As is known, Napoleon Bonaparte attacked Russia, even reached Moscow (at that time, the capital of Russia was St. Petersburg) and entered the Kremlin. But the Russian troops led by the great commander Mikhail Kutuzov managed to force the French troops to retreat along the ruined Smolensk road. Many Frenchmen died of hunger and cold. The Russians drove Napoleon back to the Neman River. On December 16, 1812, the remnants of the French army, 1,600 people in number, crossed the Neman, and thus the Russian Empire was liberated. At the beginning of the war, the total number of Napoleon’s troops was 1.2 million people.

The First World War, or the Great War, is one of the deadliest conflicts in history: about 9 million people died in battle and more than 5 million civilians died as a result of military occupation, bombing, famine and disease. By 1914, the great powers of Europe were divided into two military and political blocs: the Entente, which included France, Russia and Great Britain; and the Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy. On June 28, 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was assassinated by Bosnian Serb Gavrilo Princip. Austria-Hungary blamed Serbia for this, which led to a crisis. Russia came to the defense of Serbia. Thus, our country found itself drawn into the conflict and the war, which continued after the Soviet victory in 1917. In Russia, the Bolsheviks seized power in the October Revolution of 1917 and made peace at the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on March 3, 1918, releasing large numbers of German troops. The Paris Peace Conference of 1919–1920 imposed various agreements on the defeated powers, the most famous being the Treaty of Versailles. The collapse of the Russian, German, Ottoman, and Austro-Hungarian empires led to numerous uprisings and the creation of independent states such as Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia. The instability resulting from these upheavals in the interwar period led to the outbreak of World War II in September 1939.

The October Revolution was an armed coup that led to a change in the system of political power and the ruling class in Russia, and then to the formation of a qualitatively new socio-economic system. The Provisional Government was overthrown, the Russian Soviet Republic was formed. Russia left World War I with the loss of significant territories under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The imperial family was sent to the Urals, where they were executed by the Bolsheviks. Even the children were not spared. The Civil War between the Bolsheviks and the White Guards began. On the side of the Bolsheviks were the workers and peasants, to whom V. Lenin and other leaders of the Soviet power promised bread and land. By the way, people never received either one or the other. History has shown that the October Revolution was a big mistake or a specially prepared operation to weaken Russia. Although the Communist Party still exists in our country and there are adherents of this Party. And although the communists periodically put forward their candidate for the Russian presidential elections, they never manage to gain a majority of votes. The past is the past.

In the USSR, during the period of I. Stalin’s leadership, mass political repressions were carried out. It was officially announced that they were carried out with the aim of intensifying the class struggle as the construction of socialism was completed. Those who were personally objectionable to Stalin or other representatives of the authorities were deprived of life or freedom, forcibly imprisoned in psychiatric clinics, expelled from the country and deprived of citizenship, sent to special camps (the most famous, probably, was the GULAG), forced to work without wages in places of restriction of freedom. The Bolsheviks had many tools for the extermination of their own people. Here are the statistics:
– From 1937 to 1938, 78% of the members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party perished
– Personally by Stalin and the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) under the so-called “Stalin’s execution lists” confirmed the conviction of 44,893 people (1937-1938 – 43,768 people, 1940-1950 – 1,125 people), the overwhelming majority of whom were members of the administrative structures, including the NKVD and the Red Army.
– From November 5, 1934 to September 1, 1953, the Special Conference sentenced 442,531 people, including 10,101 people to death, 360,921 people to imprisonment, 67,539 people to exile and banishment (within the country), and 3,970 people to other measures of punishment (credit for time spent in custody, exile abroad, forced treatment).
A person could be shot simply based on an anonymous denunciation. So, just before the Second World War, the USSR lost 994,000 servicemen, of whom 157,000 were shot, which is equivalent to 10 average divisions! A wonderful gift to A. Hitler before the invasion of the USSR!

On June 22, 1941, Nazi Germany and its allies crossed the borders of the Soviet Union. Thus began the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet people against the fascist invaders, and it was the most important and decisive part of World War II (1939-1945). In terms of its scale, it became the largest and bloodiest armed conflict in world history.

