Russian Historic Figures Nikolai Vitsyn. Russian Historic Figures 1. The Beginning 2. Ivan the...

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Russian Historic Figures Nikolai Vitsyn

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Russian Historic Figures 5. Alexander Suvorov 6. Mikhail Kutusov 7. Pavel Nakhimov 8. Nicholas Romanov

Transcript of Russian Historic Figures Nikolai Vitsyn. Russian Historic Figures 1. The Beginning 2. Ivan the...

Russian Historic Figures Nikolai Vitsyn Russian Historic Figures 1. The Beginning 2. Ivan the Terrible 3. Peter the Great 4. Ekaterina the Great Russian Historic Figures 5. Alexander Suvorov 6. Mikhail Kutusov 7. Pavel Nakhimov 8. Nicholas Romanov Russian Historic Figures 9. Vladimir Lenin 10. Josef Stalin 11. Nikita Khrushchev 12. Michael Gorbachev Russian Historic Figures 13. Andrei Sakharov 14. Boris Yeltsin 15. Vladimir Putin The Beginning The Prince Vladimir converted Russia to Christianity in 988. The Mongol invasions destroyed everything in its path but generally left the churches intact, because they were afraid to offend the gods of the people they conquered. Consequently, the Christian culture of music, art, architecture and literature survived and became the basis of Russian culture. Yet the period of isolation from Constantinople contributed to the development of a national Russian style based on the previously adopted Byzantine style. The Beginning First Rome: Rome, the capital of the Roman Empire was moved to Constantinople in early 300s. Rome eventually fell in the 5th century to the barbarian tribes from the north. Second Rome: Constantinople. In the 13th century, the Mongol invasion cut off Kiev (converted to Christianity in 988) from Constantinople. Christianity moved north to Moscow. When Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks, it was felt that Moscow (the third Rome) now was the heart of the true Christian faith. The Theory of the Three Romes Ivan the Terrible ( ) Ivan IV Vasiljevich the Terrible was a Grand Prince "all over the Rus" (since 1533), the first Russian Tsar (since 1547), the son of Vasili III. Since 40s he governed together with elected the Rada. Meeting of the Zemstvo was began at his time, code of laws was compiled in He reformed the Government and Court (province, zemsky and so on...). He conquered Kazan Khan (1552) and Astrakhan Khan (1556). For strengthening of state power and unification of Rus he introduced "the oprichnina" in He took part in Livonian War ( ). Commercial connections with England were set up (1553), the first printing- house was created in Moscow. Joining of Siberia to Russian State was begun (1581). Home policy of Ivan IV was accompanied with repressions and strong enslaving of peasants. Ivan the Terrible ( ) Peter the Great ( ) CZAR EMPEROR OF ALL RUSSIA Peter the Great was the fourteenth child of Alexei Mikhailovich, born on May 30, 1672, from his second marriage to Natalia Kirillovna Naryshkina. Having ruled jointly with his brother Ivan V from 1682, with Ivan's death in 1696, Peter was officially declared Sovereign of all Russia. During his reign, Peter undertook extensive reforms: He created a regular army and navy, subjugated the Church to the state and introduced new administrative and territorial divisions of the country. He paid particular attention to the development of science. He was a far-sighted and skillful diplomat and a talented military leader. Peter the Great ( ) Portrait of the young Peter the Great Peter the Great ( ) Portrait of the young Peter the Great This portrait, in the tradition style of the seventeenth, is one of the few oil painting of the young ten-year-old Peter the Great. This portrait show us Peter in secular composition, not as other his portraits, where Peter was in the form of Christ-Emmanuel or the Archdeacon Stephen. This portrait nevertheless has some ideological significance. Peter the Great ( ) Under Peter's rule, Russia became a great European nation. In 1721, he proclaimed Russia an Empire and was accorded the title of Emperor of All Russia, Great Father of the Fatherland and "the Great." He married twice and had 11 children, many of whom died in infancy. The eldest son from his first marriage, Czarevich Alexei, was convicted of high treason by his father and secretly executed in Peter died from a chill on January 28, 1725, without nominating an heir. He was buried in the Cathedral of the St. Peter and St. Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg. Peter the Great ( ) The Cap of Monomach Peter the Great ( ) The Cap of Monomach This crown is reminiscent of Easter headgear. It was made of eight gold plates, and is topped with hemispherical knop with a cross. Like all Russian royal crowns they are trimmed with sable, a far with an ancient ritual significance and a symbol of property and wealth. It was crown of the second order because younger Peter had older brother, who was crowned the ancient Cap of Monomach. Peter the Great ( ) Ekaterina the Great ( ) EMPRESS OF ALL RUSSIA Born on April 21, 1729, in Strettin (now Szczecin), Poland, into the family of Prince Christian August of Anhalt-Zerbst, Catherine was christened Sophia Augusta Frederica. On February 9, 1744, aged 15, she came to Russia at the invitation of Empress Elizaveta Petrovna as the bride of the heir to the throne, Peter Feodorovich. They married in St. Petersburg on August 21, 1745, and she was christened into the Orthodox Church as Ekaterina Alexeevna. Industrious, highly intelligent and strong-willed, she quickly mastered the Russian language. A reader of historical and philosophical works, she entered into correspondence with some of the greatest minds in Europe, including Voltaire. Ekaterina the Great ( ) On June 28, 1762, with the support of the Imperial Guard, she overthrew her husband Peter III. She was crowned Empress of All Russia on September 22, 1762, in the Dormition Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin.Her rule was one of the most prosperous periods of the Russian Empire. She undertook a wide range of internal political reforms, waged two successful wars against the Ottoman Empire and occupied vast territories on Russia's southern boundaries, eventually advancing the country's border to the Black Sea. She died on November 6, 1796, and was buried in the Cathedral of the St. Peter and St. Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg. Ekaterina the Great ( ) Alexander Suvorov ( ) Russian Field Marshal Alexander Suvorov ( ) Russian Field Marshal For example, during Napoleons war he defeated Napoleons forces in Italy, captured Milan, and then, almost surrounded by French troops, was ordered to relieve another Russian force in Switzerland. So, on the day of September 27, 1799, in what is surely one of the most astounding military marches in history, he began to lead 21,000 troops on a 12- day trek through the Alps during freezing snowy weather, facing intense French opposition and climbing 9,000-foot peaks. He never lost a battle. Alexander Suvorov ( ) Russian Field Marshal Two-thirds of his army escaped. He was (then 70 years old). This feat earned Suvorov the title of Generalissimo, and the nickname Russians Hannibal. He died on May 18, 1800, reportedly of a broken heart due to Czar Pauls criticism of his military ability. Alexander Suvorov ( ) Russian Field Marshal Mikhail Kutusov ( ) Russian Field Marshal Mikhail Kutusov ( ) Russian General One-eyed and with a penchant for young women, Mikhail Kutusov was a much underrated leader in the Napoleonic era. His early and middle military days saw him in conflict with Russia's southern enemy - the Turks - and his first clashes with European soldiers came along the Danube. Mikhail Kutusov ( ) Russian General Leading Russia's military arm of the Third Coalition he arrived too late to assist Austria against the French at Ulm, but did skilfully exorcise his men from a potential trap afterwards. Pursued by Napoleon Bonaparte and hamstrung by having to explain his tactics to Tsar Alexander and King Frederick-Wilhelm, Kutusov was unable to avoid taking on the French at Austerlitz. Mikhail Kutusov ( ) Russian General Following that debacle, he continued his wars against the Turks until being recalled to defend Mother Russia against the Grand Armee in Replacing Barclay de Tolly after the battle of Smolensk, Kutusov's tactics of retreat, which traded space for time, earnt him no friends. At Borodino he gave Bonaparte a bloody nose, but at great cost, and left Moscow to be captured by the French. As Bonaparte retreated, Kutusov's forces allowed him no respite and had luck been more with him, his strategies of trapping the retreating French army before it escaped over the Beresina could have completely destroyed the invaders. Pavel Nakhimov ( ) Russian Navy Admiral. Fought a total of 40 battles and lost none. Pavel Nakhimov ( ) Pavel Nakhimov was born on July 