1 . World War II is over
2 . One of the consequences of the victory of the USSR in the Great Patriotic War was:
A) expansion of democracy in factories and collective farms
B) weakening the power of the state apparatus
C) an end to political repression
D) strengthening the totalitarian regime
3 . Which of the measures taken by the leadership of the USSR refers to the second half of the 40s:
A) the abolition of the card system
B) the establishment of pensions for collective farmers
C) restoration of the eight-hour working day
D) unsubscribing to government loans
4 . What caused the USSR leadership to speed up measures to create nuclear weapons in the first post-war years:
A) preparing for the start of the third world war
B) the US monopoly on the atomic bomb during the Cold War
C) the intention to create a network of Soviet military bases around the United States
D) the need to sell nuclear weapons to third world countries
5. What caused the strengthening in the USSR of both ideological pressure and repression in 1945-1953:
A) mass demonstrations of the population against the government
B) return to the pre-war policy of the totalitarian regime
C) uprisings of Gulag prisoners
D) the danger of a foreign invasion of the USSR
6 . Which of the sciences was actually banned in the USSR in the late 40s:
A) cybernetics
B) nuclear physics
B) biology
D) history
7 . The plan for the restoration of the national economy was adopted in:
8 . What unites the dates of 1949. and 1953 :
A) economic reforms in industry
B) the entry of Soviet troops into other countries
C) the conclusion of international treaties
D) testing in the USSR of a nuclear bomb and a hydrogen bomb
9 .In which of the named periods was the trial of the "Leningrad case" carried out:
A) 1941-1945
B) 1945-1953
C) 1950-1953
D) 1965-1985
10 . The post-war monetary reform included:
A) the introduction of the gold equivalent of the ruble
B) the exchange of "old" money for "new" at the rate of 10:1
C) opening personal accounts of workers
D) increase in money supply
11 . The resolution of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks “On the magazines Zvezda and Leningrad” was adopted in:
12 . The first Berlin Crisis erupted:
13 . Germany was created
14. The Council for Mutual Economic Assistance was formed in:
15. Arrange in chronological order:
A) Yalta Conference
B) W. Churchill's speech in Fulton
B) The Truman Doctrine
D) Creation of NATO
16 .Place in chronological order:
A) post-war monetary reform
B) the beginning of the fourth five-year plan
C) "the case of doctors"
D) "Leningrad case"
17 . Set match:
1. Formation of NATO A) 1952
2. Berlin Crisis B) 1945
3. Abolition of GKO B) 1949
4. 19th Congress of the CPSU (b) D) 1948
18. Set matches:
1. I. Stalin A) Great Britain
2. W. Churchill B) Yugoslavia
3.I. Broz Tito B) USSR
4.G. Truman D) USA
19. Compare the political development of the USSR in the 30s. with political development after the end of the war. What was common and what was the difference (at least two common and three differences).
I option.
The presence of the Red Army contributed to the establishment of pro-Soviet governments in Poland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, East Germany, and Austria.
2. What are the characteristic features of the Cold War? Choose three correct answers.
A. Rupture of diplomatic relations between the superpowers;
B. Arms race;
B. Local military conflicts;
D. Active peace negotiation process;
D. Ideological confrontation;
E. Direct military conflict between the USSR and the USA.
3. Determine the sources of economic recovery of the USSR after the war. Choose three correct answers.
A. Reparations from the defeated countries;
B. Market reforms in the economy;
B. Privatization of large industrial enterprises;
D. Attracting foreign capital;
D. Extraction of funds from agriculture;
E. Loans from the population.
4. Which of the listed facilities were built after the war? Choose three correct answers.
A. Stalingrad HPP;
B. Dneproges;
C. Railway Salekhard-Igarka;
G.Azovstal;
D.South-Ukrainian channel;
E. White Sea-Baltic Canal.
5. Finish the sentence.
"According to the Constitution of the USSR, the highest authority in the country was ...".
6. What judicial political processes in the USSR belong to the post-war period? Choose three correct answers.
A. Leningrad case;
B. Case of doctors.
B. Mingrelian case;
G. The case of the Industrial Party;
D. Shakhty case;
E. Trial of the Mensheviks.
7. What characterizes education in the post-war period? Choose three correct answers.
A. Saving tuition fees;
B. Compulsory ten-year education;
B. Shortage of teaching staff;
D. The policy of "indigenization";
D. Rapid growth in the number of universities and technical schools;
E. Refusal of education for everyone, except for people from the proletarian environment.
8. Correlate the names of writers and the titles of their works.
1. Tvardovsky A.T.;
2. Fadeev A.A.;
3. Polevoy B.N.;
4. Nekrasov V.P.;
5. Panova V.F.
A. "In the trenches of Stalingrad";
B. "Satellites";
V. "Young Guard";
G. "The Tale of a Real Man";
D. "Vasily Terkin".
9. Which of the following events was the first confrontation between the USSR and the USA during the Cold War?
A. Korean War;
B. Caribbean crisis;
B. Berlin Crisis;
D.Vietnam war;
D. Afghan war.
10. Arrange the events in chronological order.
A. Beginning of the Korean War;
B. Monetary reform in the USSR;
B. Decree of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks “On the magazines Zvezda and Leningrad”;
G.XIX Congress of the VKPb;
D. Death of I. Stalin.
11. What, in your opinion, explains the growth of religious sentiment in the USSR after the war? Justify your answer.
12. Why, in your opinion, did the low standard of living in the country after the war not cause popular indignation and protests? Justify your answer.
