Soviet Union: A History from Beginning to End

by Hourly History

Discover the remarkable history of the Soviet Union...
Free BONUS Inside!

The creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1922 was one of the defining events of the twentieth century. This new federation, created to embody the ideals of communism and the notion of rule by the people, was intended to be different from any other nation in the world. This utopian vision inspired people around the world, and soon, communism became an international movement. However, the history of the Soviet Union did not develop in the way its originators envisaged.

What began as a concept of rule by the common people became a repressive dictatorship with ultimate power concentrated in the hands of one man. While the Soviet Union gained in military and industrial power, personal freedom for its citizens virtually disappeared. The federation persisted for almost 70 years, and for much of that period, it was at the heart of one of the most powerful and feared power blocs in the world. Then, in a stunningly short space of time, it collapsed and then disintegrated entirely. This is the story of the rise and abrupt fall of the Soviet Union.

Discover a plethora of topics such as A New LeaderCollectivization, Famine, and PurgesThe Great Patriotic WarThe Cold WarGlasnost and PerestroikaThe Fall of the Soviet UnionAnd much more!
So if you want a concise and informative book on the Soviet Union, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access!

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Politics, European History

67 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 23, 2023

About the author

At Hourly History, we focus on publishing history books that are concise, straightforward and take no longer than one hour to read.

Receive our new eBooks for free every Friday.
Sign up at: www.hourlyhistory.com/free

Reviews

[Readasaurus Rex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gotta love starvation....I mean communism. Yikes

[Dr.J.G. · Rating 3 out of 5]

"At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Russian Empire appeared to be one of the most powerful nations in the world, yet this apparent power concealed serious internal weakness. The bulk of the Russian population were peasants who lived in conditions little better than slavery. There were large and growing movements for reform, but the tsar refused to countenance change. Then came two disastrous wars."

"After the Russian Revolution came two years of bloody civil war in which various factions fought for control. The Bolsheviks emerged from this war as the victors, and they established a confederation of republics that represented a bold new social and political experiment, which grew not from nationalism or religion but from a new political movement: communism. Communism, it was claimed, would lead to a utopian state run not for the benefit of a wealthy elite but for every person within that state. It would not be ruled by a hereditary leader such as a tsar or king but would instead be a federation ruled by the people themselves. It was this revolutionary idea that would lead to the creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the birth of Soviet Russia."
................................................................................................
................................................................................................


"The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (more commonly known as the Soviet Union or the USSR) was created in December 1922 with the signature of a treaty formally linking four socialist republics that had been created from territory previously controlled by the Russian Empire: the Soviet Federated Socialist Republics of Russia and Transcaucasia (present-day Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan), and the Soviet Socialist Republics of Ukraine and Belarus."

But wasn't Siberia, or all of North Asia - north of India, China and Mongolia, and too, Persia - too, always ruled by Russia - and therefore, subsequently, by USSR?
................................................................................................


" ... During the Russian Civil War from 1918 to 1920, the Bolsheviks became increasingly powerful until, by the time of the creation of the USSR, the Mensheviks had been completely crushed. As a result, the new union was to be entirely communist. ... "

"From its inception, the USSR claimed to represent a classless, egalitarian, and conflict-free society that was radically different from anything else existing in the world at that time. Of course, there were those both inside and out who didn’t agree and who sought to undermine the USSR. To fight against these “reactionary” forces, it was deemed necessary to have an army—a secret police—willing to suppress its own people. Most people believed that once opposition was crushed and the true benefits of communism became apparent, things would be very different. In The ABC of Communism, published in 1920 and soon to become widely published in the USSR, it was said that very soon, there would be no need for police, prisons, or even laws because, within the new society of the USSR, every citizen would work for the good of the nation. This belief accorded with Marxist teaching, which claimed that after revolution, the state would simply “wither away.”

