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| History of Russia |
It was in 882 that the Vikings established the first Russian state at Kiev which became an important trading center. In those days Russia consisted of a large number of nomadic tribes scattered all over the countryside. In the last part of the 10th century the area was ruled by Vladimir-I who imposed the faith of the Russian Orthodox church upon the people.
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In the beginning of the 13th century the Mongols invaded and destroyed most of Russia. It was only about two and a half centuries later that the Russian Czar, emperor, Ivan-III pulled Russia out of Mongol control and established his own control over Moscow. After the death of Ivan-III, Ivan IV, also called ‘Ivan the Terrible’ came into power. He was a very harsh ruler and the common peasants suffered under him and the ladn owners. The period between 1604 to 1613 was a difficult one and Russia faced many civil wars and and attempts to overcome the throne.
This period ended in 1613 when Michael Romanov took over the throne. In the year 1682 Peter the Great became the next Czer of Russia. He ruled well dn expande the empire to gain control of the Baltic coast. He reformed the educational system and modernissed the industry. He also built a new capital at St. Petersberg. His rule was followed by the rule of Catherine the Great. In the year 1812 Napoleon invaded Russia but failed because his army perished in the cold Russian winter. In 1914 Russia joined World War-I against Germany and lost a very large number of soldiers in 1916.
The Russian Czar Nicholas-II was blamed for this defeat and after his abdication he was arrested and executed by the ‘Bolsheviks’, a revolutionary group. After this Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the Bolsheviks, set up the world’s first communist state and declared it as a Soviet Republic. In the coming years this republic went on to become the Union of Sovier Socialist Republics which too was subsequently dissolved.
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