The leadership of Nazi Germany began preparing for war against the Soviet Union immediately after the capitulation of France in 1940. The plan for the invasion of the USSR developed by the German command was codenamed “Barbarossa”. It was based on the blitzkrieg (“lightning war”) strategy tested in Western Europe and assumed the defeat of the main forces of the Red Army in the course of “one short campaign”. In parallel, the “General Plan Ost” was developed, the implementation of which was supposed to begin immediately after the victory over the Soviet Union. The Ost plan envisaged the complete liquidation of the Soviet state, the seizure and export of its resources and wealth to the West, the “Germanization” of the country’s territory up to the Urals with the destruction and forced resettlement of most of the local population.
In violation of the non-aggression pact, on June 22, 1941, the troops of Nazi Germany and its allies invaded the territory of the USSR without declaring war.
In the first stage of the war (June 22, 1941 – November 18, 1942), the Soviet Union suffered heavy human losses, losing vast territories in the west of the country and depriving itself of significant resources. Nevertheless, thanks to the heroic resistance of the Red Army, the German plan for a “blitzkrieg” was thwarted, and the Wehrmacht’s offensive was stopped in the Battle of Moscow. The acquired combat experience and the restructuring of the economy on a war footing created the basis for the Red Army’s transition from defensive to offensive operations. In the second stage (November 1942 – December 1943), the Soviet army went on the strategic offensive, won decisive victories at Stalingrad and Kursk, and liberated large areas of the USSR, which marked a turning point in the war and deprived Germany of the strategic initiative.
In the third stage of the war (January 1944 – May 1945), after the complete liberation of the territory of the USSR, the Red Army carried out successful offensive operations in Eastern Europe and the Balkans, defeating the main forces of the Wehrmacht. In the spring of 1945, Soviet troops took Berlin, forcing Germany to sign an unconditional surrender.

During the war, the Soviet Union, as part of the anti-Hitler coalition, inflicted the greatest damage on the armed forces of Germany and its European allies, thereby playing a decisive role in their defeat in Europe. Over the course of three years (1941-1944), about 90% of all German forces were deployed against the USSR. After the landing of the Allied forces in Normandy in June 1944, ⅔ of all German troops remained on the Eastern Front.

It is generally accepted that the war took the lives of 27 million Soviet people.

In honor of the victory of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War, the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR established May 9 as a day of national celebration – Victory Day. For every Russian family, this is a sacred holiday, because every family lost a relative in that terrible war. Russia still opposes and fights against any manifestation of fascism.

On April 12, 1961, at 09:07 Moscow time, the Vostok-1 spacecraft with Yuri Gagarin on board was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The flight lasted 108 minutes. During this time, the spacecraft made one orbit around the Earth. Thus, a Russian man became the first of the inhabitants of the Earth to fly into space. The space era had opened. Russia is still the leader in the space industry.

The period of stagnation in the USSR is a political cliche that denotes the period in the history of the country from the moment L. I. Brezhnev came to power (1964) until the 27th Congress of the CPSU (February 1986)
Some characteristics of the period of stagnation:
– Steady decline in economic growth rates and deterioration in the dynamics of labor productivity.

– Lagging behind in high-tech areas, low product quality, inefficient production.

– Growing deficits in a wide range of consumer goods.

– Problems in agriculture, the country spent a lot of money to purchase food.

– Significant growth in corruption, and dissent was prosecuted by law.

But there were some “breakthroughs”. Thus, the five-year plan of 1966-1970 became the most successful and economically favorable.
Also during the period of stagnation, the Unified Electric Power System of the country was created, uniting 78 energy systems and providing electricity to both the territory of the USSR and the territory of Bulgaria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland, the GDR and Finland.

Perestroika is the general name for the reforms and new ideology of the Soviet party leadership, used to describe changes in the economic and political structure of the USSR. It was carried out in 1985-1991 on the initiative of the democratically minded part of the CPSU leadership, headed by the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee M. Gorbachev.