II option.
1. Underline the extra in the text.
The USSR, USA, Great Britain, France, China, Canada became permanent members of the UN Security Council.
2. What is the purpose of the "Marshall Plan"? Choose three correct answers.
A. Recovery of the economy of Western Europe;
B. Strengthening economic ties with the USSR;
B. Creation of a military bloc;
D. Strengthening trade relations with Western Europe;
D. Financial assistance to former colonies;
E. Modernization of industrial capacities.
3. What is the currency reform of 1947? Choose three correct answers.
A. Replacement of State banknotes for rubles;
B. Increase in money supply;
B. Strengthening the ruble;
D. depreciation of the dollar;
D. Easing inflation;
E. Reducing the shortage of goods.
4. Which of the following factors caused the backlog of agriculture from other sectors of the economy? Choose three correct answers.
A. Low level of mechanization;
B. Mass repressions among collective farmers;
B. Land hunger;
G. Lack of interest among the peasants in increasing production;
D. Import of cheap imported products;
E. Low level of financing of agriculture.
5. Complete the sentence.
"In March 1946, the Supreme Soviet transformed the Council of People's Commissars into...".
6. What judicial political processes in the USSR belong to the post-war period? Choose three correct answers.
A. Case of scientists;
B. The Case of the Anti-Fascist Jewish Committee;
V. Mingrelian case;
G. The case of sabotage at power plants;
D. "Trial of the military";
E. The case of the "Trotsky-Zinoviev terrorist center."
7.What characterized science in the postwar period? Choose three correct answers.
A. Rapid development of genetics and cybernetics;
B. Creation of the first computer;
V.Strong backlog of Soviet science from Western;
G. Creation of the Soviet hydrogen bomb;
E. Refusal of the state from interfering in science;
E. Increasing the number of scientists.
8. Match the names of the directors and the titles of their films.
1. Pyryev I.A.;
2.Ptushko A.L.;
3. Barnet B.V.;
4. Gerasimov S.A.;
5. Kosheverova N.N.
A. "Cinderella";
B. "Young Guard";
V. "Sadko";
G. "The feat of a scout";
D. "The Legend of the Siberian Land."
9. Which of the listed states was not a member of the CMEA?
A. Poland;
B. Czechoslovakia;
B. Yugoslavia;
D.Bulgaria.
10. Arrange the events in chronological order.
A. Creation of CMEA;
B. "Marshall Plan";
B. Testing a hydrogen bomb in the USSR;
D. Beginning of the Korean War;
E. Cancellation of the card system.
11. What, in your opinion, explains the fact that the USSR was the most reading country in the world? Justify your answer.
12. Why do you think there was a population explosion in the USSR after the Great Patriotic War? Justify your answer.
Keys to the test.
I option.
1.Austria.
5. Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
8. 1D, 2B, 3D, 4A, 5B.
10. A3, B2, V1, G4, D5.
II option.
5. Council of Ministers.
8. 1D, 2B, 3G, 4B, 5A.
A1. The restoration of the economy of the USSR after the Great Patriotic War, it was decided to start
1. with heavy industry
2. with agriculture
3. with light industry
4. from the defense industry
A2. Which three of the following events relate to 1945-1953? Circle the appropriate numbers and write them down in the table.
1. introduction into circulation of the "golden gold piece"
2. card cancellation
3. creation of a military bloc from the states of Central and South-Eastern Europe
4. monetary reform to reduce the money supply
5. H-bomb test
6. creation of economic councils
A3. Which of the following was characteristic of the economic development of the USSR in 1953-1964?
1. development of virgin lands
2. export of industrial equipment from Germany
3. using the labor of political prisoners in the construction of industrial facilities
4. repression in the People's Commissariat of Agriculture
A4. Establish a correspondence between works, scientific discoveries and figures of science and art. For each position of the first column, select the corresponding position of the second and write down the selected numbers in the table under the corresponding letters.
A5. Read an excerpt from the report at the party congress and indicate the year in which it was made.
“... It turned out that many party, Soviet, economic workers, who were declared “enemies” in 1937-1938, were never really enemies, spies, wreckers, etc. they didn't show up... but they were slandered, and sometimes, unable to endure the brutal tortures, they slandered themselves (under the dictation of forgery investigators) all sorts of grave and unbelievable accusations...
This happened as a result of the abuse of power by Stalin, who began to use mass terror against the party cadres. ... By this time, Stalin had risen so much above the party and the people that he no longer considered either the Central Committee or the party at all. If before the 17th Congress he still recognized the opinion of the collective, then after the complete political defeat of the Trotskyists, Zinovievites, Bukharinites, when as a result of this struggle and the victories of socialism the party was united, the people were united, Stalin more and more ceased to reckon with the members of the Central Committee of the party and even with members of the Politburo.
