Russia Study Guide HWS

Tundra

Located in the Arctic north, this biome only supports lichens and mosses.

Siberia

The Russian province that spans across the tundra and mountain ranges such as the Ural, Altai, and Verkhoyansk.

Taiga

A large area of evergreen forests.

Steppe

Similar to American prairies, this area receive little rainfall and have rich fertile soil able to produce many different crops.

Kievan Rus

Was a state made up of slavic peoples from Eastern Europe that settled around 500 AD on the steppe in Belarus and Ukraine. City states were ruled by Boyars (land owning gentry). The most important Boyar was called the Grand Prince. River trade with the Vikings and Norwegians took place during this time.

Cyrillic Alphabet

This alphabet was closely based on the Greek alphabet, but with a dozen additional characters for Slavic sounds.

Boyars

The rulers of the Kievan City States.

Grand Prince

The most powerful Boyar.

Vladimir of Kiev

The Grand Prince of Kiev who converted to Eastern Orthodox Christianity in 987.

Russian Orthodox Church

This church required all Russian subjects to convert to this religion. Gave Russians a connection to the Byzantine Empire.

Mongols

When Kiev got to big, bureaucracy was poorly managed and other city states began to disobey. In 1240 this group of people attack and destroy Kiev and take over most of Russia. Local princes pay tribute. This isolates Russia from the rest of Europe, causing them to fall behind.

Tribute

The money paid by a group of people to prevent another group from attacking.

Isolationism

A policy of remaining apart from the affairs or interests of other groups.

Ivan the Great

He was the Grand Prince of Moscow who ruled from 1462-1502. He was the first to use the title “tsar.”

Ivan the Terrible

He was the Grand Prince of Moscow from 1533-1547. He used his oprichniki and terror to centralize the Russian state.

Oprichniki

The secret police force of Ivan the Terrible.

Time of Troubles

The time in which there was internal fighting, famine, drought, peasant revolts, and foreign invasions from 1598-1613.

Michael Romanov

The first Russian tsar of the Romanovs who ruled from 1613-1645.

Tsar

An emperor of Russia before 1917.

Serfs

Peasants that were tied to the land without rights. Pretty much slaves.

Peter the Great

A man nearly 7 ft tall who was very energetic, intelligent, and hard working. Jointly ruled with his brother Ivan for a few years. He created a large standing army + navy and the first industrialists. He fought a series of wars for access to the Baltic sea. He also single handedly forced Russia to westernize and brought the church under his control.

St. Petersburg

Formerly known as Petrograd, this city was founded by Peter the Great.

Westernization

The process of adopting or being influenced by the cultural, economic, or political systems of Europe and North America. Also known as industrialization or modernization.

Catherine the Great

Ruled from 1762-1796. She was a German princess named Sofia and then married Peter III and converted to Orthodox Christianity. She didn’t get along with her husband, and then he mysteriously died of natural causes. She became regent and didn’t let her son rule.

Regent

A person appointed to administer a country because the monarch is a minor, is absent, or is incapacitated.

Nicholas II

The last czar of Russia, he ruled form 1894 - 1917. He was totally disconnected from the Russian people and their lifestyle. He hated peasants and was heavily influenced by his wife.

Alexandra

The wife of Nicholas II, she did not like Russia, felt all russians were ignorant and backwards. Most Russians hated her as well.

Alexei Romanov

The son of Alexandra and Nicholas II. He was the heir to the throne before he was murdered. He had hemophilia.

Hemophilia

Also known as the “Royal Disease”, this is a disorder in which the blood does not clot properly. It lacks enough blood clotting proteins.

Rasputin

Known as the “Black Monk”, this man was a priest in the Russian Orthodox Church. He helped Alexei Romanov to stop bleeding.

Duma

The diet or council that was formed after revolution. It was ruled by Alexander Kerensky.

Alexander Kerensky

The socialist leader of the Duma.

Vladimir Lenin

Served as the founding head of the Soviet Union from 1917-1924. He believed in the ideologies of Karl Marx and created Leninism.

Bolsheviks

The left-wing revolutionary group founded by Vladimir Lenin. This group (means majority), had split from the Mensheviks (minority).

Karl Marx

German philosopher, historian, and socialist revolutionary. He lived from 1818-1883. He wrote the Communist Manifesto.

Marxism

The economic and political system created by Karl Marx. It believes that a society starts with capitalism then transitions to socialism, and then communism through revolution.

Communism

An economic and political ideology that advocates for a classless society where the means of production are owned and controlled by the community as a whole, with the goal of achieving social and economic equality for all members.

Socialism

An economic and social system in which people own the buildings and tools used to make goods and services. Example: public infrastructure.

Soviet Union

The country made up of 15 republics from 1922-1991

Joseph Stalin

Definition: Soviet politician and dictator who led the Soviet Union from the mid-1920s until his death in 1953. He transformed the country into a modern industrial power but also implemented brutal policies that caused the deaths of millions.

Great Purge

Period of political repression in the Soviet Union from 1936-1938. Led by Stalin, it targeted perceived enemies of the state, resulting in millions of arrests, executions, and deportations.

Five Year Plan

The plan from 1928-1932 installed by Stalin that would industrialize and westernize the USSR.

Capitalism

Economic system based on private ownership of means of production & distribution of goods/services. Driven by market forces of supply & demand, with little government intervention. Encourages competition & profit maximization. Criticized for perpetuating inequality & prioritizing profits over social welfare.

Cold War

A period of political and military tension between the Western powers, led by the United States, and the Eastern bloc, led by the Soviet Union, from the end of World War II in 1945 until the early 1990s. The Cold War was characterized by proxy wars, espionage, and the threat of nuclear annihilation.

Nikita Khruschev

Leader of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964. Known for his policy of de-Stalinization, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the construction of the Berlin Wall.