Our Russian history lesson continued this morning. Why did the Bolsheviks succeed in taking over? At the time, 85% of Russians were peasants, 14% factory workers and 1% the rich. The Bolsheviks, promised what people wanted: land to the peasants, factories to the workers, and peace to the nation! After the October, 1917 revolution , a civil war, ensued between the reds and the whites, but the whites had various aims: back to the Czars, democracy, etc. By 1921, the reds were in control with Lenin as their leader, but he died in 1922. Leon Trotsky was the heir apparent, but Stalin, a relatively quiet Georgian, planted discontent among the politburo (fear for their position if Trotsky was selected). Trotsky was exciled and by 1928, Stalin was in control. He started the Five Year Plans: industrialization, collectivisation, and cultural revolution. The land was taken from the peasants to form collectives and those who protested were arrested and sent to the gulags. This provided the labor for industrialization: hydropower plants, canals, mineral extractions, steel factories, etc. Meanwhile the cultural revolution was encouraged by a huge propaganda machine - how rich Russia was and how Stalin was serving their best interests. Stalin executed anyone who opposed him (2 million). Our guide, Misha's mother remembers cutting out former leaders from the history books with scissors after they were purged.
Of course, World War II had huge effects on the country - 27 Million died (1/2 of all World War II casualties). 16M were civilians. While Russia signed a non-aggression pact with Germany in 1939, on June 22nd, 1941, Germany attacked and soon were surrounding St. Petersburg, and in the suburbs on Moscow. In August, Russia was able to resist and stopped the advance. When Stalin learned that Japan would attack the US, not Russia, they moved troops from the east to the west and began their counteroffensive on Dec. 5th, 1941.
In 1942, Germany concentrated on winning the oil fields near Stalingrad (Volgograd). With help from tanks and airplanes provided from America's lend-lease program, Russia held Stalingrad. The tide turned. With the agreement of Roosevelt at the Yalta conference, Russian regained Eastern Europe which they kept after World War II.
Stalin died in March, 1953. Soon after Khrushchev began de-Stalinization, the gulags were closed in May, private apartments were quickly built (300-500 sq.) ft. and people were allowed small dachas with gardens.
In 1963 Brezhnev replaced Khrushchev. This was a time of stability, but consumer and agricultural goods were in short supply. The chicken generation began, their primary meat was chicken since other meat was rationed at 4 lb./year. Over 80% of the economy was military. Brezhnev died in 1982 and the USSR went through at series of leaders (who quickly died) until Gorbachev. Gorbachev was famous for "Glasnost"- openness and "Perestroika" - restructuring. Glastnoss, however, quickly suffered when the Chernobyl nuclear disaster was hidden for days, until the Swedes detected the radioactive cloud. Gorbachev also started an unpopular anti-drinking campaign, so while his foreign policy was well-received abroad, he wasn't appreciated at home. In August, 1991, there was a Communist coup, but the people rebelled, resulting in the dissolution of the USSR. Russia was ruled by its president, Yeltsin. The Yeltsin years turned democracy into a curse - the ruble was devalued by almost 10000 to 1 in a few months, state industries were privatized and given to Yeltsin friends and soon mafia war broke out between factions for control of the industries. In 1993, the Parliament tried to impeach Yeltsin, but he surrounded Parliament with tanks and dissolved it. In 1996, he was re-elected, but the election was most likely stolen. A favorite joke of the time: "it doesn't matter how you vote, it's how we count the votes." In his last term, Yeltsin was often seen drunk in public, times were so taught that life expectancy in Russia, dropped to the late 50s. In 2000, Putin was elected and he cleaned up after Yeltsin - pensions were increased 50-70 times to make up for inflation as one example. Even today, Putin enjoys 70% approval ratings. As Misha says: "we really don't have a democracy, but we're happy with our benevolent dictatorship". Life is improving.
Our stop today was the village of Goritsi. Here is a nunnery built in 1554, a place which served as a place of imprisonment for Ivan the Terrible's 4th and 7th wives. This area is also called the "Land of the Blue Lakes". We visited the Karill0-Belozersk Monastery, built in 1397, the larges in Russia. Home of up to 200 monks, today it only has 5. Probably the most impressive portion was the 16th century frescoes at the main entrance. We encountered lots of people swimming in the lake since our day was sunny and warm. The favorites saying here is "In winter we have 9 months of anticipation for summer and in summer, it's 3 months of disappointment". (The last snow was on June 10th and the first freeze is usually late August.)