A6. Which of the above was one of the results of the economic policy of N.S. Khrushchev?
1. mass exodus of peasants from the countryside to the city
2. increase in grain supplies abroad
3. increase in sown areas for corn
4. introduction of school fees
A7. Establish a correspondence between terms, names and their definitions. For each position of the first column, select the corresponding position of the second and write down the selected numbers in the table under the corresponding letters.
A8. Match dates and events. For each position of the first column, select the corresponding position of the second and write down the selected numbers in the table under the corresponding letters
A9. Which of the following is one of the consequences of the de-Stalinization process?
1. worsening relations between the USSR and China
3. Ending the Cold War
4. an increase in the number of countries in Europe that have embarked on the path of socialist construction
A10. Name the main tasks that were solved in the domestic policy of the USSR in the second half of the 40s - early 50s. 20th century (list at least two tasks). Give examples of actions taken by the country's leadership to solve these problems (at least three examples).
USSR after the war
8.
9.
USSR after the war 1. The monetary reform, during which the money supply in circulation was reduced, was carried out1) in 1946 2) in 1947 3) in 1950 4) in 1952
2. The nationalist movements in the first post-war years reached their greatest scope1) in Western Ukraine, the Baltic republics 2) in the Caucasus and Crimea 3) in Siberia and the Far East 4) in the Volga region
3. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed1) in 1945 2) in 1946 3) in 1949 4) in 1952
4. Mark the feature of the post-war life of a collective farmer.1) no old-age pension 2) 8-hour working day3) the creation of enlarged personal subsidiary plots 4) the maintenance of a fixed salary
5. Participated in the development of the fourth five-year plan1) N.S. Khrushchev 2) N.A. Voznesensky 3) A.A. Kuznetsov 4) G.K. Zhukov
6. Which of the above refers to the policy of I.V. Stalin 1945-1953?1) creation of a multi-party system 2) rehabilitation of peoples deported during the war3) repression 4) creation of labor exchanges
7. In the resolution of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks on the magazines Zvezda and Leningrad, creativity was criticized
1) A. Akhmatova 2) M. Isakovsky 3) A. Fadeeva 4) K. Simonova
8.
The clash of interests between the USSR and the USA occurred in the early 1950s.1) in China 2) in Vietnam 3) in Mongolia 4) in Korea
9. 3. Member of the Politburo and Secretary of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, responsible for ideological work, whose name is associated with the persecution of cultural figures in the post-war years:
1) G.M. Malenkov; 2) L.P. Beria; 3) A.A. Zhdanov. 4) A.A. Kuznetsov
10. What events relate to the period 1945 -1949?
1) the creation of the Soviet atomic bomb 2) the rehabilitation of GULAG prisoners
3) the entry of the USSR into NATO 4) the creation of the CMEA 5) the creation of a system of socialism 6) the elimination of collective farms
- Investigators Telman Gdlyan and Nikolai Ivanov investigated one of the most high-profile criminal cases of the 80s - the “cotton case”
- One of the defendants in the "cotton case", the former first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Uzbekistan Sharaf Rashidov and Nikita Khrushchev
Launch of the first artificial Earth satellite into orbit. The launch date is considered the beginning of the space age of mankind.
Launch of the world's first manned spacecraft. Yuri Gagarin was the first person to go into space. Yu. Gagarin's flight became the most important achievement of Soviet science and space industry. The USSR for several years became the undisputed leader in space exploration. The Russian word "satellite" has entered many European languages. Gagarin's name became known to millions of people. Many pinned their hopes on the USSR for a brighter future, when the development of science would lead to the establishment of social justice and world peace.
The entry of Warsaw Pact troops (except Romania) into Czechoslovakia, which put an end to the reforms of the Prague Spring. The largest contingent of troops was allocated from the USSR. The political goal of the operation was to change the political leadership of the country and establish a regime loyal to the USSR in Czechoslovakia. Citizens of Czechoslovakia demanded the withdrawal of foreign troops and the return of party and government leaders who had been taken to the USSR. In early September, the troops were withdrawn from many cities and towns of Czechoslovakia to specially designated locations. Soviet tanks left Prague on September 11, 1968. On October 16, 1968, an agreement was signed between the governments of the USSR and Czechoslovakia on the conditions for the temporary stay of Soviet troops on the territory of Czechoslovakia, according to which part of the Soviet troops remained on the territory of Czechoslovakia "in order to ensure the security of the socialist community." These events had a great influence both on the domestic policy of the USSR and on the atmosphere in society. It became obvious that the Soviet authorities had finally chosen a hard line of government. The hopes of a significant part of the population for the possibility of reforming socialism, which arose during the Khrushchev "thaw", faded away.