5 /June 23 by the old calendar/ 1802 in the village of Gorodok, Smolensk gubernia /200 kilometres west of Moscow/ into an officer's family. In 1818, he graduated from the Marine Academy and served on the Baltic fleet. In , he made a round-the-world voyage on the frigate Kreiser, and took part in the Battle of Navarino in 1827 while commanding a battery on the battleship Azov. Russian Navy Admiral. Fought a total of 40 battles and lost none. Pavel Nakhimov ( ) During the Russian-Turkish war, he commanded a corvette during the Dardanelles blockade and from 1829, upon returning to Kronshtadt, the frigate Pallada. In 1845, Nakhimov was promoted to the rank of rear-admiral and appointed commander of a brigade of vessels, and in 1852 to that of vice-admiral. During the Crimean war, while commanding a squadron of the Black Sea fleet, Nakhimov discovered and blocked the main forces of the Turkish navy at Sinop, and on November 18 /30/ destroyed them in the Battle of Sinop of Russian Navy Admiral. Fought a total of 40 battles and lost none. Pavel Nakhimov ( ) During the defence of Sevastopol (Crimea, a peninsula on the Black Sea) attacked by overwhelming forces of France, Britain and Turkey, Nakhimov correctly assessed Sevastopol's strategic significance and used all forces and means at his disposal to strengthen city defences. At the same time he was the commander of the squadron, and from February 1855, the commander of Sevastopol Port and the military governor. In fact from the very start of the defence of Sevastopol he headed the heroic garrison of fortress defenders, showing outstanding capabilities in organising the defence of the fleet's base from the sea and the ground. Russian Navy Admiral. Fought a total of 40 battles and lost none. Pavel Nakhimov ( ) During one of his visits to frontline fortifications on June 28 /July 10/ 1855, Nakhimov was wounded in the head by a bullet on Malakhov Hill. He is buried in the Vladimir Cathedral in Sevastopol In Sevastopol stands a monument to Admiral Nakhimov. In 1944, during the Great Patriotic War, the Orders of Nakhimov 1st and 2nd Class were instituted, as well as the Nakhimov Medal. Russian Navy Admiral. Fought a total of 40 battles and lost none. Pavel Nakhimov ( ) Russian Navy Admiral. Fought a total of 40 battles and lost none. Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas II was born on May, 1868, in Tsarskoe Selo. His own mother delivered him at home. Marie Fyodorovna Romanova, formerly Dagmar, Princess of Denmark. His father Alexander Romanov was and important member of the Russian government. He was not like Romanov men; Nicholas was not a very big man. The other men were always picking on him; Nicholas however, was a medium height. To make up for his lack of height, Nicholas worked out with weights and other various athletic equipment. Nicholas was known for his regal appearance. He had blue eyes that people always complimented him on. He wore his brown hair parted to the left and had a thick beard. Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas was extremely smart man and very well educated. He was at the top of his class and was the most intelligent of the European Monarchs of his time. His parents prepared him for the future of being a 20th century Czar, knowing it would be quite different from previous years. The family was guarded by security and military guards. This meant that Nicholas grew up in almost complete darkness from the outside world. This was not helpful to his maturing process or understanding of the ways in which his future subjects lived. Because he was so secluded, Nicholas never grew an appreciation for how people lived, and his ideas about important issues were very independent. His immaturity and lack of understanding would hurt his ability to govern Russia in the future. Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas gave his heart to a young, German princess named Alex of Hess. His family thought they were not a good match. She was not seen as the type of woman with the strong qualities needed in an Empress to be. Yet, they were formally engaged in Nicholas thought he was not good enough to rule Russia. He felt as though he had not the abilities or the experience. Realizing that he was surrounded be media, he quickly figured out who he could trust. He turned to his wife, he knew she was the one true person that he could go to for support. Loneliness became his way of life. Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas Romanov ( ) The last Tsar of Russia Nicholas always put his country before anything else in his life. Only he could keep it from falling apart. Being a smart man, he realized he was a target for assassination. His wives love and devotion were excepted all throughout his life. In 1914, World War I began. Nicholas II took command of the army in He left the government of Russia in the hands of Czarina Alexandra Feodorovna and her advisor Rasputin. Discontent spread throughout Russia. The army was tired of war, and food shortages worsened. The government was in complete disarray. In March of 1917, Nicholas II was forced to abdicate. He and his family were shot to death in Yekatinburg on July 16, 1918. Nicholas Romanov ( ) The coffin of the last Tsar (July 17, 1998) Nicholas Romanov ( ) The funeral service in Peter and Paul Cathedral (July 17, 1998) Vladimir Lenin ( ) Marxism Ideologist Vladimir Lenin ( ) Marxism Ideologist One of the leading political figures and revolutionary thinkers of the 20th century, Lenin masterminded the Bolshevik take-over of power in Russia in 1917 and was the architect and first head of the Soviet state. He posthumously gave name to the Marxist-Leninist ideology, but by the death of the communist system in 1991, his legacy was largely discredited. Vladimir Lenin ( ) Marxism Ideologist Vladimir Ilich Ulyanov grew up in a well educated family in provincial Russia. He excelled at school and went on to study law. At university, he was exposed to radical thinking, and his views were also influenced by the execution of his elder brother, a member of a revolutionary group. Vladimir Lenin ( ) Marxism Ideologist In 1917, exhausted by the First World War, Russia was ripe for change. Assisted by the Germans, who hoped that he would undermine the Russian war effort, Lenin returned home and started working against the provisional government which had replaced the tsarist regime. He eventually led what was soon to be known as the October Revolution, but was effectively a coup d'etat. Vladimir Lenin ( ) Marxism Ideologist Lenin was ruthless but also pragmatic. When his efforts to transform the Russian economy to a socialist model stalled, he introduced the New Economic Policy, where a measure of private enterprise was still permitted. This policy continued for several years beyond his death. Vladimir Lenin ( ) Marxism Ideologist Vladimir Lenin ( ) Marxism Ideologist On a personal level, Lenin was a modest man and disapproved of adulation. But after his death, he became the subject of a personality cult of grotesque proportions which lasted until the final years of the Soviet system. Lenin's embalmed corpse remains in a mausoleum on Moscow's Red Square. Once a place of communist worship, it has now become a symbol of a political ideology and system which ultimately failed miserably. Josef Stalin ( ) Powerful and murderous dictator in human history Josef Stalin ( ) One of the most powerful and murderous dictators in human history, Stalin was the supreme ruler of the Soviet Union for a quarter of a century. His regime of terror caused the death and suffering of tens of millions of his subjects, but he was also in charge of the war machine that played a significant role in the defeat of Hitler's armies during World War II. Josef Stalin ( ) A Georgian by birth, Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili grew up in modest circumstances and only learned Russian at school. He studied at a theological seminary but never graduated, instead embarking on a life as a professional revolutionary. This included robbing banks to fill the Bolshevik party chest and spending years in Siberian exile. Josef Stalin ( ) After Lenin's death in 1924, Stalin promoted himself as his political heir and gradually outmanoeuvred rivals. Unlike Trotsky, Stalin believed that socialism could be introduced in one country without being accompanied by a world revolution. By the late 1920s, Stalin was effectively the dictator of the Soviet Union. Josef Stalin ( ) The purges severely depleted the Red Army officer corps, and despite many warnings, Stalin was ill prepared for Hitler's massive attack on the Soviet Union in June His political future hung in the balance, but he recovered to lead his country to victory. As usual with Stalin, the human cost was enormous, but that mattered little to him. His general disregard for human lives included his own family - his eldest