According to ancient chronicles, on September 21, 862, representatives of the tribes of the Slovenians, Krivichs, Chuds, and others (that is, not only Slavs, but also Finno-Ugric peoples), living in the northwestern part of modern Russia, invited three brothers to rule: Rurik, Sineus, and Truvor. The khans were told: «Our land is generous and rich, but there is no order in it. Come and rule us!» The date, of course, is approximate. But in the end it was accepted as the starting point for the foundation of Russian statehood, and over time Rurik’s name came to be revered as the founder of this state. And this continued until the 18th century.

#Vikings #WarinUkraine #Romanovdynasty #Rurikdynasty #AncientRus #historicalmyths #Russianhistory #Lomonosov #medina #Normantheory #Putin #SlavophilesversusWesternizers #Stalin

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Reading Gogun’s major historical study, I kept recalling our family chronicles. The author tells how, in 1946–1947, during preparations for a new world war, army authorities, while freely demobilizing high-ranking officers, sought at the same time to retain combat officers of the lower or middle ranks — with the main emphasis, first and foremost, on field artillery. So it was with my father as well. In 1937, when he was a 14-year-old boy, he was sent off to the camps. Five years later, having miraculously survived, he volunteered for the front and spent the entire war on the front line, commanding an anti-tank 45-mm gun. He was wounded three times. A decorated veteran. In 1947, after a decade of state-imposed captivity, he tried in vain to be demobilized — but they would not release him: «We need officers with front-line experience». He was let go only after, in one of his countless applications, he dared to mention his sentence under Article 58 of the Criminal Code for «counterrevolutionary activity», which he had concealed in army forms («At the time I considered it necessary to keep that hidden»).

#YeiintheUSSR #ideology #historyoftheUSSR #bookclub #communism #worldrevolution #repressionsintheUSSR #review #Stalin #WorldWarIII

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Director Liza Stishova made a documentary for the Ost-West TV channel called «Germans in Russia,» featuring people who are currently moving from Germany to Russia in search of a better life. To understand their motivation, she delves into the history of German colonists from the time of Catherine the Great, talks to ethnic Germans who survived Stalin’s deportations, and investigates the biography of her own grandfather, who helped organize those deportations. We spoke with Liza about what her film’s protagonists are willing to ignore for their own comfort, and why they choose to live in Russia—a country that has just experienced a major wave of protest emigration.

#Germany #deportationofpeoplestotheUSSR #documentary #europe #interview #historicalmemory #LizaStishova #GermansinRussia #Putin #repressions #selfcensorship #Stalin #reliableprices #Emigration

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In the place of the closed GULAG Museum in Moscow, a «Museum of the Genocide of the Soviet People» is being created. If we didn't know what a kingdom of crooked mirrors Russia is today, this could even be welcomed — after all, there really was genocide in the USSR. However, it was not at all the kind that the Russian authorities mean today.

#WorldWarII #genocide #Hitler #Twoleggedbelt #industrialization #historicalmemory #historicalmyths #collectivization #leftandright #propaganda #repressionsintheUSSR #Russia #Stalin #statistics #Trotsky #theeconomyisalmost #essay

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The story of how the Soviet Grinch stole Christmas is telling in many ways. At first, the totalitarian regime shamelessly declared established family traditions to be barbaric. Then, after failing, Stalinism retreated a bit and, as a compromise, offered Soviet citizens a new holiday—with recognizable trappings, but stripped of its original meaning. Soon, the next generation came to perceive the Soviet New Year as an unshakable custom from time immemorial.

#householdandchildren #state #ideology #History #everydayculture #lenin #newYear #society #holidays #religion #theUSSR #Stalin #traditions

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Near Lesnaya metro station in St. Petersburg, at 61 Lesnoy Prospekt, stands a building with columns. This is the «house of specialists,» built in the 1930s in the style of Stalinist neoclassicism. Creative and scientific intelligentsia lived here, including artist Nathan Altman, radio engineer Mikhail Bonch-Bruevich, and writer Alexander Kuprin. It was from here that many were taken during the «Great Terror.» Now, plaques of the «Last Address» project are installed on the house for former residents who became victims of political repression in the USSR. The last two names appeared on the facade on Sunday, December 14 — on the day of remembrance for academician Andrei Sakharov. A «Most» correspondent attended the ceremony for installing the memorial signs.

#WarinUkraine #lifeinRussia #historicalmemory #cultureofmemory #society #Petersburg #Thelastedge #Putin #reportage #repressions #Stalin

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On November 30, 1939, the USSR attacked Finland. On the anniversary of the start of the «uncelebrated war,» we explain how Stalin turned a peaceful neighbor into a fierce enemy.

#WinterWar #History #Myths #theUSSR #Stalin #Finland

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This fall, the 16-episode series «Chronicles of the Russian Revolution» by Andrei Konchalovsky was released on the Start online cinema platform. The creators of the series openly claim: all freedoms in Russia are only harmful. Which, however, is the norm for Russian historical series.

#AndreiKonchalovsky #state #dictatorship #historicalmemory #medina #society #aftertheUSSR #revolution #Russia #freedom #series #Stalin #TV #FSB

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On National Unity Day, a correspondent from «Most» visited Vologda for the unveiling of a monument to the most famous dictator of Russian medieval times. A monument to Stalin has long been there

#lifeinRussia #IvantheTerrible #historicalmemory #society #Regions #reportage #Stalin

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On the Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Repression, we analyze the most dangerous stereotypes about Stalin’s crimes

#20thcentury #historicalmemory #History #Myths #aftertheUSSR #repressions #Russia #Stalin #Stalinism

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Centuries changed, but the old pattern remained. It was not so much dangerous criminals who ended up with the executioners, but rather random people and disgraced members of the elite.

#1937 #state #dictatorship #Empire #History #worldwideisolation #monarchy #society #executionersandvictims #PetertheGreat #Putin #torture #repressions #Russia #MiddleAges #theUSSR #Stalin

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The law establishing the national messenger was signed by Putin at the end of June 2025. Since yesterday, it has been fully operational in Moscow and three other regions: schoolchildren and first-year university students are required to switch to Max.

#state #dictatorship #theInternet #China #instantmessengers #Moscow #society #Orwell #Putin #Russia #freedom #Stalin #censorship #digitalsurveillance

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The Woody Allen case, who participated online in a certain Moscow film week and gave a video interview to Fyodor Bondarchuk, once again raised the question of moral and immoral behavior during a military and humanitarian catastrophe, about detachment from events and involvement in them, about toxicity—or, on the contrary, the necessity of cultural and interpersonal contacts.

#America #WarinUkraine #East #WoodyAllen #ironcurtain #west #Insulation #movie #Putin #Russia #Stalin #Trump #FyodorBondarchuk

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The forested Sandarmokh tract seems to threaten the Russian authorities by its very existence. From their point of view, since people do not forget about it, their memory must be reformatted—by any means and at any cost.

#thecaseofYuriDmitriev #dictatorship #historicalmemory #Karelia #NKVD #Putin #repressions #Sandarmokh #theUSSR #Stalin #FSB

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