01 Sep 1969
Publication in the West of a book by well-known dissident Andrei Amalrik “Will the Soviet Union Survive Until 1984?” A. Amalrik was one of the first who predicted the imminent collapse of the USSR. The late 1960s and early 1970s were in the USSR a time of stable economic growth and an increase in the standard of living of the population, as well as a time of relaxation of international tension. Most Soviet people believed that they would always live under Soviet rule. It pleased some, horrified others, others just got used to this idea. Western Sovietologists also did not foresee the collapse of the USSR. Only a few have managed to see behind the façade of relative prosperity the signs of an inevitable impending crisis. (From A. Amalrik's book “Will the Soviet Union Exist Until 1984?” and From A. Gurevich's book “History of the Historian”).
02 Sep 1972
The beginning of the super series of eight ice hockey matches between the national teams of the USSR and Canada. The USSR was a great sports power. The leadership of the USSR saw sports victories as a means of ensuring the prestige of the country, which was supposed to be the first in everything. In sports, this was done better than in the economy. In particular, Soviet hockey players almost always won world championships. However, hockey players from professional clubs in Canada and the United States, who were considered by many to be the best in the world, did not participate in these competitions. The 1972 Super Series was watched by millions of television viewers around the world. In the first match, the USSR national team achieved a convincing victory with a score of 7:3. In general, the series ended almost in a draw: the Canadian team won 4 matches, the USSR team - 3, but in terms of the number of goals scored, the Soviet athletes were ahead of the Canadians (32:31).
Publication in Paris of Alexander Solzhenitsyn's book The Gulag Archipelago, a fictional study of Stalin's repressions and Soviet society as a whole. The book was based on the personal testimonies of many hundreds of former prisoners who spoke in detail about their experience of confronting the machine of state terror to A. Solzhenitsyn, who himself went through the Stalinist camps. Translated into many languages, the book made a strong impression on readers, showing a wide panorama of the crimes committed by the Soviet regime against the population of the country. The Gulag Archipelago is one of those books that changed the world. The most important idea of A. Solzhenitsyn was the idea that terror was not an accident, but a natural result of the establishment of the communist regime. The book dealt a blow to the international prestige of the USSR and contributed to the disappointment of the Western “left” in Soviet-style socialism.
Signing of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. Signed in Helsinki (which is why it is often called the Helsinki Agreement) by representatives of 35 states, including the USSR, this treaty became the highest point of the international detente that began in the late 1960s. The treaty established the principle of the inviolability of post-war borders in Europe and the non-interference of the signatory countries in each other's internal affairs, proclaimed the need for international cooperation and respect for human rights. However, the USSR was not going to respect the political and civil rights of its citizens. The persecution of dissenters continued. The Helsinki Agreement became a trap for the USSR: it made it possible to accuse the communist regime of violating international obligations and contributed to the development of the human rights movement. In 1976, the first Russian human rights organization, the Moscow Helsinki Group, was created, with Yuri Orlov as its first chairman.
The assault on the palace of Amin (leader of Afghanistan) in Kabul. Soviet troops, under the pretext of supporting the democratic revolution, invaded Afghanistan and installed a pro-communist puppet regime. The answer was the mass movement of the Mujahideen - partisans who acted under the slogans of independence and religious (Islamic) slogans, relying on the support of Pakistan and the United States. A long war began, during which the USSR was forced to maintain in Afghanistan the so-called "limited contingent" (from 80 thousand to 120 thousand military personnel in different years), who, however, could not take this mountainous country under control. The war led to a new confrontation with the West, a further decline in the international prestige of the USSR and overwhelming military spending. It cost the lives of many thousands of Soviet soldiers, and as a result of hostilities and punitive expeditions against partisans, hundreds of thousands of Afghan civilians died (there is no exact data). The war ended in 1989 with the actual defeat of the USSR. It became a difficult moral and psychological experience for the Soviet people, and above all for the "Afghans", i.e. soldiers who went through the war. Some developed "Afghan Syndrome" - a form of mental illness generated by experiences of fear and cruelty. During the years of perestroika, rumors circulated in society about special forces made up of “Afghans” and ready to drown the democratic movement in blood.
Holding the XXII Olympic Games in Moscow. The USSR national team won the unofficial team standings, receiving 80 gold, 69 silver and 46 bronze medals. However, due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, many foreign athletes refused to attend the Moscow Olympics. The United States also boycotted the Olympics, which, of course, reduced the value of the victory of the Soviet team.
The funeral of Vladimir Vysotsky, an outstanding artist and singer-songwriter of songs that were very popular. Tens of thousands of fans of his talent came to the Taganka Theater to say goodbye to their favorite singer, and they came against the will of the authorities, who did everything to hush up the fact of the death of the artist, which occurred during the days of the Moscow Olympics. The funeral of V. Vysotsky became the same mass demonstration of oppositional sentiments, which was once seen off by A. Suvorov (1800) or L. Tolstoy (1910) - the public funeral of great people, whom the ruling elite did not wish to arrange an honorary state funeral.
07 Mar 1981
March 7, 1981, in the Leningrad Inter-Union House of amateur art at the address "Rubinshteina, 13" a "rock session" authorized by the authorities took place.
