Facts on Russia
Russia is a majestic and huge country that has seen just about everything a country can. Here are the facts on Russia.
Facts on Russia
Born in the 12th century, Russia was originally a very small country compared to its current status as the largest in the world. At that time, Russia was known as Muscovy and consisted more or less of the golden ring area around current day Moscow.
During its first few hundred years, Muscovy was not the dominator it is today. Instead, it was constantly being invaded and conquered by the Mongols. How things have changed.
Modern day Russia is a reflection of a variety of developments over time, but one Russian stands out. Peter the Great was a giant of a man and one with a desire to conquer. Under his rule, Russia expanded from a small state in the hinterlands to one that included all the lands between St. Petersburg and the Pacific Ocean. These holding included significant chunks of China.
As the biggest country in the world, Russia is a wild land to this day. Rulers in Moscow have struggled to control a country so diverse and huge. Rebellion has been a near constant and is carried on today in Chechnya, just one of many rebel uprisings over the history of the country.
As is well known, Russia was historically ruled by Czars. Unfortunately, the Czars tended to be very out of touch with the people, which led to poor decision making, outright stupid strategies, corruption and massive suffering for the average Russian. Eventually, the Russian people decided to try something new.
In 1917, the red revolution occurred in Russia. Communist and socialist groups worked together to overthrow the Czar and take control of the country. This led to civil war in which the red army [communist] eventually defeated the white army [Czar]. The leader of this effort was one Vladimir Lenin.
After obtaining victory, Lenin passed away and a reign of ruthlessness and terror was ushered in. After a major political power struggle, one Joseph Stalin emerged as the head of the communist party and things would never be the same again.
Stalin was from the Georgian providence and an undisputed tyrant. Although less notorious than Hitler, Stalin is thought to have been responsible for twice as many deaths. Most appalling, of course, is he was ordering the killings of his own people.
A brilliant leader, Stalin was a paranoid masochistic individual. Undertaking bizarre cleansing practices, most Russians with any professional training were immediately sent to gulags in the frozen tundra of Siberia or simply shot without any accusation of wrong doing or a trial. This, of course, robbed the country of much of its intellectual leadership and led Staling to make some of the most mind boggling decisions. In one, he instituted a new collective agricultural program that nearly starved half of the country to death. Fortunately, Stalin “only” ruled for 30 years.
Eventually, the Russian people came to the conclusion that communism wasn’t any better than being ruled by out of touch Czars. In 1991, they decided to try a third political theory known as democracy.
To say that democracy has been an up and down prospect for Russia is a major under out of t. The primary problem is no middle class exists in Russia. The rich drive Ferraris on the streets of Moscow while the rest of the country has problems getting electricity.
Having lived in Russia for a year, I can tell you the country is a magnificent place. Russians are fairly formal in business and initial interactions. Once you’ve broken through the formality, they are perhaps the warmest, friendliest people I’ve had the pleasure of every meeting. They are also extremely tough and rarely complain about the inconveniences of day to day living.
Summarizing the facts on Russia, one has to say it is a country of survivors. Who else could go through three divergent political programs in less than 100 years and still be a country?