"The reality was quite different. By 1921, the chaos of the civil war had brought Russia close to collapse. Up to six million peasants had died of starvation, riots broke out in cities controlled by the communists, and there was even a mutiny amongst naval units in the city of Kronstadt. Several hundred people were executed and many hundreds more arrested before the communists were able to regain control, but even Lenin recognized that fundamental changes were needed if the new state was to be able to survive. This led in 1921 to the introduction of the New Economic Policy (NEP), under which the state would control industry, but some level of private ownership of agriculture and trade would be permitted. In particular, rather than having their entire crop requisitioned, farmers would be required to give 10% of what they grew to the state but would be permitted to sell any surplus they produced."
................................................................................................
................................................................................................


"“True courage consists in being strong enough to master and overcome oneself and subordinate one’s will to the will of the collective.”

"—Joseph Stalin"

No wonder Mother said they had nothing to teach India - that quote couldbe straight from a grandmother-in-law or a father-in-law to the young new bride, or even to her bridegroom!
................................................................................................


"In 1927, Stalin was forced to address another pressing problem: a grain shortage in the Soviet Union. Grain was a central part of the diet in the region, but the harvest in 1927 was less than 70% of the harvest the previous year. This decrease led to a very real threat of starvation within the Soviet Union but also to the prospect of a complete lack of grain exports, one of the very few sources of foreign currency. ... "

" ... Kulak became an extremely negative term, and Kulaks were increasingly (and unjustly) blamed for the grain shortage. It was said that wealthy Kulaks were hoarding grain and that this was the cause of the shortages."

" ... In 1928, Stalin traveled to Siberia and announced, without consulting the Politburo, that he had discovered Kulaks with hoards of grain, and because of this, the grain owned by Kulaks was to be seized. Grain Procurement Squads were mobilized across Siberia and the Urals and began to seize any stocks of grain they could find, leading to violent clashes in some places and to serious food shortages in others."
................................................................................................
................................................................................................


"During the Great Terror, Stalin had become convinced that within the leadership of the Red Army, there were counter-revolutionary groups plotting to remove him from power. There is little evidence that this was true, but from 1937, the focus of the purge switched from politicians to soldiers. In all, 25,000 men were removed from the Red Army, with most being executed or sent to labor camps. These were invariably senior officers, the most experienced, veteran troops that the Soviet Union had (three of the five most senior commanders, marshals of the Soviet Union, were executed during the purge). As a result, army officers became very wary of displaying any independence of thought or action and instead took the safest route: slavish obedience to orders, no matter how absurd they might be."

Why the authors here refuse to acknowledge or mention the cause of this horror, namely, falsehoods planted by nazi regime against the best of Russia, is unclear.
................................................................................................
................................................................................................


"In 1964, there were 24,000 US “military advisors” in Vietnam. By the following year, there were almost 200,000 US troops in South Vietnam supported by naval and air force units. The Vietnam War would prove costly to America in human terms—60,000 US soldiers would die in the conflict—and it would be ruinously expensive and deeply unpopular at home. Combined with the Space Race, a technological battle with the Soviet Union to gain supremacy in space exploration that was also extremely expensive, it was becoming clear that the cost of maintaining the Cold War was unsustainable."

" ... A series of subsequent meetings between Brezhnev and Nixon and later US Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter led to a new period of improved relations between the US and the Soviet Union that became known as détente."

"In 1978, a revolution saw a communist government installed in Afghanistan. Despite a brutal campaign of repression that involved thousands of people being executed without trial, large parts of the country erupted in a rebellion against the new Soviet-supported regime. In September 1979, Afghanistan’s leader, Nur Mohammad Taraki, was assassinated in a coup planned by his rival, Hafizullah Amin. Amin was much less sympathetic to the Soviet Union, and there were fears in Moscow that he might be about to switch allegiance to the US. Given that Afghanistan shared a border with the Soviet Union, this was seen as representing a major threat. Thus, on December 24, 1979, Soviet forces moved across the border and rapidly took the city of Kabul. Amin was executed and replaced by a Soviet supporter, Babrak Karmal, as the new leader of the country."

The authors omit the fact that it was a legitimate Afghanistan government that had requested help from USSR, to deal with the instability due to Islamic terrorism sponsored actively by the neighbour, pakis, encouraged by US as part of strategy to surround USSR with 'green crescent'.