False
Death of General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU Leonid Brezhnev, who ruled the country after the removal of Nikita Khrushchev from power in 1964. The board of L. Brezhnev is divided into two stages. At its beginning, there were attempts at economic reforms, the rise of the Soviet economy and the growth of the international influence of the USSR, which achieved nuclear parity with the United States. However, the fear of "erosion" of socialism, intensified by the events of 1968 in Czechoslovakia, led to the curtailment of reforms. The country's leadership has chosen a conservative strategy to maintain the status quo (the status quo). With relatively high energy prices, this allowed the illusion of growth to be maintained for several years, but in the 1970s the country entered a period known as stagnation. The crisis of the Soviet economy was accompanied by a new confrontation with the West, which intensified especially with the outbreak of the war in Afghanistan, a catastrophic decline in the prestige of the authorities, and a massive disappointment of the Soviet people in socialist values.
09 Feb 1984
Death of General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU Yuri Andropov, who was elected to this post after the death of L. Brezhnev. The middle-aged and seriously ill Yu. Andropov, who for many years was the chairman of the KGB, had extensive information about the situation in the country. He understood the urgent need for reforms, but was afraid of even the slightest manifestations of liberalization. Therefore, his attempts at reform were mainly reduced to "putting things in order", i.e. to investigate corruption in the highest echelons of power and improve labor discipline with the help of police raids on shops and cinemas, where they tried to catch people who skipped work.
29 Sep 1984
The "golden" docking of two segments of the Baikal-Amur Mainline under construction - the famous BAM, the last "great building of socialism". The docking took place at the Balbukhta junction in the Kalarsky district of the Chita region, where two groups of builders met, moving towards each other for ten years.
Mar 10, 1985
Death of General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU Konstantin Chernenko, who became the leader of the party and state after the death of Yu. Andropov. K. Chernenko belonged to the same generation of Soviet leaders as L. Brezhnev and Yu. Andropov. A politician even more cautious and conservative than Yu. Andropov, he tried to return to the practice of the Brezhnev leadership. The obvious inefficiency of his activities prompted the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU to choose a representative of the next generation, Mikhail Gorbachev, as their new general secretary.
11 Mar 1985
Election of Mikhail Gorbachev as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU. The coming to power of a relatively young (fifty-four-year-old) leader aroused in Soviet society optimistic expectations of long overdue reforms. M. Gorbachev, as general secretary, wielded enormous power. Having created his team of liberal-minded party and state leaders of the new generation, he began to transform. However, it soon became clear that the new leadership did not have a specific program. M. Gorbachev and his team moved forward intuitively, overcoming the resistance of the conservative wing of the leadership and adapting to changing conditions.
The adoption of the resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU "On measures to overcome drunkenness and alcoholism", followed by a broad anti-alcohol campaign, conceived under Yu. Andropov. Restrictions were imposed on the sale of alcoholic beverages, administrative penalties for drunkenness were increased, and tens of thousands of hectares of unique vineyards were cut down in the Crimea, Moldova and other regions of the country. The result of the thoughtlessly conducted campaign was not so much a decrease in alcohol consumption, but a reduction in budget revenues (which depended on income from the wine trade) and the wholesale distribution of home brewing. The campaign damaged the reputation of the new leadership. The nickname "mineral secretary" stuck to M. Gorbachev for a long time.
27 Sep 1985
Appointment of Nikolai Ryzhkov head of the Soviet government - Chairman of the Council of Ministers. An engineer by education, in the past the general director of one of the largest industrial enterprises in the USSR - Uralmash (Ural Machine-Building Plant), N. Ryzhkov was appointed Secretary of the Central Committee for Economics in 1982 and joined the team created by Yu. Andropov to implement economic reforms. N. Ryzhkov became one of the main associates of M. Gorbachev. However, his knowledge and experience (in particular, in the field of economics) were insufficient to guide the reforms, which became clear as the economic crisis intensified in the country.
The accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is the largest accident in the history of nuclear energy. During a scheduled test, a powerful explosion of the fourth power unit occurred, accompanied by the release of radioactive substances into the atmosphere. The Soviet leadership tried first to hush up the catastrophe, and then to downplay its scale (for example, despite the danger of mass infection, the May Day demonstration in Kyiv was not cancelled). With a great delay, the resettlement of residents from the 30-kilometer zone around the station began. About a hundred people died during the accident and from its consequences, and more than 115 thousand people were evicted from the disaster area. More than 600 thousand people took part in the liquidation of the consequences of the accident (which are still felt in Belarus and Ukraine). The Chernobyl accident dealt a blow to the prestige of the USSR, showing the unreliability of Soviet technology and the irresponsibility of the Soviet leadership.
Soviet-American summit in Reykjavik. M. Gorbachev and US President R. Reagan reached an understanding on the elimination of intermediate and shorter-range missiles and the beginning of the reduction of nuclear stocks. Both countries experienced financial difficulties and had to limit the arms race. The corresponding agreement was signed on December 8, 1987. However, the unwillingness of the United States to abandon the development of a strategic defense initiative (SDI), colloquially referred to as the "star wars" program (i.e., nuclear strikes from space), did not allow agreement on a more radical nuclear disarmament.
