Questions tagged [russia]
The largest country in the world, spanning territory from the eastern edge of Europe to Siberia in northern Asia, except for the period 1918-1990, when it was known as the "Soviet Union"
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What's the reason Cathedral of Trento has onion dome if it originated in India? [closed]
It is commonly believed that onion domes came to Russia from India because Orthodox Christianity is Asian in origin. Why then the cathedral of Trento has an onion dome?
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Is Russian poet Alexander Pushkin a descendant of Roman orator Cicero?
Alexander Pushkin < Sergey Pushkin < Olga Chicherina < Vasily Chicherin < Ivan Chicherin < Andrey Chicherin < Grigory Chicherin < Peter Chicherin < Dmitry Chicherin < Ivan ...
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Was my great-grandfather a Cossack [closed]
I hope someone can help. I have been trying to find out if the family story of my great-grandfather being a Cossack. His name is Jacob Fischer he was born 26 AUG 1872 • Baden Kutshurgan, Odessa, ...
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During the breakup of the Soviet Union, on what basis was citizenship granted or withheld for each of the fifteen new republics?
The politics and economics of the Soviet Union caused large numbers of people to be transplanted from one region to another, for example:
The Crimean Tatars were deported to Central Asia;
Ethnic ...
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Is this a pastiche of a particular painting or photograph?
The children's book Zen Ghosts by Jon J. Muth depicts a Halloween in suburban America, with several unexplained figures trick-or-treating in the background. Among them are these two children:
This ...
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How formalised were the various tiers of Russian nobility during the regency of Sophia Alekseyevna?
I'm a few chapters into Robert K Massie's biography of Peter the Great, and I was surprised to read that, in the aftermath of Peter's seizure of power from his sister and regent Sophia, when passing ...
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Were there other reasons or interests apart from Pan-Slavism for the Russian Empire to support Serbia? [duplicate]
In my History class, I was taught that that the Russian Empire supported Serbia's independence and nationality and fought against the Austria-Hungary Empire due to Pan-Slavism. My point is, were there ...
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When did the Russians first employ a successful envelopment tactic?
Greetings fellow history buffs.
I read a book on the Soviet Army called, not surprisingly, Inside the Soviet Army. The author, Victor Suvorov (note this is an edit as there was confusion with the ...
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What factors led to the differing attitude to (civil) engineering projects between Roman and Russian armies?
While this might sound like a bit of a leap (i.e., why should Roman armies and Russian armies have any similarities), the Romans were considered as one of the first civilizations to use as models (if ...
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Have there been any significant developments in the “Norman Controversy” on the origin of the Kievan Rus? [closed]
I've been reading Riasanovsky's "A History of Russia" (2nd edition, so fairly out of date), and it comes out strongly against the Norman theory. Today though, most sources seem to lean ...
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How difficult was Muraviev's amassing of troops for the forcing of the Treaty of Aigun, and what effects on development did it have?
I'm reading an account of the Trans-Siberian Railways' construction, and what was interesting was the poor level of development in Siberia, including that roads were very limited and transport ...
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Did Germans refuse to take Cossacks prisoners in WWI? If so, why?
The Russian Wikipedia's page about Kozma Kryuchkov, the first awardee of Russia's Cross of Saint George in the First World War, says:
После этого случая, освещённого почти во всей тогдашней ...
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1answer
236 views
Did Hezbollah kidnap Russian diplomats, and Russia subsequently dismember Hezbollah family members?
I heard this story several years ago, I don't recall the exact details, and I don't even know if the story is real or not (if it is real, I'm guessing it may be exaggerated). Can anyone confirm this ...
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How did Britain and Russia block the railway in Iran?
Karen Armstrong (2000):
[...] both Britain and Russia promoted only the technology that furthered their own interests and blocked such inventions as the railway, which might have benefited the ...
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1answer
287 views
Did Helsinki have higher standards of living than Saint Petersburg when it was a part of the Russian Empire?
For over a century Finland was a part of the Russian Empire. It seems that overall Finland was significantly richer than Russia proper in the early XX century (look at these estimates). Was Helsinki ...
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1answer
184 views
Was the Kerensky Offensive doomed from the start?
I've been reading about Russia in the Great War during 1917, and what is quite surprising for me is the Kerensky Offensive. Primarily, what is surprising is that the army was in great material terms ...
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What specific Medieval Rus waterway engineering examples are there?
I've been investigating a statement (cited below) made in Nicolle's 'Lake Peipus 1242' which describes waterway engineering by Medieval Russian princes but doesn't bring any specific examples. Which ...
