◦ Buddhism and Islam
◦ Emigrated to U.S. and Israel
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Slide 5
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Slide 6
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Divided into 4 main areas
◦ West to East
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Northern European Plain
The West Siberian Plain
Central Siberian Plateau
Russian Far East
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Slide 7
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Lowland Area 1,000 miles stretching from Russia's
western border to the Ural Mountains
Contains one of the world most fertile soils
◦ Chernozem –means “black earth”
◦ Making the area a major agricultural region
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More than 75% of the regions 283 million people live
on the plain
◦ 3 of the largest cities in the region
 Moscow (Russia Capitol), St Petersburg, Kiev (Ukraine Capitol)
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Slide 8
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Ural Mountains separate the Northern European and West
Siberian Plain
◦ Ural Mountains are the general dividing line between the Europe
and Asia continent
 Some Geographers consider them one continent which they call Eurasia
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The Siberian Plain lies between the Ural Mountains and the
Yenisey/Yenisei River and Between the shores of the Artic
Ocean and the Altay/Altai Mountains
Plain tilts north and all rivers flow north to Arctic Ocean
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Slide 9
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Area East of Yenisey River
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High plateaus dot the region
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Trans-Siberian Railroad -linked Moscow to the Siberian
port of Vladivostok
◦ Full of uplands and Mountain ranges
◦ Reaching 1,000 – 2,000 feet above sea level
◦ Harsh Climate makes living in region difficult
◦ 5700 miles, 1891-1903 -70,000 workers moved 77 million cubic
feet of earth, cleared 100,000 acres of forest and built bridges
over major rivers
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Slide 10
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Area East of Lena River to the coast
of Pacific
On a plate boundary so area is very
volcanically active
◦ Complex system of Volcanoes runs along
the coast
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Kamchatka Peninsula contains over 120 volcanoes and 20
are still active
Sakhalin and Kuril Islands lie to the south of the peninsula
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◦ Claimed in WWII from Japan
 Still disputed over
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Slide 11
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Full of high mountain ranges, barren uplands,
and semiarid grassland
Major Mountain Ranges include:
◦ The Caucasus Mountains
◦ Tian Shan
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Slide 12
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High mountains that
stretch across the land that
separates the Black and
Caspian Seas
Form a border between
Russia and Transcaucasia
◦ The Republics of Armenia,
Azerbaijan, and Georgia
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Slide 13
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Wall of Mountains
that run along the
southeast border of
Central Asia
◦ Area covering
Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, &
Uzbekistan
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Mountains are so
high that rain or
any moist air
cannot get over so
area is arid and dry
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Slide 14
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Russia and the Republics are home to some of the
world’s longest and strongest rivers
A major drainage basin in the area is the Arctic Basin
◦ The World’s Largest
◦ Drained by 3 major rivers, the Ob, the Yenisey, and the Lena
 Drain an area covering 3 million square miles
 Rivers drain about 1,750,000 cubic feet of water per second to the
Arctic Ocean
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Slide 15
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Largest River on the European Continent
◦ Drains the Caspian Sea Basin
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Starts near Moscow and flows south to the Caspian
Sea
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◦ Journey of 2,300 miles until it arrives at the Caspian Sea
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Carries 60 percent of Russia's river Traffic
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Slide 16
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Russia and the Republics have some of the
largest lakes on the earth
The Caspian Sea
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The Aral Sea
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◦ A large saltwater lake
◦ Stretches 750 miles from north to south
◦ Largest inland Sea
◦ Large saltwater sea
◦ Since the 1960s lost about 87 percent of its water volume
 Extensive irrigation projects took water away from rivers that feed the sea
◦ 2005 Kazakhstan built a dam to separate the north Aral from the south,
have been able to recover the north half of the sea
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Slide 17
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Deepest lake in the world
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One mile from the surface to the bottom
Stretches 400 miles north to south
Holds 20 percent of the world’s fresh water
Has been kept mostly free from pollution
Home to thousands of species of plants and animals
 1,200 are unique to Lake Baikal
 Including the only freshwater seal
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Slide 18
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Abundant supply because of large area
◦ Mismanagement and transportation issues have made them difficult to use
Coal, iron ore, and other major metals fill the area
One of the leading producers of oil and natural gas
One of the worlds largest petroleum deposits around the Caspian
Sea
Russia has major timber
industry
◦ 1/5 of the world’s lumber
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Powerful rivers make it a
huge source of
hydroelectric power
Problem: most the natural
resources are in Siberia
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Slide 19
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First Challenge