Landing near the Kremlin light aircraft German amateur pilot Matthias Rust. Taking off from Helsinki, the 18-year-old pilot turned off his instruments and crossed the Soviet border unnoticed. After that, he was discovered several times by the air defense service, but he again disappeared from the radar and evaded pursuit. M. Rust himself claimed that his flight was a call for friendship between peoples, but many Soviet military and intelligence officers saw this as a provocation by Western intelligence services. The flight of M. Rust was used by M. Gorbachev to update the leadership of the Ministry of Defense. The new minister was Dmitry Yazov, who was then a supporter of M. Gorbachev, but later supported the State Emergency Committee.
Airing of the first issue of the most popular TV program of the 1990s, Vzglyad. This program of Central Television (later ORT) was created on the initiative of A. Yakovlev as an information and entertainment program for youth by a group of young journalists (in particular, Vlad Listyev and Alexander Lyubimov). The program was broadcast live, which was new for the Soviet audience. This largely ensured the popularity of "Vzglyad", since earlier in the live broadcast one could only see sports matches and the first minutes of the speech of the General Secretary at the congresses of the CPSU.In December 1990, at a time of extreme escalation of the political struggle, Vzglyad was banned for several months, but soon again became the main political program that supported B. Yeltsin's democratic reforms. However, many Vzglyad journalists, including A. Lyubimov, did not support the president at the decisive moment of the conflict with the Supreme Soviet - on the night of October 3-4, 1993, urging Muscovites to refrain from participating in the demonstration organized by Ye. Gaidar.Since 1994, the program began to appear as an information and analytical one. Closed in 2001 (see articles "" and "").
Publication in the Pravda newspaper of an article about the "cotton case" - an investigation of embezzlement in Uzbekistan, in which representatives of the top leadership of the republic were involved. This article served as a signal for a wide campaign of exposing the corruption of the party and state apparatus.
Feb 27, 1988
Armenian pogrom in Sumgayit (Azerbaijan). Several dozen people were killed and several hundred were injured. This was the first case of mass violence motivated by ethno-national hatred during the perestroika years. The reason for the pogrom was the conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Okrug, predominantly populated by Armenians, as part of the Azerbaijan SSR. Both the Armenian majority in this district and the leadership of Armenia demanded that Karabakh be transferred to this republic, while the leadership of Azerbaijan categorically objected. Demonstrations began in Karabakh in the summer, and in autumn and winter the conflict continued to aggravate, accompanied by mass rallies and armed clashes. The intervention of the allied leadership, which called for calm, but on the whole supported the principle of the immutability of borders, i.e. position of Azerbaijan, did not lead to normalization of the situation. Mass emigration of Armenians from Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis from Armenia began, murders motivated by ethno-national hatred took place in both republics, and new pogroms took place in November-December ("").
Mar 13, 1988
Publication in Sovetskaya Rossiya (a newspaper of state-patriotic orientation) of an article by Nina Andreeva, a lecturer at the Technological Institute in Leningrad, “I can’t compromise my principles,” which condemned “excesses” in criticism of Stalinism. The author contrasted his position as "left-liberals", i.e. pro-Western intelligentsia, and nationalists. The article aroused public concern: is it not a signal that perestroika is over? Under pressure from M. Gorbachev, the Politburo decided to condemn N. Andreeva's article.
On April 5, the main party newspaper Pravda published an article entitled “Principles of Perestroika: Revolutionary Thought and Action” by Alexander Yakovlev, which confirmed the course towards the democratization of public life, and N. Andreeva’s article was described as a manifesto of anti-perestroika forces ( see articles "", "").
16 Sep 1988
Premiere of the film "Needle" in Alma-Ata (Kazakhfilm film studio, director Rashid Nugmanov, starring famous rock musicians Viktor Tsoi and Petr Mamonov). The film, dedicated to the problem of youth drug addiction, very quickly became a cult.
A powerful earthquake in the northwestern regions of Armenia (with a magnitude of 7.2 on the Richter scale), which affected about 40% of the territory of the republic. The city of Spitak was completely destroyed, partially - Leninakan and hundreds of other settlements. At least 25,000 people died and about half a million were displaced by the earthquake. For the first time since the Cold War, the Soviet authorities formally requested assistance from other countries, which readily provided humanitarian and technical support to deal with the consequences of the earthquake. Thousands of volunteers arrived at the scene of the tragedy to provide all possible assistance to the victims: people brought food, water and clothes, donated blood, searched for survivors under the rubble, evacuated the population in their cars.
Mar 26, 1989
Elections of the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR. These were the first partially free elections in the history of the USSR, when in most districts there were alternative candidates with different programs. Despite the fact that the law established numerous "filters" that allowed the authorities to weed out objectionable candidates, many democratically minded public figures were still elected. The elections were a triumph for B. Yeltsin, who received more than 90% of the vote in Moscow (with a turnout of almost 90%). This is how the future president of Russia returned to politics. On the contrary, many local party leaders lost the elections. A number of democratic candidates passed to the deputies from public organizations. But in general, most of the deputies were controlled by the party apparatus and stood on moderate or frankly conservative positions.
