Over the past few years I have developed a keen interest in Russian Culture. It is a heritage renown for it'sharsh winters, comradeship, vodka, caviar, great literature, classical music, realistic art, and most of all an incredible history. From the reign of Ivan the Terrible to the collapse of the Soviet Union, it's a culture full of intrigue and mystery with the people always at its core.
Russian History
It was Ivan the Terrible (1574-1584) who began to expand and establish Russia as an empire. He was known for his ruthlessness and madness, and managed to establish himself as the first czar of Russia. Following Ivan's reign began a terrible time for Russia known as the Time of Troubles. They soon became occupied by the Polish-Lithuanian and Swedish armies, broke out into civil war, and dealt with a harsh famine... By 1613 Michael Romanov ascended to the throne, and brought an end to the Time of Troubles, by making peace with Poland and Sweden, and thus began the Romanov dynasty...
Catherine the Great was of German descent and became Empress of Russia in 1762 after having her incompetent husband, Peter III murdered. She continued to reform the empire, by giving back more power to the nobles and successfully waging war on the Ottoman Empire. By the time of her death in 1796, Russia had expanded into a vast and powerful nation.
During the reign of Alexander, Napoleon lead a massive invasion in 1812. In an extremely bold act, Alexander had the city of Moscow evacuated and burnt to the ground, so as not to give it to the French. Napoleon therefore had no choice but to retreat back to Paris, through the harsh winter. This proved to be a catastrophic journey for the French Army, who became victims to the freezing cold as well as the pursue of Russian militants. All throughout Europe people celebrated the defeat of Napoleon, and glorified Alexander and the Russian Empire. Russia would thus become the leading power of Europe for the next century.
Following the Napoleonic Wars, and the boom of the Industrial Revolution, Russia had become one of the great powers of Europe. Meanwhile it had completely loss track of its infrastructure and had isolated it's people. Throughout the 1840s, new ideologies of socialism and anarchism began to emerge in Russia, led by radical writers such as Karl Marx, Frederich Engels, Michael Bakunin, Alexander Herzen, and Peter Kropotkin. By 1861 it had become clear that the desire for reform was widespread, and in order to avoid a full-scale revolution, Alexander II abolished the serfdom.
When Nicholas II took reign in 1894, the Industrial Revolution had produced heavy opposition to the czar amongst the workers. They soon began to organize in political parties such as the Bolsheviks and the Mensheviks, embracing the ideology of Marxism. It was not long until the first revolution took place in 1905... Years later in 1817 came the February Revolution followed by the October Revolution. In 1917 Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks seized power of Russia and dismantled the empire. A new government of the people was established.
Following the Revolution of 1917, Civil War broke out throughout the country between the Bolsheviks grip of power, known as the "Reds" and its right-wing opponents known as the "Whites". The war lasted from 1917-1923, and due to the immense leadership of Leon Trotsky, the Red Army was able to squash the counter-revolution, secure the country, and establish the Soviet Union.
Following Lenin's death in 1924, Josef Stalin took command of the newly established Soviet Union and didn't waste time in establishing a totalitarian rule. He had his competition, most notably Leon Trotsky exiled from the country, and took the government into a new direction of Communism. By the mid 1930s he had successfully developed an extremely successful and powerful industrial economy. In 1936 he began a campaign known as the Great Purge, to remove all those who disagreed with his politics. From the period of 1937-1938 more than 2 million people were arrested or sent to labor camps, and over half-a-million people were executed.During World War II, the Soviet Union played a very important role in the outcome. Although Adolf Hitler despised Communism, he went forth and made a non-aggressive pact with Stalin so that he could carry forth his plan of invading Poland. After the invasion of Poland, the Nazis and Soviets split the country in half. Yet even from the beginning it was expected that this non-aggressive pact would not last long. It was Hitler who acted first, with his invasion of the Soviet Union, in June of 1941. However just as the Russians had driven Napoleon back, the Soviets were able to repeal the Nazi's blitzkrieg and eventually drive them all the way back to Berlin. The Battle of Berlin marked the end of Hitler, the end of the war, and the emergence of Soviet Union as a super-power.
Following WWII, USA and the Soviet Union had become the two ultimate super-powers in the world, and thus heavy tension arose between the two countries that become known as the Cold War. Throughout this tension was a race to rebuild economies, to rebuild arms, and to reach space. After Stalin's death in 1953, Nikita Khrushchev took command, and began to denounce Stalin's ideology and move the country in a new direction, in a process he called de-Stalinization.
However tension continued to remain between the USA and the USSR which nearly led to nuclear war in the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962.
