Leaders of Russia and the Soviet Union_ From the Romanov Dynasty to Vladimir Putin

Leaders of Russia and the Soviet Union: From the Romanov Dynasty to Vladimir Putin provides succinct biographies of leaders from the elec- tion of the first Romanov, Michael, in 1613 to President Vladimir Putin. It highlights how their influence was great, disastrous, or purely negative. It does not aim to be a history of Russia. There are some leaders who ruled for long periods such as Peter I (the Great) and Catherine II (the Great) who engineered enormous changes and some such as Lenin and Stalin who changed Russia completely. Some tsars only lasted a very short time and achieved little but have been included to show historical continuity; Ivan V is an example.