Of course, World War II had huge effects on the country - 27 Million died (1/2 of all World War II casualties). 16M were civilians. While Russia signed a non-aggression pact with Germany in 1939, on June 22nd, 1941, Germany attacked and soon were surrounding St. Petersburg, and in the suburbs on Moscow. In August, Russia was able to resist and stopped the advance. When Stalin learned that Japan would attack the US, not Russia, they moved troops from the east to the west and began their counteroffensive on Dec. 5th, 1941.
In 1942, Germany concentrated on winning the oil fields near Stalingrad (Volgograd). With help from tanks and airplanes provided from America's lend-lease program, Russia held Stalingrad. The tide turned. With the agreement of Roosevelt at the Yalta conference, Russian regained Eastern Europe which they kept after World War II.
Stalin died in March, 1953. Soon after Khrushchev began de-Stalinization, the gulags were closed in May, private apartments were quickly built (300-500 sq.) ft. and people were allowed small dachas with gardens.
In 1963 Brezhnev replaced Khrushchev. This was a time of stability, but consumer and agricultural goods were in short supply. The chicken generation began, their primary meat was chicken since other meat was rationed at 4 lb./year. Over 80% of the economy was military. Brezhnev died in 1982 and the USSR went through at series of leaders (who quickly died) until Gorbachev. Gorbachev was famous for "Glasnost"- openness and "Perestroika" - restructuring. Glastnoss, however, quickly suffered when the Chernobyl nuclear disaster was hidden for days, until the Swedes detected the radioactive cloud. Gorbachev also started an unpopular anti-drinking campaign, so while his foreign policy was well-received abroad, he wasn't appreciated at home. In August, 1991, there was a Communist coup, but the people rebelled, resulting in the dissolution of the USSR. Russia was ruled by its president, Yeltsin. The Yeltsin years turned democracy into a curse - the ruble was devalued by almost 10000 to 1 in a few months, state industries were privatized and given to Yeltsin friends and soon mafia war broke out between factions for control of the industries. In 1993, the Parliament tried to impeach Yeltsin, but he surrounded Parliament with tanks and dissolved it. In 1996, he was re-elected, but the election was most likely stolen. A favorite joke of the time: "it doesn't matter how you vote, it's how we count the votes." In his last term, Yeltsin was often seen drunk in public, times were so taught that life expectancy in Russia, dropped to the late 50s. In 2000, Putin was elected and he cleaned up after Yeltsin - pensions were increased 50-70 times to make up for inflation as one example. Even today, Putin enjoys 70% approval ratings. As Misha says: "we really don't have a democracy, but we're happy with our benevolent dictatorship". Life is improving.
Our stop today was the village of Goritsi. Here is a nunnery built in 1554, a place which served as a place of imprisonment for Ivan the Terrible's 4th and 7th wives. This area is also called the "Land of the Blue Lakes". We visited the Karill0-Belozersk Monastery, built in 1397, the larges in Russia. Home of up to 200 monks, today it only has 5. Probably the most impressive portion was the 16th century frescoes at the main entrance. We encountered lots of people swimming in the lake since our day was sunny and warm. The favorites saying here is "In winter we have 9 months of anticipation for summer and in summer, it's 3 months of disappointment". (The last snow was on June 10th and the first freeze is usually late August.)
Frescoes at the Monastery
In the afternoon we participated in vodka tasting. Originally vodka was a medication, similar to rubbing alcohol. Today, the best vodka is based on wheat, not potatoes and is sipped straight, not mixed in cocktails. In the late 19th century, Mendeleev (who invented the chemical elements table) standardized vodka as 40% alcohol and 60% dilutant, mostly water, possibly with some flavoring. We tried pure vodka, one flavored with honey and peppers, and another with birch buds. None had a smell of alcohol, and almost no burning sensation. You'll remember that Gorbachev tried to tackle the drinking problem: he halved the production and outlets of vodka, you could only purchase 1 bottle at time between the hours of 2-6 PM daily. Misha remembers being in line for 4 hours to buy a bottle of vodka for his father.
No comments:
Post a Comment