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Nicholas II Becomes Tsar of Russia
Nicholas II becomes Tsar after Alexander III dies. -
Bolsheviks Emerge as a Political Group
Led by Vladimir Lenin, the Bolsheviks were founded in Brussels, Belgium. -
Period: to
Russo-Japanese War
The Japanese defeated the Russians in a fight over the Northeast Asia - Korea region -
Bloody Sunday
A group of about 200,000 protesters, mostly factory workers, came to give the Tsar a petition for better working conditions and higher wages. These protesters were fired on by Russian troops. -
Peter Stolypin Appointed Prime Minister
Appointed by Tsar Nicholas II, Stolypin was brutal to those against the government, hanging over 1000 of them. -
Russia Enters WW1
Russia entered WW1 on the side of the France and Britain to help out their friends the Serbs against Austria-Hungary. -
Provisional Government Takes Control
The Provisional Government took control of Russia after the Tsar abdicated on March 15, 1917. -
October Revolution
Under Lenin, Leon Trotsky led the Red Guard in taking over post offices, bridges, and other locations throughout Russia's capital, Petrograd. -
Lenin Seizes Power in Russia
Lenin and Trotsky took over Petrograd, stormed the Winter Palace, and arrested the Provisional Government, effectively seizing power. -
Lenin Sets up the Cheka
Lenin set up this secret police force to protect him and take down his enemies. -
The Constituent Assembly is Formed
Lenin set up the Constituent Assembly so the elections that he had promised could be held. Since the Bolsheviks didn't have a majority in it, he dissolved it soon after -
Russia Signs Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
Although Russia suffered huge losses to Germany in this treaty, it ended Russia's participation in WW1. -
Tsar Nicholas and His Family are Assassinated
After being removed from power and placed under house arrest for about a year, the Bolsheviks killed the Tsar and his family. -
Period: to
New Economic Policy (NEP)
The NEP was put in place by Lenin and was essentially a less radical version of communism. -
Vladimir Lenin Dies
Lenin suffered a multiple strokes in 1922 and 1923 which paralyzed him, causing his death the following year. -
Stalin Sets up the First Five-Year Plan
Stalin set up the five-year plans as a method to boost Russia's economic production, and from that aspect it worked. -
Joseph Stalin Becomes Leader of USSR
Technically coming to power after Lenin's death in 1924, he had become unrivalled leader of the Communist Party by 1929 by removing his enemies such as Trotsky and Bukharin. -
Trotsky Flees Russia
Stalin expelled his political enemy, Leon Trotsky, from Russia. -
Stalin Collectivized Russian Agriculture
Stalin wanted to regulate and modernize agriculture as he did other industries, although the peasants and kulaks pushed against it because it completely changed their way of living. This led to violence and arrests by the government and a famine from 1932-1933. -
Period: to
The Purges
During this time, Stalin arrested and killed millions of people in Russia that even slightly opposed him. By the end of it, 10 million people had died and another 18 million were in labor camps. -
Nazi-Soviet Pact
Hitler and Stalin signed an agreement not to attack each other, and to divide Poland between them. Stalin didn't believe Hitler would keep his word, but did it to buy time to build up his army before Hitler invaded. -
WW2 Starts
Britain and France declared war on Germany after they invaded Poland.
