THE COLLAPSE OF THE

SOVIET UNION TIMELINE

By: Cat Dillman

RUSSIAN CIVIL WAR(1917)

The Russian Civil War was an event that had huge
conflict between the Reds and the Whites. This
war took place after the removing power of the
Russian monarchy, and the withdrawing of Russian
troops from World War I. The long term effects led to
removing power from the Russian monarchy under
Nicholas II, and a provisional socialist government in
St. Petersburg. Lenin created the Bolshevik
Revolution, so because of this it created movements
throughout Russia. There was much conflict in
Poland, Finland, Southern Russia, and other
countries who were caught up with the Russian
government. About all of the Military campaigns
were in Southern Russia, and Ukraine. By 1918 The
Russian Red Army was created by Trotsky. The Red
Army won the fight; therefore, the Soviet Union
came out as the communist solution to people
suffering because of the Russian government.

The Russian Civil war hurt the Soviet Union because after the war
the Soviet Union suffered great damage. There was huge
economic loss because they spent about 50 billion rubles or
35,000,000,000.00 on the war. Production had fallen to 20 percent
by 1913. There was a horrible result for agriculture. Farm
produced only 37 percent of normal production. Many people died
from starvation, and a lot of people were killed in the war.

POLITBURO(CREATED IN 1917
REFORMED IN 1919)
The first Politburo was created by the
Bolshevik Party Central Committee in
1917. It was created to give flexible
leadership. The members involved were
Lenin, Trotsky, and Stalin. The 8th party
congress in 1919 wanted to elect a new
Politburo to have a role of deciding
questions that were important. It soon
was more powerful than the Central
Committee, and was a huge position in
party and state administration. It also
planned what was going on, provided all
documentation for debates, and
transmitted Politburo decisions.

I think the creation of the Politburo kind of hurt the Soviet Union
because it gave the leaders flexible leadership. This led to Lenin,
Trotsky, and Stalin having so much power. It was also good
because it and was a huge position in party and state
administration. It also planned what was going on, provided all
documentation for debates, and transmitted Politburo decisions

STALINS FIVE YEAR PLANS(1928)

Stalin made up Five Year plans to help develop
the Soviet Union's economy. This set up huge
numeral goals to increase the money from coal,
steel, oil, and electricity. The government put a
limit on the goods that each consumer can have.
This caused many people to have shortages of
housing, food, clothing, and other important
goods. This also caused extreme economic
results even though the first Five Year Plan didnt
work out to well. In 1933 there was another plan
which was successful in bringing industrial
production of steel to rise more the 25 percent.

Stalins Five Year Plans hurt the Soviet Union because it caused
many people to have shortages of housing, food, clothing, and
other important goods. This also caused extreme economic
results. . The only good thing about it was that it in bringing
industrial production of steel to rise more the 25 percent. People
were ashamed in Stalin because they were loosing hosing, food,
clothing, etc. This caused many Russians to look down on the
Soviet Union. This would later result in protests when they were
allowed to have their freedom.

WORLD WAR II(1939)

World War II was the deadliest war in
history. More than thirty countries were
involved, and there was over 50 million
military and civilian deaths. Hitlers
invasion of Poland in 1939 sparked this
war. This war took six years to end because
they wanted to defeat Nazi Germany and
Japan. Germany, Italy, and Japan fought
against France, China, Great Britain, Us,
and the Soviet, 1939 Hitler ordered
Soldiers to take over Poland. Hitler believed
that he could attack Poland with no danger
from the Soviet Union. On August 31and;
therefore, this started a World War.

World War II caused harm on the Soviet Union because this was
the deadliest war in history. More then fifty countries were
involved, and so many solders lost their lives. This caused lots of
tension between Germany and the USSR. Nazis destroys a lot of
the industrial and domestic infrastructure of the USSR.

JOE 1(1949)
Joe 1 was an bomb made by the Soviets which
was an realistic copy of the Fat man bomb
This bomb was named Joe 1 by the west, and
was used at the Semipalatinsk Test site in
Kazakhstan on August 29, 1949. Its estimated
yield was about 22 kilotons. A few weeks after
this the U.S found debris of the atomic bomb,
and were shocked. This showed that any
industrial nation could make an atomic bomb.
The soviets didnt test another bomb after Joe 1
for about more than two years.

JOE I harmed the Soviet union because the US found out about it
and thought they were going to attack us. The US got scared, and
had an agreement about missiles. This caused much tension
between the USSR and the US which was a main component
towards the cold war.