◦ Getting to the Resources
 Located in the frigid arctic
and subarctic climate of
Siberia
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Second Challenge
◦ Environmental Impact
 Thermal Pollution
 Destruction of land
 More
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Third Challenge
◦ Lack of Government assistance
 Balance of economic growth
and environmental responsibility
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Slide 20
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Far north tundra rarely grows anything but moss, lichens, & small herbs
Central Siberia contains large forest
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Steppe
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Desert
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◦ The Taiga is the largest forest on earth mainly coniferous (Pine Trees)
◦ Ukraine and Kazakhstan fall into this grassland climate, hot summers & cold winters
◦ Major source of grain for the republics
◦ West and central area contains a large desert
◦ 230,000 square miles
◦ Irrigation of area has caused major environmental problems
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Slide 21
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Siberia
◦ Frozen land, not heavily
populated
◦ Monthly temperatures rarely
rise above 50 Degrees F and
sometimes drop below -90
degrees F
◦ Siberians use frozen rivers
as roads for part of year
◦ Permafrost reaches depths
of 1,500 feet
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Slide 22
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Coping in Siberia-32 million people make their home here. In
Verkhonaysk, temperatures range from –90F in the winter to 94F in the
summer. Ground is frozen hard in parts of Siberia due to permafrost.
War and “General Winter”
◦ 1812-Napoleon reached Moscow only to be forced to retreat with the onset of
winter and the burning of Moscow. 90,000 of Napoleon’s 100,000 troops died on
the retreat though the Russian winter back to France.
◦ 1941 –Hitler suffered similar results as Napoleon
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Slide 23
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Caucasian Mountains
trap warm air so
countries on south
have a sub tropical
climate
Making resorts there
very popular for years
◦ Recently ethnic conflict
has made it dangerous
to travel there
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Slide 24
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History and Culture
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Slide 25
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The beginning of Russia's long
history is tied to migration
◦ Many of the early settlers came
from the surrounding regions
 Mongolia
 China
 Central Asia
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◦ Main group to settle were the Slavs
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Major gathering area was Kiev
◦ In 800 AD became trade center between Mediterranean
and Baltic Sea
◦ Early leaders were Scandinavian traders called Rus (Roos)
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Slide 26
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As trade grew so did the people in the area
◦ Towns started to grow around Kiev
◦ Princes in towns would govern and create the new villages
 Moscow was started by a prince who ordered his people to build a
high wall of dirt around the settlement
 Dirt walls topped with wooden walls
 Created a large fort known as the Kremlin
 Would lay the ground work for protecting Russia's government
buildings for many years
 Churches would eventually be built as immigrants brought Orthodox
or Eastern Christianity to the region
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Slide 27
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1240 Mongols from Central Asia
destroyed Kiev
Took control of the surrounding
area
Used it as a western outpost for
the growing Mongol empire
◦ Didn’t effect the day to day life of
the common people
◦ Life would go on under the Mongols
& States would develop around Kiev
 Including the state of Muscovy, with
its capitol city of Moscow
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Slide 28
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A Muscovy prince who brought
many Slav territory under his
control
◦ Earning the nickname Ivan the Great
◦ Ordered the building of the Kremlin
 Today the Russian government uses
the Kremlin as the headquarters for its
government
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Slide 29
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Ivan IV
◦ Grandson of Ivan The Great
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Declared himself CZAR
◦ Supreme ruler or Emperor,
short for Caesar
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Used extreme force to
expand the territory of
Russia
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Slide 30
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After Ivan the Terrible the
country faced foreign invasion,
economic decline, and social
upheaval
Time Period known as the
Times of Trouble
Romanov family was able to
rise to the throne in 1613 and
tightened their grip on the
country
◦ Created serfs, or an enslaved
workforce, under the control of
the nobility
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Russia would struggle while
Western Europe would flourish
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Slide 31
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Late 1600s
Peter I became Czar of Russia
◦ Determined to modernize Russia to
match standards in Western Europe
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Increased the boundaries of
Russia
Built a strong Military
Created a Sea Port City called
St. Petersburg and made it the
capitol city
◦ Gave Russia a “Window to the West”
◦ Warmest port Russia would have to
that point.
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Slide 32
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Empress Catherine would
rise to the throne not long
after Peter
Continued to Expand
Russia territory
Gained access to a warm
water port on the Black Sea
Moved into western Europe
and brought non-Russian
people under control of
the Romanov family
◦ Also increased the division
between Serfs and Nobility
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Slide 33
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In 1891 Alexander III
became Czar
Expanded Russia into
Siberia by ordering the
Trans-Siberian Railroad
to be built.