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Why was Austria given the best chunk in the First Partition of Poland, even while protesting it?
In the First Partition of Poland, Austria was given 2.7 million people, versus 1.3 million for Russia, and almost 1 million for Prussia. Austria got more than twice as much land as Prussia, and only ...
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Why was Poland subject to much harsher Russification than Finland was?
A Wikipedia page describes Russification of Poland:
Russification in Congress Poland intensified after the November Uprising of 1831, and in particular after the January Uprising of 1863. In 1864 the ...
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What did the Baltic Fleet do in Reval in 1904 and when was it there?
I noticed, in @Schwern's answer that the 1904-1905 journey of the Baltic Fleet is cited as having started in (modern Tallinn). This doesn't make much sense as to the best of my knowledge Reval/Tallinn ...
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95 views
Good books on Kievan Rus era? [closed]
Title pretty much self explenatory.
Im a student myself (but not of history), and I am looking for a good book on the period that is not too heavy, but gives good coverage for early east Slavic ...
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147 views
Did Boris Belousov join in his brother's conspiracy to kill the Emperor?
I'm working on a paper about the Belousov-Zhabotinsky-reaction (a chemical oscillator).
I included some information about the history of oscillation reaction, in particular about Boris Pavlovich ...
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2answers
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Identify male uniform 1860-80 north Central Europe single breast trouser boot round cap
This photo is believed to be from 1860-1880 Poland/Lithuania, as the house behind them looks like a Polish thatch house. The man in question is in the center back of the photo.
Uniform is single ...
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How did the Bolsheviks fund their government? [closed]
I came across this from a telegram sent by a Mr. Lindley in Russia to Mr. Balfour in London.—
(Received November 28.)
(Telegraphic.)
Archangel, November 27, 1918.
Principal reason why Bolsheviks have ...
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1answer
243 views
Why are the buildings built in classical style in the first half of the 19th century in Russia so frequently yellow-and-white - coloured?
So many buildings built in neo-classical style in cr. 1800-1850 in Russian empire are yellow (always the same shade of yellow) with white columns. There are some exceptions, e.g. grey or blue of beige ...
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1answer
331 views
What was the ethnic makeup of Lenin's bodyguards during the assassination attempt? [closed]
There were detachments of foreign soldiers fighting for the Bolshevik cause during the Russian Civil War, most notably, Chinese. Apparently Chinese troops served as the personal bodyguards for the ...
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Were Christians prohibited to pass Golden Horde - Rus border immediately before Black Death?
Note: this question is similar to earlier Were there any travel restrictions during the Black Death pandemic?, but asks about travel restrictions existing before the epidemic.
Wikipedia article on ...
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4answers
505 views
How did Soviet soldiers resist tanks during the battle of Shumshu?
During the battle of Shumshu, it is claimed in the Wikipedia article that forces ratio was as follow:
Japan side: 8 500 personnel (combatant and non combatant?) and 77 tanks
Russian side: up to 9 000 ...
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1answer
127 views
Is Carolyn Seymour (the actress) related to Alexander von Benckendorff (the Russian statesman)?
Browsing Wikipedia (I know) the other day, I came across the page for the British actress Carolyn Seymour. The page in question states that she was born Carolyn von Benckendorf (note that this is only ...
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Where can I find lists of politically unreliable persons created by Austro-Hungarian authorities in Western Ukraine before World War I?
I found the following "list of politically unreliable persons" in the Thalerhof Concentration Camp Almanacs (Russian title: Талергофсiй альманахъ, пропамятная книга австрiйскихъ жестокостей, ...
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What did Russia do in 1848 that could make the Austrians seek “brutal revanche” towards the Russians?
In the first volume of the Thalerhof Concentration Camp Almanacs (Russian title: Талергофсiй альманахъ, пропамятная книга австрiйскихъ жестокостей, изуверстствъ и насилий надъ карпато - русскимъ ...
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Why did Peter the Great name Saint Petersburg, Russia with a foreign styled name?
When Peter the Great of Russia established Saint Petersburg he originally called it Sankt-Pieter-Burch (Сан(к)т-Питер-Бурхъ) in Dutch manner. Later, under apparent German influence it was changed to ...
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Why were the cities of the Eastern European Plain founded much later than those elsewhere in Europe?
As site on which to found a city, Moscow seems to have a lot going for it. It's surrounded by fertile farmland - Russia produces more grain than the United States - it's located on a watercourse which ...