HYDROGEN BOMB(1953)
The Soviet Union created an hydrogen bomb
which consisted of hydrogen fuel, and uranium.
On August 12, 1953 the bomb was tested in
central Siberia. Its yield of the bomb was about
400 kilotons. A couple years after in 1955 the
they had an idea of using radiation implosion. On
November 22, 1955 the Soviet Union exploded
yet again another hydrogen bomb which was
supposedly its first true hydrogen bomb. It
had a yield of 1.6 megatons which was a bigger
explosion than the first bomb. This began a lot of
Soviet hydrogen bomb testing. On October 23,
1961 there was another bomb with a explosion
of 58 megatons. They said it could've been
bigger, but it would of broke a lot of windows in
Moscow which was 4,000 miles away.

The Hydrogen bomb hurt the Soviet Union because it caused even
more tension with the US. The Soviet Union were setting off more
bombs which would scare the US. The Soviet Union set up several
hydrogen bombs, and each were getting bigger and bigger. This
shows us that the Soviet Union had power and could set off a
hydrogen bomb if they wanted to.

WARSAW PACT(1955)
Warsaw Pact was an political and military
alliance between the Soviet Union and
Several Eastern European countries on May
14. 1955. This called on other member
states to help defend each other if there was
any attack on any of the states in the pact.
This also set up an military commander
under Marshal Ivan S. Konev which was from
the Soviet Union.

This helped the Soviet Union because in cause they were attacked
they had help from others. Also it would hurt the Soviet Union
economically because they had to jump in and stick out for other
states. This would also cause tension because it would seem like
the Soviet Union was ready to begin a fight.

SPUTNIK(1957)
Sputnik was the worlds first artificial satellite
which changed the world. On October 4, 1957 was
when the Soviet Union first launched Sputnik.
This launched new political military, technological,
and scientific developments. This launched an
start of the space age, and the USSR-US space
race. The US feared that because Soviet Union
launched the first satellite that they could launch
missiles. The first Sputnik weighed 83.6 kg, and
took about 98 minutes to orbit the Earth. July 1,
1957 to December 31, 1958 was known as the
International Geophysical Year because Solar
activity was a huge achievement for the Soviet
Union.

This helped the Soviet Union because they were the first ones to
create the first satellite. They were ahead of the US in the space
age. It also hurt the Soviet Union because the US feared that if
they did that first that they would attack the US with missiles first.

LAIKA AND SPUTNIK 3(1957)

On November 3, 1957 The Soviet Union
sends a dog named Laika into orbit. It was
tested for the safety of humans, but was
basically a suicide mission for the dog since
technology wasnt that advanced. Laika was
a stray dog found on the Moscow streets.
There were 36 dogs that the Soviets sent into
space, and they were all stray dogs chosen
because of their scrappiness. The US was
falling behind, and Russia was beating them
in space age. British people were upset
because the dog basically was sent up there
to die as were the other. Laika died within
hours of takeoff because of panic, and
overheating. She was supposedly a nice,
sweet, loving dog.

This helped the Soviet Union because they were still ahead of the
US. It helped them find out if humans could survive in space. It
also hurt them because they were sending living animals into
space literally to die. The dog they sent up there was loving and
care, and I bet the other dogs they sent were too. This caused
many countries to look at the Soviet Union in anger. Countries
were ashamed that the Soviet Union would do this to living
creature. The dog also died of panic this shows she died of a slow
painful death.

CREATION OF THE BERLIN WALL(1961)

On August 13. 1961 the government of

the German Democratic Republic began to
build a barbed wire concrete wall between
East and West Berlin. They wanted to keep
Western fascists from coming into East
Germany. Instead of serving its purpose it
caused many riots between the East and
the West. After World War I was over Allied
peace meetings determined Germanys
territories. The eastern part of the country
went to the Soviet Union while the
western part went to the USA, Great
Britain, and France. On October 22.1961 a
argument between East German border
guard and an American official led to a
nuclear-age equivalent of the Wild West
Showdown at the O.K. Corral.
Photographs from this are some of the
most memorable images of the Cold War.

This hurt the Soviet Union because the creation of the Berlin wall
caused so much tension between the US and Russia. An argument
between an East border guard and an American official led to one
of the most known photographs of the causes of the cold war.
Many people living in West Berlin were angry, and this caused
much violence. It wasnt fair that people werent allowed over the
wall. Also there were very long lines if anyone even wanted to
cross.