◦ 6,000 miles long connecting
Moscow to Vladivostok in
the east
◦ Covers 11 time zones
◦ Opens up Siberia and access
to natural resources
◦ Completed in 1916
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Slide 34
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Forced to Abdicate the
throne
A year later the former Czar
and his family were
murdered
 Anastasia story
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This was the end of czarist
rule in Russia and Europe
and signaled the rise of
Communism in Russia
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Slide 35
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20th Century ◦ 1917: Russian Revolution brings an end
to Romanov Empire (Czarist Russia)
◦ 1917 - 1991: Communist Rule
◦ 1922: Became known as the U.S.S.R.
(Union of Soviet Socialist Republics)
◦ 1945 – 1989 (Post WWII): Cold War
◦ 1991: End of Communism
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◦ 1917 - 1924: Vladimir Lenin is the
first leader of the Soviet Union
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 15 Republics now independent
 Influenced by a book written by German
Karl Marx called “The Communist Manifesto”
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Slide 36
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The death of Nicolas opened the
door for a new group to rise
◦ The Bolsheviks (means majority) were
the communist group that would take
power
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◦ Later this group became the Communist
Party
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Promised “peace, land, and bread”
Withdrew Russia from WWI
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Took control of Industry and food
distribution, and work times
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◦ Lead by Vladimir Ilyich Lenin
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◦ Gave land to Germany
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Slide 37
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Civil war erupted between
the supporters of the
Bolsheviks and the antiBolsheviks
The Red army of the
Bolsheviks was able to win
the war in 1922 and formally
created the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics (USSR)
◦ Also Known As the Soviet Union
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Soviet Union would gain
control of the land lost in
WWI as well as Ukraine,
Belarus, and the Caucasus
Region and Central Asia
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Slide 38
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After Lenin died the USSR
came under control of
Joseph Stalin
 Formerly Losif Vissarionovich
Dzhugashvili
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Took control of the farms
and the factories
Made the USSR and
industrial giant
Eliminated those who
disagreed with him
 Under Stalin, millions were
killed or died of hunger, or
were sent to labor camps and
died there
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Slide 39
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Stalinist Era (under the leadership of Josef Stalin) 1924 – 1953
◦ “The Great Purge”- From 1934-1938
◦ He had more people killed than Hitler did during his reign
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 Many feel that the number can be as high as 8 million
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 The KGB reports that 681,692 were executed from 1937 to 1938 alone
◦ He was the leader through WWII (Great Patriotic War)
◦ Successfully defeated Nazi invasion of ’41
 Called by the Germans “Operation Barbarossa”
 Hitler’s invasion of Russia faltered less than 40 miles from Moscow with the onset of
winter (General Winter did his job)
◦ After WWII -Soviet Union takes control of the following European
nations: Poland, Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania), East Germany,
Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Albania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia
◦ “Iron Curtain” refers to countries under Soviet control (coined by British
P.M. Winston Churchill)
◦ Ally to the U.S. during WWII,
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 Enemy after WWII (Cold War)
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Slide 40
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Gov’t controlled the newspapers
Gov’t opposed religion (opium of the masses)
Gov’t exercised COMPLETE control over industry and
agriculture
Stressed heavy industry over consumer goods
Forced nomadic people to settle into villages and to work
on massive gov’t farms
No freedom to make any personal decisions
No freedom to express their own opinions
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Slide 41
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Following WWII the USSR was officially a world
Superpower
Most surrounding countries started to fall under
control of the USSR as a satellite nation
This would show the beginning of the Cold War
◦ The struggle between communism and capitalism for world
influence and power
◦ The fear of nuclear war would make the next 40 years
terrifying and troublesome
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Slide 42
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As time went on the Soviet Union’s economy
would weaken
Leaders would separate themselves from the
workers
◦ This lead to the breakup of the Soviet Union
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In 1985 Mikhail Gorbachev would take power
of the Soviet Union
◦ He instituted a policy of economic restructuring and
political openness
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The satellite nations would break and declare
independence and the former republics would
also break free from the Soviet Union
Boris Yeltsin was elected the first president of
Russia
Post-Communist Era
Collapse of Soviet Union in 1991
Each Republic became an independent nation
Causes of the collapse
Upsurge in Nationalism
Widespread opposition to Dictatorship
Widespread opposition to Economic hardship
Slide 43
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Boris Yeltsin would have to
face ethnic struggles and
areas looking for
independence
His successor Vladimir Putin
would inherit the struggles
and would work to stabilize
Russia
◦ Helped Russia get involved in
NATO
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Worried that he would pull
Russia away from democracy
he was barred from a 3rd term
Russia would hold elections
for another president
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Slide 44
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Independence leads to conflict over…
◦ Territory
◦ Ethnic differences
◦ Religious differences
When the Soviets divided the Republics, they would purposely
leave large numbers of one ethnic group as a minority in
neighboring republics of another ethnic group. This was done
to prevent opposition to the Party by using the tensions that
existed among the different ethnic groups. Loyalty to the
Party was above all.