Conducting the First Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR in Moscow, broadcast from the meetings of which were watched by tens of millions of viewers. At the congress, a sharp struggle unfolded between the democratically minded deputies and the "aggressively obedient majority," as historian Yuri Afanasiev, one of the leaders of the opposition, called it. Conservative deputies “slammed down” democratic orators (they were not allowed to speak with applause and noise and driven from the podium), such as Academician A. Sakharov. M. Gorbachev at the congress relied on the majority, while trying not to alienate the democratic opposition. The congress elected the Supreme Soviet of the USSR and appointed M. Gorbachev as its chairman. B. Yeltsin also got into the Supreme Soviet - he lacked one vote before the election, and then one of the elected deputies renounced his mandate, thus giving way to Yeltsin. During the congress, the organizational formation of the democratic opposition - the Interregional Deputy Group - took place.
Death of A. Sakharov, an outstanding Soviet scientist and public figure, one of the creators of the hydrogen bomb, leader of the human rights movement in the USSR, Nobel Peace Prize winner (1975). Tens of thousands of Muscovites took part in the funeral of A. Sakharov.
The fall of the regime of Nicolae Ceausescu - the most authoritarian of the communist regimes in Eastern Europe - after weeks of mass demonstrations and an unsuccessful attempt to suppress them with military force. On December 25, after a short trial, N. Ceausescu and his wife (who took an active part in organizing reprisals against opponents of the regime) were shot.
Opening of the first McDonald's fast food restaurant in the USSR in Moscow. On Pushkinskaya Square there were many hours of queues of people wishing to taste the classic American food - hamburgers. "McDonald's" struck with unusual cleanliness - even in the winter slush, its floors were always perfectly washed. The attendants - young men and women - were unusually diligent and helpful, trying to reproduce in their behavior the ideal image of the West, which was opposed to the Soviet ("Soviet", as they said then) way of life.
04 Feb 1990
Holding a demonstration in Moscow, which was attended by more than 200 thousand people, demanding the deepening of democratic reforms and the abolition of the 6th article of the Constitution of the USSR, which consolidated the leading role of the CPSU in Soviet society. On February 7, the plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU voted for the abolition of the 6th article. M. Gorbachev managed to convince the party that it would be able to maintain its leading role even under a multi-party system.
Election by the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church of Metropolitan Alexy of Leningrad and Novgorod (1929-2008) as head of the Russian Orthodox Church - Patriarch of Moscow. Alexy II replaced Patriarch Pimen, who died in May, in this post. The period of Patriarchy of Alexy II was marked by decisive changes in the life of the country, the crisis of communist ideology, the cessation of the persecution of citizens for religious beliefs and the growth of religious sentiments in society. Under the leadership of the Patriarch, the Russian Orthodox Church made attempts to establish control over various spheres of public life and culture ( see article "").
The death in a car accident of Viktor Tsoi, the leader of the Kino group and the brightest figure in the Leningrad Rock Club. Tsoi belonged to the "generation of janitors and watchmen", as another famous musician, Boris Grebenshchikov, called the representatives of the forbidden culture ("underground") of the 70-80s. This generation was brightly revealed in the years of perestroika. V. Tsoi's albums and films with his participation were very popular. V. Tsoi's song "We are waiting for change" has become one of the symbols of perestroika: "Change! our hearts demand. // Change! our eyes demand. The death of an idol at the peak of fame caused an extraordinary resonance among young people. In many cities, "Tsoi's walls" appeared, covered with words from songs and statements "Tsoi is alive." The former place of work of V. Tsoi - a boiler room in St. Petersburg - has become a place of pilgrimage for admirers of his work. Later, in 2003, the club-museum of V. Tsoi was opened there.
Mar 17, 1991
Holding a union referendum on the preservation of the USSR, as well as a Russian referendum on the introduction of the post of president of the RSFSR. 79.5% of citizens who had the right to vote took part in the union referendum, and 76.4% of them spoke in favor of preserving the USSR (Results in the union republics that supported the referendum on the preservation of the USSR on March 17, 1991). The Union leadership wanted to use the victory in the referendum to prevent the collapse of the Union and force the republics to sign a new Union Treaty. However, six union republics (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Armenia, Georgia, Moldova) boycotted the referendum on the grounds that they had already made decisions to secede from the USSR. True, in Transnistria, Abkhazia and South Ossetia (which sought to secede from Moldova and Georgia, respectively), the majority of citizens took part in the vote and spoke in favor of preserving the USSR, which meant an increase in internal conflict in these republics. 71.3% of the participants in the Russian referendum were in favor of creating the post of president.
Election of Boris Yeltsin as President of the RSFSR. He won already in the first round, ahead of the communist and nationalist candidates who opposed him. Simultaneously with B. Yeltsin, Alexander Rutskoi, an aviation general and one of the leaders of democratically minded communist deputies, was elected vice president. On the same day, the first direct elections of heads of regions took place. Mintimer Shaimiev was elected president of Tatarstan, and the chairmen of the democratic Moscow City Council and Lensoviet Gavriil Popov and Anatoly Sobchak were elected mayors of Moscow and St. Petersburg.