1968 INVASION OF CZECHOSLOVAKIA

On August 20, 1968 there was an invasion of
Czechoslovakia. This was led by Warsaw Pact
troops of the Soviet Union. They wanted to lessen
reformist trends in Prague. They successfully
stopped the pace of reform, but it caused many
consequences for the communist bloc. Beginning
in the 1930s the Czech faced many challenges
from the West and East. In the 1960s changed
led to many reforms to make the communist
doctrines within the borders less severe. Soviet
leaders were worried about the many
developments within Czechoslovakia. The Soviet
Union invaded Czechoslovakia, and took control
of Prague, major cities, and communication and
transportation links.

This hurt the Soviet Union because they invaded Czechoslovakia,

and took control of Prague, major cities, and communication and
transportation links. This would cause much tension and anger at
the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union started the war with
Czechoslovakia. It slowed down the pace of reform, but caused so
much tension and harsh things said about the Soviet Union.

SALT I(1972)
President Johnson said that the Soviet Union
had begun to made a limited Anti Ballistic
Missile defense system in Moscow. This could
allow one side to launch a missile and then
prevent the other side from shooting them
down. There were limitation talks which were
called SALT. Johnson wanted to be in control
of the ABM race. Not allowing the
development of offensive and defensive
would help U.S.-Soviet relations. SALT talks
began in Finland. There were many sides
which decided on whether or not to build
more Missiles. Nixon and the Leonid
Brezhnev signed the SALT agreement on May
26. 1972 in Moscow.

This helped the Soviet Union because Not allowing the

development of offensive and defensive would help U.S.-Soviet
relations. It also hurt the Soviet Union because it scared the US
because it shows that the Soviet Union was using missiles. It
showed if the Soviet Union launched a missile the other side
wouldnt be able to defend themselves. There was a huge scare
throughout the US that the Soviet Union was goanna shoot misses
at the US.

SALT II(1979)
There was another round of SALT because
SALT I didnt prevent the sides from making
forces bigger. They wanted to reduce the
number of Multiple Independently Targeted
Re-Entry Vehicles. They wanted to also make
sure they didnt upset the U.S., so that their
relationship didnt weaken. There was an
2,400 limit on nuclear delivery vehicles. for
each side. 1,320 limit on MIRV systems. A ban
on new land ICBM launchers, and limits on
deployment of new offensive strategies. There
was still a lot of bombers, and there was a
huge number of warheads. On June 17, 1979
SALT II was signed by Carter and Brezhnev.

Even through there was a limit on Nuclear delivery vehicles, and

MIRV systems there still was a lot of bombers and lots of
warheads. It caused a lot more people to be aware of bombs. This
caused a lot of tension of violence.

SOVIET-AFGHAN WAR(1979)
At the end of December 1979 many
troops were sent by the Soviet Union
into Afghanistan. They gained complete
military and political control of Kabul,
and a lot of the country. The US
criticized the Soviet Union because of
their move into Afghanistan. Soviets
were harsh with the Mujahedeen rebels,
and those who supported them. This
conflict went on for nine years, and
about 18,000 Afghan troops were killed.
Also 90,000 Mujahedeen fighters, and
14,500 Soviet soldiers were killed.

This hurt the Soviet Union because they gained complete military
and political control of Kabul, and a lot of the country. They were
very harsh to the people in Kabul. This caused so much tension,
and so many deaths. It went on for nine years, and the US
criticized the Soviet Union for this action.

GLASNOST(1985)

Glasnost was created to carefully ease the strict

social controls from the governments. He gave
freedom to the media, and religious groups. He
also allowed citizens to say their views. By 1988
Gorbachev expanded reformed to include
democratization. This helped the Soviet Union
because it gave people the freedoms that they
wanted. This meant that the Soviet Union was
becoming more of a democracy. The US would look
as this as a positive action.

In March 1985 Gorbachev launched a program

called perestroika. This led to many changes in
economic practice, internal affairs, and
international relations. This took away power
from communist governments throughout
Eastern Europe. This kind of hurt the Soviet
Union because the transition from communism
to a free market economy is going to be very
brutal. People arent used to it, and it will cause
much tension. It was a good thing that he was
looking for change for the better, but there
would still be tension and struggles.