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Slide 45
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Western Republics
◦ Moldova, Ukraine,
Belarus, Baltic States
(Estonia, Lithuania and
Latvia)
◦ Ukraine is rich in
farmland
◦ Baltic States are not
Slavic
 Tied to the West,
 Catholic & Protestant
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Slide 46
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Trans Caucuses Republics
◦ Armenia, Georgia and
Azerbaijan
◦ Culture is rooted in the
traditions of the Middle East
◦ Armenians consider
themselves descendants of
Noah
 Many feel that Noah’s Ark is
on Mount Ararat
 Armenia was the first nation
to adopt Christianity
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Slide 47
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Central Asia Republics
◦ Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan
 Religious heritage is
Muslim
 Area was part of the Silk
Road - the 4000 mile
route between China and
the Mediterranean Sea,
named for the costly silk
acquired in China
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Slide 48
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Human Geography of Russia
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Slide 49
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Russian art is heavily
influenced by the Eastern
Orthodox Church
◦ Many of the beautiful
architecture is tied directly to
the churches
 Onion shaped domes on
churches designed to keep
snow from accumulating
 Many Russian sculptures are
religious sculptures for the
churches
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Slide 50
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Built under the reign of Ivan
the Terrible
Architect believed unknown
but many believe it was two
architects
Legend states that Ivan
blinded the architect so he
could not recreate his
masterpiece
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Slide 51
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Bringing Western European Culture to Russia
◦ Brought European artists, writers, and more to Russia to
help spread European techniques throughout Russia
◦ Russian authors grew out of this time
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 Aleksandr Pushkin and Feodor Dostoyevsky
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Slide 52
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Peter spread music and
dance to Russia as well
 Soon famous composers and
dancers would bring Russia to
the world
◦ Peter Tchaikovsky and Igor
Stravinsky would gain world
wide attention for their music

The Russian Ballet
companies would grow
from this music and some
of the world’s most famous
dancers and
choreographers would
come from Russia
◦ Mikhail Baryshnikov
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◦ He later defected to the U.S.
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Slide 53
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As the soviets took control
art and music changed
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◦ Artists who did not paint using
Soviet Realism, were outlawed
◦ Soviet Realism
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 Promoted soviet ideals by
optimistically showing citizens
working to create a socialist
society
◦ Many artists worked in secret
to keep their art going
 After the fall of USSR, art has
started to grow again in Russia
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Slide 54
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Slide 55
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Slide 56
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The Soviet Union cut Russia from the rest of the world
◦ This had a double effect
 Engrained traditional Russian culture deep into the heart of the
people
 Cut of all other cultural influence and advancements for many years
◦ Took time for Russian cities to adapt to the changing world
◦ Moscow and St. Petersburg have come the farthest in adopting
some new western cultural ideals. You can find fast food and
typical western things in these cities
 Most Russians still prefer their traditional cuisine to any other
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Slide 57
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¾ of the population lives
in cities in Russia
◦ but about 30% owns
vacation or weekend homes
in the country side
◦ Spend weekends and
holidays out of the city
 These homes are known as
Dachas
 Dachas are small plain
houses typically with a
garden for food
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Slide 58
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One Russian ritual is the
Banya
◦ Russian bath house
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Cleaning ritual
◦ Dry Sauna
◦ Steam Bath
◦ Cool swim in Freezing
Water
◦ Hot tea
◦ Repeat
Process can go on for
many hours
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Slide 59
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Communist Economy
(Command Market)
1917-1991
◦ State/Government
Control

Capitalism
(Free Market)
1991-2015
◦ Slowly moving toward a
free market
 50% of natural
resources are state
owned
 Rest (50%) are owned by
private companies
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