[Joe Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brief, Entertaining History of the Soviet Union

It took me less than hour to read this. While I was hoping for a more in-depth discussion, I enjoyed the book. I highly recommend this for anyone wanting a brief overview of Soviet history. Even those determined to learn a detailed history through another book or class will find this short book useful as an introduction to the subject.

[Dr.J.G.]

"At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Russian Empire appeared to be one of the most powerful nations in the world, yet this apparent power concealed serious internal weakness. The bulk of the Russian population were peasants who lived in conditions little better than slavery. There were large and growing movements for reform, but the tsar refused to countenance change. Then came two disastrous wars."

"After the Russian Revolution came two years of bloody civil war in which various factions fought for control. The Bolsheviks emerged from this war as the victors, and they established a confederation of republics that represented a bold new social and political experiment, which grew not from nationalism or religion but from a new political movement: communism. Communism, it was claimed, would lead to a utopian state run not for the benefit of a wealthy elite but for every person within that state. It would not be ruled by a hereditary leader such as a tsar or king but would instead be a federation ruled by the people themselves. It was this revolutionary idea that would lead to the creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the birth of Soviet Russia."
................................................................................................
................................................................................................


"The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (more commonly known as the Soviet Union or the USSR) was created in December 1922 with the signature of a treaty formally linking four socialist republics that had been created from territory previously controlled by the Russian Empire: the Soviet Federated Socialist Republics of Russia and Transcaucasia (present-day Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan), and the Soviet Socialist Republics of Ukraine and Belarus."

But wasn't Siberia, or all of North Asia - north of India, China and Mongolia, and too, Persia - too, always ruled by Russia - and therefore, subsequently, by USSR?
................................................................................................



" ... During the Russian Civil War from 1918 to 1920, the Bolsheviks became increasingly powerful until, by the time of the creation of the USSR, the Mensheviks had been completely crushed. As a result, the new union was to be entirely communist. ... "

"From its inception, the USSR claimed to represent a classless, egalitarian, and conflict-free society that was radically different from anything else existing in the world at that time. Of course, there were those both inside and out who didn’t agree and who sought to undermine the USSR. To fight against these “reactionary” forces, it was deemed necessary to have an army—a secret police—willing to suppress its own people. Most people believed that once opposition was crushed and the true benefits of communism became apparent, things would be very different. In The ABC of Communism, published in 1920 and soon to become widely published in the USSR, it was said that very soon, there would be no need for police, prisons, or even laws because, within the new society of the USSR, every citizen would work for the good of the nation. This belief accorded with Marxist teaching, which claimed that after revolution, the state would simply “wither away.”

"The reality was quite different. By 1921, the chaos of the civil war had brought Russia close to collapse. Up to six million peasants had died of starvation, riots broke out in cities controlled by the communists, and there was even a mutiny amongst naval units in the city of Kronstadt. Several hundred people were executed and many hundreds more arrested before the communists were able to regain control, but even Lenin recognized that fundamental changes were needed if the new state was to be able to survive. This led in 1921 to the introduction of the New Economic Policy (NEP), under which the state would control industry, but some level of private ownership of agriculture and trade would be permitted. In particular, rather than having their entire crop requisitioned, farmers would be required to give 10% of what they grew to the state but would be permitted to sell any surplus they produced."
................................................................................................
................................................................................................


"“True courage consists in being strong enough to master and overcome oneself and subordinate one’s will to the will of the collective.”

"—Joseph Stalin"

No wonder Mother said they had nothing to teach India - that quote couldbe straight from a grandmother-in-law or a father-in-law to the young new bride, or even to her bridegroom!
................................................................................................


"In 1927, Stalin was forced to address another pressing problem: a grain shortage in the Soviet Union. Grain was a central part of the diet in the region, but the harvest in 1927 was less than 70% of the harvest the previous year. This decrease led to a very real threat of starvation within the Soviet Union but also to the prospect of a complete lack of grain exports, one of the very few sources of foreign currency. ... "

" ... Kulak became an extremely negative term, and Kulaks were increasingly (and unjustly) blamed for the grain shortage. It was said that wealthy Kulaks were hoarding grain and that this was the cause of the shortages."

