Kars oblastThe Kars oblast was a province (oblast) of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire between 1878 and 1917. Its capital was the city of Kars, presently in Turkey. The oblast bordered the Ottoman Empire to the west, the Batum Oblast (in 1883–1903 part of the Kutaisi Governorate) to the north, the Tiflis Governorate to the northeast, and the Erivan Governorate to the east. The Kars oblast included parts of the contemporary provinces of Kars, Ardahan, and Erzurum Province of Turkey, and the Amasia Community of the Shirak Province of Armenia.
Moscow Peace TreatyThe Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on 12 March 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on 21 March. It marked the end of the 105-day Winter War, upon which Finland ceded border areas to the Soviet Union. The treaty was signed by Vyacheslav Molotov, Andrei Zhdanov and Aleksandr Vasilevsky for the Soviet Union, and Risto Ryti, Juho Kusti Paasikivi, Rudolf Walden and Väinö Voionmaa for Finland. The terms of the treaty were not reversed after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Siege of LeningradThe siege of Leningrad (Блокада Ленинграда; Leningrader Blockade; Leningradin piiritys) was a prolonged military blockade undertaken by the Axis powers against the Soviet city of Leningrad (present-day Saint Petersburg) on the Eastern Front of World War II. Germany's Army Group North advanced from the south, while the German-allied Finnish army invaded from the north and completed the ring around the city. The siege began on 8 September 1941, when the Wehrmacht severed the last road to the city.
Era of StagnationThe "Era of Stagnation" (Períod zastóya, or Эпо́ха засто́я ) is a term coined by Mikhail Gorbachev in order to describe the negative way in which he viewed the economic, political, and social policies of the Soviet Union that began during the rule of Leonid Brezhnev (1964–1982) and continued under Yuri Andropov (1982–1984) and Konstantin Chernenko (1984–1985). It is sometimes called the "Brezhnevian Stagnation" in English. During the period of Brezhnev's leadership, the term "Era of Stagnation" was not used.
RubleThe ruble or rouble (ˈruːbəl; рубль) is the currency unit of Belarus and Russia. Historically, it was the name of the currency of the Russian Empire (the Imperial ruble) and, later, of the Soviet Union (the Soviet ruble). currencies named ruble in circulation include the Belarusian ruble (BYN, Rbl) in Belarus and the Russian ruble (RUB, ₽) in Russia. Additionally, the Transnistrian ruble is used in Transnistria, an unrecognized breakaway province of Moldova. These currencies are subdivided into one hundred kopeks.
Russian famine of 1921–1922The Russian famine of 1921–1922, also known as the Povolzhye famine, was a severe famine in the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic that began early in the spring of 1921 and lasted until 1922. The famine resulted from the combined effects of economic disturbance from the Russian Revolution, the Russian Civil War, and the government policy of war communism (especially prodrazvyorstka). It was exacerbated by rail systems that could not distribute food efficiently.
UlyanovskUlyanovsk, (Сембер, Чĕмпĕр) known until 1924 as Simbirsk, is a city and the administrative center of Ulyanovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Volga River east of Moscow. Population: The city was the birthplace of Vladimir Lenin (born Ulyanov), for whom it was renamed after his death in 1924; and of Alexander Kerensky, the leader of the Russian Provisional Government which Lenin overthrew during the October Revolution of 1917. It is also famous for its writers such as Ivan Goncharov, Nikolay Yazykov and Nikolay Karamzin, and for painters such as Arkady Plastov and Nikas Safronov.
Soviet democracySoviet democracy, or council democracy, is a political system in which the rule of the population is exercised by directly elected soviets, or workers' councils. The councils are directly responsible to their electors and bound by their instructions using a delegate model of representation. Such an imperative mandate is in contrast to a free mandate, in which the elected delegates are only responsible to their conscience. Delegates may accordingly be dismissed from their post at any time or be voted out (recall).
Shamil BasayevShamil Salmanovich Basayev (Салман ВоӀ Шамиль ; Шамиль Салманович Басаев; 14 January 1965 – 10 July 2006), also known by his kunya "Abu Idris", was an Islamist militant who served as a senior military commander in the breakaway Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. He held the rank of brigadier general in the Armed Forces of Ichkeria, and was posthumously declared generalissimo. As a military commander in the separatist armed forces of Chechnya, one of his most notable battles was the separatist recapture of Grozny in 1996, which he personally planned and commanded together with Aslan Maskhadov.
Workers of the world, unite!The political slogan "Workers of the world, unite!" is one of the rallying cries from The Communist Manifesto (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels (Proletarier aller Länder, vereinigt Euch!, literally , but soon popularised in English as "Workers of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains!"). A variation of this phrase ("Workers of all lands, unite") is also inscribed on Marx's tombstone. The essence of the slogan is that members of the working classes throughout the world should cooperate to defeat capitalism and achieve victory in the class conflict.
