The Soviet Union was formed when the Russian, Ukrainian, Belorussian and Transcaucasian republics signed a union treaty, with Vladimir Lenin as the leader of the Communist Party. Under Joseph Stalin it underwent forced collectivisation, rapid industrialisation and mass repression, including the Gulag camps. It emerged from the Second World War as one of two superpowers, and the Cold War rivalry with the United States shaped world politics for decades. In the 1980s Mikhail Gorbachev introduced reforms known as perestroika and glasnost, which weakened the party's control and released nationalist movements. After the failed coup of August 1991 and the withdrawal of republics, the union was dissolved, leaving fifteen independent states.
Before and after
- 14 December 1922Birth of Nikolay Basov
- 18 December 1922Establishment of Wood Buffalo National Park
- 24 December 1922Birth of Ava Gardner
- 30 December 1922Treaty on the Creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
- from 30 December 1922 to 26 December 1991Soviet Union
- 1923Rise of serialism
- 1923Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory
- 1923Construction of Forbidden City
- from 11 January 1923 to 25 August 1925Occupation of the Ruhr
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- from 1 January 1919 to 25 August 1991Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic
- from 25 February 1921 to 1 January 1991Georgian SSR
- from 1 March 1932 to 18 August 1945Manchukuo
- from 5 December 1936 to 9 October 1991Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic
- from 10 July 1940 to 29 August 1944Vichy France
- from 21 July 1940 to 20 August 1991Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic
The era
This moment belongs to the Modern era (1914 CE to 1945 CE), world wars and a changing world. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.