PERESTROIKA(1985)

CHERNOBYL DISASTER(1986)
This was an accident that happened at the
Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine. It was
an explosion and fires that killed two Chernobyl
plant workers, and also killed 28 people weeks
later because of radiation poisoning. There was
about five percent of the radioactive reactor core
into the air. It was a rector design that had many
issues which led to this explosion. The reactor
workers began to do a test to see how long
turbines would spin, and they wanted to give the
pumps electrical power. The power from the
turbine ran too fast, so the new voltage had to
be tested. They performed tests which they had
to shut down mechanisms. When they went to
shutdown the reactor it wasn't in good condition.
It then caused an explosion.

This hurt the Soviet Union because it shows that Ukraine was
testing a rector design. This also was a disaster that went
worldwide. People most likely heard about it, and were afraid that
this disaster would happen again. This also caused people to die.
Soviets were not able to rely on their government to protect them
because of this disaster. This scared many citizens in Russia;
therefore, the government lost control over the public. Glasnost
went out of control because there was a fear of radiation

VOTING REFORMS BY GORBACHEV(1987)

On March 11, 1985 Gorbachev was elected

General Secretary of the communist Party. For
the next six years he changed the Soviet
Union. He had reforms which included freeing
press restrictions, and releasing political
prisoners from jail, and exile. He failed to
reform the Soviet Communist Party. In August
1991 there was a coup against Gorbachev, but
it failed. In 1987 he pushed through reforms
that caused a semi free market system. This
helped the Soviet Union because people now
had freedom. It also hurt them because it
caused the coup against Gorbachev which
eventually led to the cold war.

LITHUANIA AND LATVIA PROTESTS(1988)

Thousands of Lithuanians and Latvians made up

anti pollution protests in Moscow. They did this
because they wanted to demonstrate
environmental awareness in the Soviet Union.
Lithuanians joined hands to form a human Chain
along the coastline in Baltic. Latvians were
carrying candles, and also formed a chain that
was 22 miles long over beaches of a resort.
Latvia and Lithuania were worried about the
economic concerns of the soviet Union. This hurt
the Soviet Union because they were scared that
other republics would start protesting. This led
to the attack in Lithuanians which the Soviet
Union hurt many people. The Soviet Union was
looked at with criticize.

FREE ELECTIONS IN POLAND,

CZECHOSLOVAKIA, HUNGARY(AUGUST 1989)
In early July Gotbachev said that the poles and
Hungarians were free to elect people to
determine their future. He believed that
communist leaders in the Warsaw Pact
countered should be good Communists. Also the
Warsaw Pact counters were costing the Soviet
Union too much money. The Hungarian
Communist Party changed its name to the
Socialist Party, and declared itself a Republic.
Also People in Hungary were allowed to travel
anywhere without permission. This helped the
Soviet Union because it gave people in Hungary,
Poland and Czechoslovakia their freedom to
elect leaders. People would be happy with this
decision because they got to decide their future.
It would also be a huge change.

FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL(NOVEMBER 9TH

1989)
The fall of the Berlin wall was caused when
the head of the East German Communist
Party said that citizens of the GDR could get
through the wall. That night in 1989 many
crowds swarmed the wall. Some people
went freely through the wall while others
brought weapons to destroy the wall. This
was one of the most powerful symbols to
that began the Cold War. This hurt the
Soviet Union because this caused so much
tension with east and west berlin. It also
caused tension between the US and Russia.
This was a main event that led to the cold
war. There was so much tension built up in
East Berlin that many people actually went
and destroyed the wall.

GORBACHEV BECOMES LEADER(MARCH 14, 1990)

In 1990 Gorbachev was elected president. He

came to power in 1985, and he worked to
establish the Congress of peoples disputes.
The positive side was that he gave people
much freedom and democracy. The dark side
was that there wasnt much food for people, so
he had to introduce a wartime food card
system. The Soviet Unions gold funds went
down by 2000 to 200 tons. Dept. grew to 120
billion dollars. This helped the Soviet Union
because they were closer to a democracy. It
also hurt the Soviet Union because there was so
much debt which caused so many people who
were homeless without jobs. People didnt have
an of the things they needed to live. It caused
much tension with the citizens living in Russia

GORBACHEV STEPS DOWN( DEC 1991)

On December 1991 Gorbachev resigns from
being president of the Soviet Union. There was
hardly a Soviet Union to resign from. 11 days
before the former Soviet republics established
Commonwealth of Independent States. The Soviet
Union hardly existed anymore. He stood up for his
achievements. He overseen the collapse of the
Soviet Union. He claimed to not have any regrets,
but he made a lot of mistakes towards the Soviet
Union. This hurt the Soviet Union because there
was so much anger within the coup. They were
confused on why he resigned. People were scared
that they would lose their freedom again. Which
was the case that end up happening. It was also a
good thing because there would be a new leader
which would hopefully help the Soviet Union, but
instead the next leader hurt the Soviet Union even
more.