son perished in German captivity, his second wife committed suicide, and many in- laws were caught up in the terror. Josef Stalin ( ) After World War II, the Soviet Union entered the nuclear age and ruled over an empire which included most of Eastern Europe. Increasingly paranoid, Stalin himself became a victim of the fear he had induced in his subjects. Having suffered a stroke at night, he lay helpless on his floor for many hours, because no one dared disturb him. He died on 5 March 1953. Nikita Khrushchev The Khrushchev Era The death of Stalin on Mar. 5, 1953, ushered in a new era in Soviet history. Collective leadership at first replaced one-man rule, and after the arrest and execution (June, 1953) of Lavrenti Beria, the power of the secret police was curtailed. Soviet citizens began to gain a greater degree of personal freedom and civil security. Georgi Malenkov succeeded Stalin as premier, while Nikita Khrushchev, as first secretary of the central committee of the CPSU, played an increasingly important role in policy planning. At the 20th All Union Congress (Feb., 1956), Khrushchev bitterly denounced the dictatorial rule and personality of Stalin in a secret speech that was later obtained by foreigners. Khrushchev replaced Bulganin as premier in 1958, thus becoming leader of both the government and the CPSU; he modified some of the more dictatorial aspects of Stalin's rule, but the CPSU continued to dominate all facets of Soviet life. Nikita Khrushchev Domestic Policy under Khrushchev Khrushchev retained many of Stalin's basic economic policies, but there were important changes. Management of the economy (especially industry) was decentralized (1957) in an attempt to reduce the inefficiency and delays resulting from central bureaucratic control. Numerous national ministries were disbanded. In agriculture, vast tracts of virgin land were opened to the cultivation of grain, notably wheat; taxation of collective farmers' private plots was reduced; and the Machine Tractor Stations, established in the late 1920s and 30s as a means of supervising the collective farms by controlling their use of farm machinery, were abolished in 1958 and their equipment sold to the collectives. Somewhat larger amounts of consumer goods were manufactured. The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushchev Foreign Relations under Khrushchev Foreign policy became more flexible; the Soviet Union established diplomatic relations with West Germany (1955), allowed foreigners to travel in the USSR, and set up cultural exchanges with Western nations. In addition, it was considered proper beginning in 1955 to form alliances with, and give aid to, the non-Communist nations of the Middle East, especially Egypt and Syria, and other non-Communist underdeveloped countries. Relations with the Communist countries of Eastern Europe were formalized and strengthened by the establishment of the Warsaw Pact. In June, 1956, a revolt against Soviet influence in Poland was defeated by the Polish army, but the Poles managed to gain some concessions from Moscow; an uprising in Hungary in Oct., 1956, was crushed ruthlessly by Soviet troops. The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushev In the technological race between the Soviet Union and the West (principally the United States), the USSR exploded (1953) a hydrogen bomb; announced (1957) the development of intercontinental ballistic missiles; orbited (1957) the first artificial earth satellite (called Sputnik); and in 1961 sent Yuri Gagarin in the first manned orbital flight. In Sept., 1959, Khrushchev undertook a 10-day tour of the United States. In May, 1960, a four-power (USSR, United States, France, and Great Britain) summit conference scheduled for Paris was aborted when a U.S. reconnaissance airplane (U-2) was shot down in the Soviet Union and U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower refused to apologize for the aerial spying. The USSR participated in the international negotiations on nuclear disarmament and agreed (1958) to a voluntary moratorium on nuclear tests, but resumed testing in In 1963, the USSR signed a milestone treaty with the United States and Great Britain banning atmospheric nuclear tests. The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushchev Our objectives are clear and goals are set. Lets get to work comrades! Nikita Khrushchev The question of divided Berlin (a focal point of the cold war) remained