July 4, 1991 Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR Boris Yeltsin signed the law "On the privatization of the housing stock in the RSFSR"
False
On November 18, 1991, the Mexican television series "The Rich Also Cry" was released on the USSR television screens. It became the second "soap opera" shown on our television, after the huge success of "Slave Izaura".
False
On December 25, 1991, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev announced the termination of his activities in this post "for reasons of principle."
The statement of the President of the USSR M. Gorbachev about his resignation and the transfer to the President of the RSFSR B. Yeltsin of the so-called "nuclear suitcase", with the help of which the head of state has the ability to control the use of nuclear weapons. From that day on, the RSFSR became officially known as the Russian Federation. Instead of the Soviet red flag, the tricolor Russian flag was raised over the Kremlin.
On January 2, 1992, prices were liberalized in Russia, marking the beginning of large-scale market reforms carried out by Yegor Gaidar's government.
Feb 23, 1992
From February 8 to February 23, 1992, the XVI Winter Olympic Games were held in Albertville, France. They became the third in the history of France - the first were in Chamonix in 1924, the second in Grenoble in 1968.
Mar 31, 1992
On March 31, 1992, the Federal Treaty was signed in the Kremlin, one of the main sources of the constitutional law of the Russian Federation in the field of regulation of federal relations.
On April 6, 1992, the VI Congress of People's Deputies of the Russian Federation opened. It was the first sharp confrontation between the legislative and executive branches of power on two main issues - the course of economic reform and the draft of a new Constitution.
On August 14, 1992, Boris Yeltsin signed a decree "On the introduction of a system of privatization checks in the Russian Federation", which launched check privatization in Russia.
07 Sep 1992
On October 1, 1992, the issuance of privatization checks began in Russia, which were popularly called vouchers.
False
Support for the president in the referendum by the majority of Russians who expressed confidence in the president (58.7%) and approved of his socio-economic policy (53%). Despite Boris Yeltsin's moral victory, the constitutional crisis was not overcome.
23 Sep 1993
Holding the X Extraordinary (Extraordinary) Congress of People's Deputies of the Russian Federation in connection with the decree of B. Yeltsin No. 1400. On the very first day of its work, the congress decided to depose B. Yeltsin. Vice President A. Rutskoy was appointed acting president, who, along with the chairman of the Supreme Council R. Khasbulatov, was the leader of the opposition. The White House - the place of meetings of the Supreme Council, around which the events of the August putsch unfolded - was cordoned off by the police. As in August 1991, the White House was surrounded by barricades. Nationalist militants hastily gathered in Moscow to defend the Supreme Soviet.
The capture of the White House by troops loyal to the president. During this operation, the tanks, having warned about the opening of fire, fired several shots (and not with live shells, but with training blanks) on the upper floors of the White House, where, as it was known in advance, there was not a single person. In the afternoon, units loyal to the government occupied the White House and arrested the organizers of the coup. As a result of these events, there were no deaths, which, unfortunately, cannot be said about armed clashes in the street: from September 21 to October 4, from 141 (data from the Prosecutor General's Office) to 160 (data from a special parliamentary commission) people died in them. This was a tragic consequence of the October conflict, but it was he who made it possible to avoid an even more terrible development of events - a repetition of the civil war, when more than 10 million people died.
Elections to the State Duma and a referendum on the Constitution of the Russian Federation.
Yegor Gaidar's resignation from the post of First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, to which he was appointed on September 18, 1993 - on the eve of decisive events related to the struggle between the president and the Supreme Council. On the night of October 3-4, when the militants of the Supreme Council were trying to seize the Ostankino television center, Y. Gaidar's televised appeal to Muscovites with an appeal to gather near the Moscow City Council building and express support for the president helped turn the tide in favor of B. Yeltsin. However, the electoral bloc "Russia's Choice" created by Ye. Gaidar failed to win a majority in the Duma in the elections in December 1993, which could have made it possible to continue radical market reforms. It became obvious that the government of V. Chernomyrdin would be forced to pursue the former policy of compromises. Under these conditions, E. Gaidar left the government and focused on work as the leader of the Duma faction "Russia's Choice". E. Gaidar did not work in the government anymore ( see articles "", "" and "").
Return to Russia of Alexander Solzhenitsyn. On this day, the writer flew to Magadan from the United States, where he had lived since 1974 after being expelled from the USSR. The writer, universally greeted as a triumphant, made a long trip around the country.
01 Mar 1995
Conducting a military parade in Moscow in honor of the 50th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany. The parade consisted of two parts - historical and modern. The historical part was held on Red Square. Veterans of the Great Patriotic War took part in it, marching along Red Square in columns of fronts of the war era, with front banners in front; as well as military personnel dressed in the uniform of the Red Army of the 40s. The modern part of the parade took place on Poklonnaya Gora, where units of the Russian army and modern military equipment passed. The reason for this division was the condemnation by the leaders of other countries of military operations on the territory of the Chechen Republic. They refused to attend the parade of troops participating in these events, and it was for this reason that only the historical part of the parade was held on Red Square.