BORIS YELTSIN BECOMES

PRESIDENT(1991)
Boris Yeltsin become president of Russia from
1991 until 1999. He believed that both
democratic and free market economy reforms.
He also played a huge role in the collapse of
the Soviet Union. He has a lot of economic
hardship. There was an increase in
corruption, and crime. There was a violent war
of Chechnya. In 1989 he had a political
comeback by winning election to a Soviet
parliament. This hurt the Soviet Union
because he caused so much tension. Yeltsin
took away peoples freedoms one again. He
also made many decisions which angered
many people. Chechnya wanted
independence, but Yeltsin chose to attack
instead. He caused shock throughout Russia.

WHY DID THE SOVIET UNION COLLAPSE?

The Soviet Union Collapsed because I believe that Gorbachev had a lot to do wit the
collapse. Censorship led to many anti Russian feelings about the Soviet Union.
Especially Lithuania and Latvia, and Estonia, Georgia, Ukraine, Armenia, and
Azerbaijan. The congress of peoples deputies were shown on TV. This meant that
many criticized Gorbachevs policies. Boris Yeltsin also had a lot to do with the
collapse. On the day of Gorbachevs speech the Soviet Union was completely gone.
Also when Gorbachev resigned and Boris Yeltsin became president it caused the coup
to be in fear. The coup started violence to prove their point, but they failed. Yeltsin
took away everyone's people, and wanted Russia to be the way it used to be. People
were mad that Gorbachev resigned, and didnt forgive him. There were also a lot of
economic issues many people were homeless. People didnt have enough money to
buy food, clothing, etc. Also this caused a lot of tension in Russia many children were
homeless, and didnt see a point in going to school because there was so much
violence. Also some of the decisions Gorbachev made caused a lot of tension between
republics, and the US. The US feared that Russia would attack us. Tension kept
building up, and this eventually led to the cold war and the end of the Soviet Union.
Also Yeltsin changed the name of the Soviet Union to the CIS which would change the
Soviet Union forever.

DID YOU BELIEVE IT COULD SURVIVE?

WHY/WHY NOT?
Before all of this chaos the Soviet Union was actually one of the
strongest countries. I believe that after all of the events that led
to the collapse it would be hard to avoid the collapse of the Soviet
Union. Too many people were not given the freedom they
deserved. Many people lacked the things they needed to live.
There were too many events that led to more dispute between
nations. For example the Soviet-Afghan War caused the Soviet
Union to look bad, and the Berlin wall caused a huge amount of
conflict. If the Soviet Union carefully choose how to make
decisions, and would rather look for ways to make better decisions
maybe the Soviet Union still be as strong as it used to be. I
believe that maybe if Gorbachev didnt give up and resin that
maybe it would survive. When Yeltsin came into power he chanced
the Soviet Unions name, and caused so much tension. He also
took away the freedom of people while Gorbachev gave people

CITATIONS
"The Russian Civil War."The Russian Civil War. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.
"The Soviet Atomic Bomb."Soviet Breakthrough: "Joe I" Soviet Nuclear Test. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.
"Cold War: A Brief History."The Soviet Response. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.
"Sputnik."Sputnik. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2015.
"The Warsaw Pact Is Formed."History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 20
Apr. 2015.
"World Nuclear Association."Chernobyl. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
"Politburo | Soviet Political Body."Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia
Britannica, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
"World War II."History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
"Berlin Wall."History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

"Strategic Arms Limitations Talks/Treaty (SALT) I and II - 19691976 Milestones - Office of the Historian."Strategic Arms Limitations Talks/Treaty
(SALT) I and II - 19691976 - Milestones - Office of the Historian. N.p., n.d.
Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

"Gorbachev's Domestic Reforms Led to End of Soviet Union."VOA.

N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
"The Gorbachev Era: Perestroika and Glasnost."Encyclopedia
Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 21 Apr.
2015.
Taylor, Alan. "The Soviet War in Afghanistan, 1979 - 1989."The
Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 04 Aug. 2014. Web. 21 Apr.
2015.
"Boris Yeltsin."History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 21
Apr. 2015.
"Gorbachev Resigns as President of the USSR."History.com. A&E
Television Networks, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
"Prominent Russians: Mikhail Gorbachev."Mikhail Gorbachev
Russiapedia Leaders Prominent Russians. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Apr.
2015.