In the 1980s, President Ronald Reagan began an intense campaign to bring down the Soviet Union economy. He did this by covertly aiding support to it's neighboring countries such as Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan... In 1985 newly elected leader Gorbachev began serious reform on the Soviet Union. He brought new changes to foreign policy, ended the war with Afghanistan, and brought down the Berlin Wall in 1989, thus ending the Iron Curtain of Communism.
Russian Art
The culture of Russia is best captured in it's vividly colorful yet extremely realistic art. The cathedral of St. Basil serves not only as an architectural masterpiece, yet as the defining emblem of Russian art... Here are some of the Russian artists, that I have come to admire, all of which are from the Realist movement known as the Peredvizhniki...- Ilya Repin (1844-1930) One of my favorite Russian painters, he blended extreme realism with captivating colors in masterful works such as; Religious Procession, Reply of the Zaporozhian Cossaks, Demonstration 17 October, and on the left Party 1881)
- Rafail Levitsky (1844-1927) The Bridge in the Woods is a masterpiece with incredible depth!
- Isaac Levitan (1860-1900) Was able to capture and create moods in his magnificent landscape paintings...
- Vasily Surikov (1848-1916) Incredible detail captured in his grand painting of Morning of Stretly's Execution
The greatest architectural landmark of Russia is without question the Saint Basil Cathedral in Moscow, Russia (sometimes referred to as the Kremlin). It was designed by the brothers Barma and Postnik Yakovlev, commissioned by Ivan the Terrible from 1555 to 1561.
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- The Kremlin Square, Moscow
- Kizhi Pogost, Kizhi Island
- Winter Palace, St. Petersburg
- St. Isaac's Cathedral, St, Petersburg
- Peterhof Palace, St. Petesburg
Movies about Russia
Although some of these movies were produced in America, they still capture the essence of Russian history and culture...
- The Cranes are Flying (1957) This Soviet film depicts the cruelty suffered from World War II and won the Palme d'Or...
- Doctor Zhivago (1965) Directed by David Lean, and starring Omar Shariff... An epic love story in the backdrop of the Russian Civil War
- War and Peace (1965) The Soviet adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's novel, took over ten years to make and is considered to be the most expensive movie ever made...
- Reds (1980) Warren Beatty's masterpiece about John Jack Reed, an American journalist who covered the Russian Revolution... This film was nominated for 12 Academy Awards and won 3...
When one says Russian literature only one man comes to mind and that's Leo Tolstoy. I began reading his epic War & Peace back in March, and only have 3 more chapters to go!! The book has proved to be extremely challenging yet also extremely rewarding and inspiring to experience such detailed writing. I'll have a full review on this novel to come, yet Tolstoy is without question the epitome of Russian literature.
- Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) War & Peace, Anna Karenina, The Kingdom of God is Within You
- Boris Pasternak (1890-1960) Russian Poet best known for his masterpiece, Doctor Zhivago... I have recently begun reading his biography as well as his other work...
- Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881) Crime and Punishment, The Brothers Karamazov, Notes from Underground
- Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters, The Cherry Orchard
When I think of Russian Cuisine the first thing that comes to mind is their vodka and caviar delicacy.
Although I've tried plenty of Vodka, as it was my drink of choice in college, I've yet to try caviar. As a matter of fact I've yet to have any form of proper Russian meal. Since it's such a large country there are many regional traditions and cuisines within the country. If there's one thing I've gathered from this study it's that Russians enjoy their food to be sour. Some of the most popular entrees within the country are;
- Cold soups such as the Okroshka salad. It's like a creamy form of cole-sole, mixing vegetables, meat and sour milk.
- Hot soups such as the Shchi. It is a mixture of cabbage, meat, carrots, spicy herbs, and sour ingredients.
- Dumplings such as the Plemeni. Pork, Lamb, Beef wrapped in thin slices of dough.
- Pancakes known as Pirozhki. They are not only for breakfast with syrup and butter as we do yet as a main entry side mixed with meat, onions, rice, potatoes, cabbage, etc.
Russian Music
The masterful innovators of Classical Music, Opera, and Ballet...- Peter Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) Is considered one of the greatest Russian composers of all time, most popular for his symphonies, operas, and ballets... Some of famous works include; Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, the 1812 Overture, and his First Piano Concerto....
- Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) Also played a significant and influential role in Russian's modern classical era, with his famous works such as the Firebird, Petrushka, and the Rite of Spring. I remember the first time I heard the Rite of Spring, was as a child watching the mythological world of Fantasia... Ever since the piece continues to be one of my awe-inspiring favorites!
- Dmitri Shostakovitch (1906-1975) A Soviet composer whose Music was used as propaganda to inspire the masses of Russia. As political as it may have the been the music is also extremely powerful and inspiring, most notably in his Waltz No 2...
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