unresolved through several rounds of negotiations and a number of Berlin crises, particularly the 1961 controversy over the erection of the Berlin Wall between East and West Berlin. In June, 1964, the Soviet Union signed a separate peace treaty with East Germany. The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushchev At the 22d CPSU congress in 1961 the attack on Stalin was continued, and the reputations of many purge victims of the 1930s were rehabilitated. Stalin's body was removed from its place of honor in the Kremlin next to Lenin's; his name was erased from the geography of the USSR (e.g., Stalingrad was renamed Volgograd), and pictures and statues of him were removed. Among other things, China had accused the USSR of betraying Marxism-Leninism by attempting to negotiate with the West, while Khrushchev and his administration insisted that Communist expansion could be accomplished in conjunction with a policy of peaceful coexistence with states having different social and economic systems. The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushchev The Cuban Missile Crisis In Oct., 1962, despite seemingly improved relations with the West, the USSR came into sharp conflict with the United States over the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba. The United States demanded the removal of the missiles and blockaded the island to keep out Soviet ships. Backing down, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles, and the crisis passed. Some analysts maintain that the Cuban missile crisis marked a turning point in U.S.-Soviet relations because the USSR realized the determination of the United States to protect what it considered its vital interests. In 1963 a hot line (direct and instantaneous teletype communications) was set up between the heads of government of the USSR and the United States. The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushchev The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushchev The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushchev Khrushchev Nikita Khrushchev The Khrushchev Era Nikita Khrushchev Bill Clinton at the grave of Nikita Khrushchev, April 1996 Nikita Khrushchev Berlin Wall, 1961 Nikita Khrushchev The Fall of Berlin Wall, November 11, 1989 Sergei Khrushchev Poster at Carthage College, Kenosha, WI, September 2000 Michael Gorbachev Nikolai Vitsyn Michael Gorbachev Raissa Gorbachev Andrei Sakharov ( ) Andrei Sakharov, the Novel-prize winning Soviet physicist and dissident, was perhaps one of the worlds best-known symbols of the struggle for human rights. Sakharov died 15 year ago, on December 14, 1989 of a heart attack. Hundreds of thousands of people came to his funeral, expressing their love and respect for a man whose life for the past 27 years had been a relentless battle against the worlds two greatest threats: nuclear war and communist dictatorship. For the intelligentsia, Sakharov became a hero: his career was a model of moral responsibility. The father of the hydrogen bomb, Sakharov had uncanny courage and faith in the individual. His moral challenge to tyranny made him a virtual martyr, a defender of human rights and democracy. He could not be silenced. Andrei Sakharov ( ) At Moscow University in the 1940s, Andrei Sakharov was considered to be the best student who had ever studied in the Physics Department. After earning his doctorate at the young age of 26, Sakharov was sent to a top-secret military installation to spearhead the development of the hydrogen bomb. After the first nuclear test (1953) of the hydrogen bomb, he was called the savior of Russia. Andrei Sakharov ( ) That same year, Sakharov became the youngest full member of the Academy of Sciences, the elite body of Soviet scientists. Yet, he soon realized that he was building the most terrible weapon in human history. As a result, he became one of the Soviet Unions most famous political dissidents. In 1975, he received the Nobel Peace Prize (his Nobel lecture was called Peace, Progress, Human Rights), but was not allowed to go abroad to receive the prize. He was under house arrest in Nizhny Novgorod, a city closed to foreigners. There he lived in relative poverty until December 1986, when Mikhail Gorbachev announced the end of Sakharovs exile and allowed him to return to Moscow. Boris Yeltsin Boris Yeltsin: Master of surprise Boris Yesltsin: Master of surprise Boris Yeltsin: Master of surprise Vladimir Putin: President of Russia