" ... In 1928, Stalin traveled to Siberia and announced, without consulting the Politburo, that he had discovered Kulaks with hoards of grain, and because of this, the grain owned by Kulaks was to be seized. Grain Procurement Squads were mobilized across Siberia and the Urals and began to seize any stocks of grain they could find, leading to violent clashes in some places and to serious food shortages in others."
................................................................................................
................................................................................................


"During the Great Terror, Stalin had become convinced that within the leadership of the Red Army, there were counter-revolutionary groups plotting to remove him from power. There is little evidence that this was true, but from 1937, the focus of the purge switched from politicians to soldiers. In all, 25,000 men were removed from the Red Army, with most being executed or sent to labor camps. These were invariably senior officers, the most experienced, veteran troops that the Soviet Union had (three of the five most senior commanders, marshals of the Soviet Union, were executed during the purge). As a result, army officers became very wary of displaying any independence of thought or action and instead took the safest route: slavish obedience to orders, no matter how absurd they might be."

Why the authors here refuse to acknowledge or mention the cause of this horror, namely, falsehoods planted by nazi regime against the best of Russia, is unclear.
................................................................................................
................................................................................................


"In 1964, there were 24,000 US “military advisors” in Vietnam. By the following year, there were almost 200,000 US troops in South Vietnam supported by naval and air force units. The Vietnam War would prove costly to America in human terms—60,000 US soldiers would die in the conflict—and it would be ruinously expensive and deeply unpopular at home. Combined with the Space Race, a technological battle with the Soviet Union to gain supremacy in space exploration that was also extremely expensive, it was becoming clear that the cost of maintaining the Cold War was unsustainable."

" ... A series of subsequent meetings between Brezhnev and Nixon and later US Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter led to a new period of improved relations between the US and the Soviet Union that became known as détente."

"In 1978, a revolution saw a communist government installed in Afghanistan. Despite a brutal campaign of repression that involved thousands of people being executed without trial, large parts of the country erupted in a rebellion against the new Soviet-supported regime. In September 1979, Afghanistan’s leader, Nur Mohammad Taraki, was assassinated in a coup planned by his rival, Hafizullah Amin. Amin was much less sympathetic to the Soviet Union, and there were fears in Moscow that he might be about to switch allegiance to the US. Given that Afghanistan shared a border with the Soviet Union, this was seen as representing a major threat. Thus, on December 24, 1979, Soviet forces moved across the border and rapidly took the city of Kabul. Amin was executed and replaced by a Soviet supporter, Babrak Karmal, as the new leader of the country."

The authors omit the fact that it was a legitimate Afghanistan government that had requested help from USSR, to deal with the instability due to Islamic terrorism sponsored actively by the neighbour, pakis, encouraged by US as part of strategy to surround USSR with 'green crescent'.

[Gyau Kumi · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE SOVIET UNION AND AFGHANISTAN

The book gives a very interesting outline that makes us better understand current world events. An instance is developments in the middle, particularly, Afghanistan. When we understand Soviet presence in Afghanistan preceded US presence there, we become less judgmental of US policies to withdraw. The Soviet Red Army failed miserably to establish its presence and set up a stable government, draining its resources and weakening it. Later US will attempt to do what the Soviets were not able to accomplish and also end on the same note. Do well to read this book to draw more insights into today's world, so you have a better view to draw useful connections between yesterday and today.

[Neera Kapahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

During the. 1917 Russian Revolution, the monarchy was overthrown and eventually the Bolsheviks came into power. They were the communist party the Soviet Union.

I found the book a very interesting read. It tells us that the utopian ideal was anything but that. During Stalin’s leadership any opposition would be crushed brutally. The book explores how the leaders that came after Stalin bought changes and how the world events that followed changed the history of the Soviet Union. The dissolution came about rapidly. I liked the fact that the book was to the point and covered all the relevant information.

[Guillermo Muñoz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lección implacable!