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3answers
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Did the Third Rome theory help make Michael Romanov tsar?
Rome fell apart as the Middle Ages began, and Constantinople, the "Second Rome", was conquered as they ended. Afterwards, a famous religious argument or school of thought in Russia maintained that ...
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1answer
401 views
Did Austrian chief of staff Franz Riml say that the only way to correct the Russophile Ukrainians is to exterminate them?
Several Russian pages claim that Austrian general Franz Riml von Altrosenburg said the following:
Galician Russians can be divided in two groups:
a) Russophiles and
b) Ukrainophiles.
If ...
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Why is the late Russian Empire associated with Byzantium while having little in common with it?
I have started reading the book A people's tragedy by Orlando Figes about the Russian revolution. I am no historian, however having read a few pages I have a few questions about the repeated ...
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Did the western Allies and Russia try to cooperate in World War I as they did in World War II?
America's General Eisenhower referred to it as "cross-ruffing." Coincidentally or otherwise, the timing of Operation Torch came close to the Russian counterattack at Stalingrad, and Operation Husky ...
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Was the Russian Black Sea fleet strong enough to help with land operations on the southern shore in World War I?
The Russian Black Sea Fleet was stronger than the Turkish Black Sea fleet for most of the 19th century. But the successful flight of two German ships to the Black Sea greatly strengthened the Turkish ...
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How was the vast Khazar fortress of Sarkel destroyed?
I understood that Sarkel was a vast Khazar hilltop limestone-bricks fortress of the type of a fortified town, located in the present-day Rostov Oblast of Russia, on the left bank of the lower Don ...
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Which misdeeds of F. Reineke was J.B.B. de Lesseps “obliged to suppress”?
F. Reineke was commandant of Kamchatka from about 1780 to 1784. According to Витер's История символов как история административного деления государства he was responsible for moving the territorial ...
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1answer
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Who was part of the Raznochintsy class in 1800s Russia?
In the system of social estates of Imperial Russia, someone "of miscellaneous rank" was a member of the raznochintsy, at least until the category was abolished. В.Н.Разгон says this happened at the ...
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Why did Hitler repeat Napoleon's error (attacking Russia in mid-summer instead of late spring)? [closed]
We often hear that it's important to learn from history to avoid the errors of people before us. To me - then - it's astounding to think that a head of state like Hitler, surrounded with elite ...
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452 views
Why is the English name of the country “Russia” not spelled “Rossia” (with the letter o)? [closed]
Russkoje tsarstvo later changed to Rossiyskoye tsarstvo.
Why is the English name of the country "Russia" not spelled "Rossia"?
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1answer
506 views
Why didn't all non-Russian states become independent during the collapse of the Soviet Union?
There are so many sub-divisions in the country who are not Russian in their language and ethnicity, Tuva, Dagestan, Chechnya etc.
When states like the Baltics, Ukraine, and Central Asia were gaining ...
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1answer
506 views
Would an illegitimate child of a monarch have been recognized at the Russian court?
For purposes of a novel I am writing I would like to know if an illegitimate son or daughter of a 19th century Russian tsar would have been recognized by the court. Would it matter if the birth was ...
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Did Russia support both Georgian nationalists and the Georgian government during Georgian civil war?
I am trying to understand the history of Georgia after the independence from Russia reading the French Wikipedia article about it. Yet I don't understand the position of Russia during the Civil War.
...
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1answer
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Are the war plans published in “Dropshot: The American Plan for World War III against Russia in 1957” genuine?
In 1979 Anthony Cave Brown published a book (Operation, World War III: The Secret American Plan 'Dropshot' for War with the Soviet Union, 1957, Arms and Armour Press, 1979; Google Books, Amazon) which ...
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251 views
What are some good sources on the everyday life of Soviet troops during WWII?
Imagine I wanted to get a basic understanding what the everyday life of a Soviet soldier (especially infantry, tank units, air force) during WWII was like.
What books and other resources in English, ...
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Did Catherine the Great really call for the abolition of serfdom?
... like Catherine the Great S01E01 (2019) shows?
This would be almost a century before serfdom was actually abolished, and makes one wonder why the Czars didn't just do it, if they were in favor of ...
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500 views
Did Yuri Gagarin really mention Anna Magnani in his flight in space?
This NYTimes article about the Italian actress Anna Magnani states:
Perhaps the best way to describe her effect on audiences is to quote from a documentary on the Italian actress by the Belgian film ...
