7.1 Russia

Muscovite Princes

Rulers of Russia who emerged from Mongol control and began expanding the Russian state.

Ivan III

Grand Prince of Moscow who refused to pay tribute to the Mongols in 1480.

Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible)

Tsar known for expanding Russia through conquest and for his controversial and violent reign.

Tsar

An absolutist monarch in Russia, derived from the term 'Caesar'.

Orthodox Christianity

The primary religion in Russia, which became central after the fall of Constantinople.

Decembrist Uprising

A protest in 1825 by Russian veterans and intelligentsia calling for constitutional limits to Tsar authority.

Bloody Sunday

The 1905 event when Tsar Nicholas II’s troops fired on peaceful protestors, leading to widespread unrest.

Duma

The representative assembly established by Tsar Nicholas II as a response to the 1905 protests.

Bolshevik Revolution

The 1917 revolution led by Lenin that resulted in the establishment of a communist government in Russia.

NKVD

The secret police under Stalin that enforced political repression and maintained control over dissent.

Glasnost

Gorbachev's policy of openness that allowed for more public criticism of the state.

Perestroika

Gorbachev's economic restructuring policy aimed at reducing state control and allowing privatization.

Demokratizatsia

Gorbachev's efforts to increase democracy and political power for the people in the Soviet Union.

Oligarchs

Wealthy business magnates who gained control over major Russian industries post-Soviet Union.

Crimea annexation (2014)

Russia's incorporation of Crimea, justified by Putin on the basis of nationalism.

Federalism

The system of government in Russia that divides powers between the national government and regional authorities.

Siloviki

Individuals in positions of power within the Russian government, often from state security backgrounds.

Election of 2000

The presidential election in which Vladimir Putin was elected after Yeltsin resigned.

Patron-Clientelism

A political system where resources are allocated to regions based on political loyalty to the central government.

Command Economy

An economic system where the state directs all production and controls economic planning.

Totalitarian State

A political system in which the state recognizes no limits to its authority and seeks to regulate every aspect of public and private life.

Asymmetrical federalism

A form of federalism where different regions have varying degrees of autonomy.

Economic shock therapy

Rapid privatization and market liberalization intended to transition from a command economy to a market economy.

Democratic Centralism

A political system where democracy is limited to a single party's control over the state.