La historia lo demuestra. Todo régimen totalitario que reprime la libertad y las voces disidentes mediante la prisión o el asesinato, tarde o temprano caerá. En el caso URSS, fueron 70 años que al final acumularon el descontento de su población, a manera de una olla de presión y ello, no obstante la censura impuesta a los medios de prensa. Ningún régimen totalitario ni sus sirvientes incondicionales, podrán escapar a esta lección de historia. Eso es demostrado en el breve relato de este libro.

[Bob Cantrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A tale of a super power

In a nutshell this book give you a brief history of the rise of the Soviet Union and its demise. There is a lot of information found in this book. In an easy reading format you are introduced to the Soviet Union. I liked this book because it was very straightforward in telling of what happened to the Soviet Union.

[Upendra Bapat · Rating 5 out of 5]

A look into the history

The book explains in brief the rise and fall of the USSR. It allows us to take a look at the political scenario in Europe during the time of the two World wars and the cold war.

[William O. Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick review of the rise and fall of the Soviet Union is an informative read. Although not a scholarly book by any means, it does nevertheless highlight the impact the Soviet Union had on world politics during the 20th century.

[Nandini · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beginner's guide to USSR and its history. I enjoyed reading it and it summarised a bunch of disorganised multiple timelines in my head.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite good. I recommend it.

[Chris Larkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview

For anyone looking to learn the basics from the beginning of the Soviet Union to its end, this is a good short book.

[Jabeen Hussain · Rating 5 out of 5]

concise

I enjoyed reading this as it was very concise and let the reader know exactly what happened? During this period.

[Janette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kindle

[Carl danley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to read cover to cover

Overall this was a great short book for readers to get an understanding of what the Soviet Union was about.

[Dr.J.G.]

"The Crimean War can be seen as the first truly modern war. It introduced the horrors of trench warfare, and it showed for the first time how vulnerable cavalry was to modern breech-loading rifles. It saw combat involving steam-powered, ironclad warships, and it used railways for logistical support. This was also the first war to involve regular battlefield reporting by newspaper reporters and the use of photographs to convey images of conflict. All these things would become relatively commonplace later, first in the American Civil War and then in the First World War, but they were first seen together here.

"The Crimean War can also be seen as the last of the great imperial wars. This war directly involved four of the great empires of the world and a fifth (the Austrian Empire) was involved on the periphery. By the end of the First World War, only one of these empires, the British, would still exist."

Surely French Empire, too, existed - and well past WWII, too, at that? Even the Algiers separation took place under leadership of De Gaulle.

Also, France as well as Britain still own islands in oceans faraway - Pacific Ocean and Indian Ocean - even now?

And didn't Vietnam War that US was involved in, well past sixties, was not begun either before the end of WWII or before France withdrew from Vietnam?

For that matter, Pondicherry was finally independent only after 1947, year of independence of India, was over.
................................................................................................


"Yet the enduring images of the Crimean War are of confusion and waste. Few people in Britain and France really understood why their troops were involved in fighting Russians in the distant Crimea, a place in which neither country had any interest. The blunders which characterized this war in events such as the Charge of the Light Brigade, the near-starvation of troops besieging Sevastopol, and the massive death toll on all sides due to disease and inadequate medical treatment combined with confusion about war aims led to widespread dissatisfaction at home in all the countries involved."

Which resulted in shaping future attitudes and consequences thereof.
................................................................................................


"Perhaps this dissent is why the Crimean War is one of the least remembered major wars of the nineteenth century. There were few glorious victories here, making the huge death toll difficult to understand or justify. The Crimean War remains a truly forgotten war.""

No, that's blindness of the author, perhaps due to a schooling in US.

Not only this war was key to the further developments in Europe including WWI and WWII, but far more; and even by itself, it's still remembered for Florence Nightingale as much as for the event that formed title of the poem by Tennyson, taught through most of Twentieth Century in British school curriculum.

As for lasting effects, look at the pointless unrelenting war waged by West that began with this, and constantly used Islamic jihadists to "contain" Soviet Union or Russia( - including now the Ukraine black comedy centred on the same neighbourhood - Crimea, Black Sea and Sea of Azov - ), even to inviting great danger, to not only West but to all human civilisation.