The stated goal of the reforms was the comprehensive democratization of the socio-political and economic system of the USSR that had developed in the USSR.

Assessments of the results of perestroika in society vary. The goals of the reforms were only partially achieved: democratization of society took place, glasnost was introduced, censorship was abolished, and détente in relations with the West was achieved. At the same time, the economy of the USSR went into decline, and from a political point of view, interethnic conflicts, armed struggle for power, and the collapse of the Soviet Union began during perestroika.

In 1991, the USSR collapsed. On March 17, 1991, a nationwide referendum was held on preserving the Soviet Union. And 76% of the country’s population voted positively for preserving it with sovereign republics. However, in August 1991, members of the State Committee for the State of Emergency began an attempt to prevent the delegations of the RSFSR, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan from signing a union treaty. Boris Yeltsin, who had been warned in advance by US intelligence services, became the head of the resistance. Many of us remember tanks on the streets of Moscow and shooting near the White House. As a result of the “putsch” – the abolition of M. Gorbachev. Boris Yeltsin became the first president of Russia. After the August putsch, many republics no longer wanted to be part of the USSR. Therefore, on December 26, 1991, the brainchild of the Bolsheviks, a country called the Soviet Union, ceased to exist. A new path for Russia began – as the official successor to the USSR.

So, the USSR collapsed. The First President, Boris Yeltsin, appeared in the country. Assessments of Yeltsin’s leadership are contradictory. Some blame him for the collapse of the USSR and the “shock therapy” of the 90s. Others credit him with carrying out market and democratic reforms. The country was shaken by terrorist attacks, economic decline, banditry, corruption, military actions in Chechnya and much more. Many scientists, writers, engineers and other talented people of Russia were forced to leave the country. On August 9, 1999, Yeltsin appointed FSB Director V. Putin as Chairman of the Government. On December 31, 1999, the country learned that it was entering a new millennium with a new president. Yeltsin voluntarily left his post and recommended Vladimir Putin in his place. Thus ended the period of decline, turmoil and began a new path for Russia.

Probably, our Putin is the most popular person in the world)) Who and where only does not talk about him! You know, the highest level is when even enemies and opponents respect you. And they respect! So you can talk and treat Putin as you like, but the fact that he is a talented, extraordinary, charismatic, smart, intellectual and far-sighted person – no one can take this away. Russia has never had such a president. In 2025, we celebrated 25 years of Putin’s leadership. During this time, our country has come a long way. New hospitals, clinics, schools have been built, gasification and Internet installation continues even in the most remote areas of the country, the war in Chechnya has been stopped, taxes have been cut by 3.6 times. The US Lend Lease (their assistance to us from 1944 to 1945) was fully repaid – 674 million dollars. The New Labor Code and the New Land Code came into force, the ruble became a fully convertible currency. Government departments were reorganized, social benefits were monetized, the construction of new houses and the demolition of dilapidated housing accelerated. Maternity capital was introduced, which allowed families to improve their living space or pay for their child’s education at an institute. The Investigative Committee was created, which separated the investigative bodies from the prosecutor’s office. Officials were prohibited from having bank accounts abroad, changes in the armament of the army and navy continued, ties with China strengthened, and Crimea returned to the country during a referendum. Russia began to expand ties in Africa. Metro construction continued, information and computer technologies were improved. In 2020, a terrible coronavirus epidemic shook the world. Our country was the first to offer the Sputnik vaccine, which effectively protected people from COVID. The Crimean Bridge was built, the Tavrida highway was opened. After the relevant referendums, Russia expanded by 4 regions: Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson. Despite Russian proposals to resolve the crisis peacefully through diplomacy, Russia was forced to take more radical measures, namely, on February 24, 2022, we had to launch a special military operation to protect the Russian population in Novorossiya and Malorossiya from the Nazis in Ukraine and their Western patrons. The war is still ongoing. There are many losses on both sides. But we remember the 27 million lives taken by fascism, and we will never tolerate Nazis on our territories.