History of the USSR. Years of existence of the USSR, features, history and interesting facts In what year was the USSR organized

Where does the Motherland begin?
From the picture in your primer
With good and faithful comrades,
Living in a neighboring yard.
Or maybe it starts
From the song that our mother sang to us,
Since in any trials
No one can take away from us.

Where does the Motherland begin?
From the treasured bench at the gate,
From the very birch that is in the field,
Leaning under the wind, it grows.
Or maybe it starts
From the spring singing of the starling
And from this country road,
To which there is no end in sight.

Where does the Motherland begin?
From the windows burning in the distance,
From my father's old Budyonovka,
That somewhere in the closet we found.
Or maybe it starts
From the sound of wagon wheels
And from the oath that in youth
You brought it to her in your heart.

Where does the Motherland begin ...

The Soviet Union is not an empty phrase, but a whole era of generations that today have formed into a single generation - the generation of the USSR or "soviet" as we sometimes call it. An era, like a word from a song, cannot be thrown out, because it is part of our history. Rewriting history in order to distort it is not only unforgivable, but insulting. It was during the Soviet era that our country for the first time in history became the first socialist superpower, because as Churchill noted: "Stalin accepted Russia with a plow, and left it with a nuclear baton," and this is a completely fair assessment. But let's not at the same time deny the merits of the Petrine monarchy, which laid the foundation for this glorious path. Azov, Poltava, Gangut, Grengam, Nishtadt - these are certainly the first serious victories of Russia, which turned it into a monarchical superpower, which was also done for the first time. It is difficult to overestimate the importance of the Nystadt Peace in the North and the Victory in the Great Patriotic War and World War II in general. To paraphrase Churchill, it remains for me to add: "Peter the Great took Russia with horses, and left him with sea wolves." If Britain became a trendsetter in naval fashion, and the United States in nuclear fashion, then Russia invariably violated the monopoly of each of these enemies. The famous aphorism of the greatest Russian monarch Alexander III suffered through our entire history: "Russia has only 2 allies: the army and the navy; all the rest will oppose it." Today it is difficult to disagree with this, if we add a third one - a nuclear gun! So, whether it will still be, if among our types of weapons there will be new types of it, which will also become our constant and eternal allies.

Prerequisites for the formation of the USSR
Before the torn consequences civil war the problem of creating a unified administrative-territorial system became acute for the young state. At that time, the share of the RSFSR accounted for 92% of the country's area, the population of which later amounted to 70% of the newly formed USSR. The remaining 8% were divided between the republics of the Soviets: Ukraine, Belarus and the Transcaucasian Federation, which united Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia in 1922. Also in the east of the country, the Far Eastern Republic was created, which was controlled from Chita. Central Asia at that time consisted of two people's republics - Khorezm and Bukhara.
Consider what stages the formation of the USSR went through.

Strengthening the historical trinity of Moscow, Kyiv and Minsk
In order to strengthen the centralization of management and the concentration of resources on the fronts of the civil war, the RSFSR, Belarus and Ukraine united in an alliance in June 1919. This made it possible to unite the armed forces, with the introduction of a centralized command (the Revolutionary Military Council of the RSFSR and the Commander-in-Chief of the Red Army). Representatives were delegated from each republic to the composition of state authorities. The agreement also provided for the reassignment of some republican branches of industry, transport and finance to the corresponding people's commissariats of the RSFSR. This state new formation went down in history under the name "contractual federation". Its peculiarity was that the Russian governing bodies got the opportunity to function as the only representatives of the supreme power of the state. At the same time, the communist parties of the republics became part of the RCP (b) only as regional party organizations.

Transcaucasian Federative SSR as a state-catalyst of unification
Soviet power was strengthened. On this basis, the mutual political and economic ties of the independent Soviet republics expanded. As early as 1920, the Communist Party raised the question of strengthening a federal alliance between them. In his theses on national and colonial questions, written for the Second Congress of the Comintern, V. I. Lenin put forward the task of "strive for a closer and closer federal union." In the same year, the RSFSR and the Ukrainian SSR signed a union treaty, which provided for cooperation between the two republics in various fields their activities. In 1920-1921 treaties were concluded between the RSFSR and the Byelorussian SSR, between the RSFSR and the Soviet republics of Transcaucasia.
The process of unification of the socialist republics took place in a sharp struggle against great-power chauvinism and local bourgeois nationalism. This struggle was led by the Communist Party, which stood guard over the fraternal unity of the peoples. The establishment of the dictatorship of the proletariat ensured that all nations and peoples of the former Russian Empire free national development and granted them full sovereignty. The peoples, in accordance with their will and depending on the specific historical situation, could unite in a proletarian multinational state or not unite. V. I. Lenin pointed out that the question of the right of nations to self-determination, up to secession, must not be confused with the question of the expediency of secession. The last question must be decided by the Communist Party in each individual case from the point of view of the interests of the proletariat and of all the working masses of the national Soviet republics. Uniting tendencies won, as they met the fundamental interests of all the peoples of the Soviet republics. This manifested the historical regularity of the dictatorship of the proletariat - the power that unites peoples, and does not divide them. The Soviet nations wished to unite into a single multinational state because they were closely connected with each other economically, politically and culturally, and also because without such unification it would have been extremely difficult for them to resist the onslaught of international imperialism.

The unification of the republics was to be carried out on the basis of complete voluntariness. "A federation can be strong and its results real," the resolution of the Tenth Congress of the Communist Party said, "only if it is based on mutual trust and the voluntary consent of its member countries."

The creation of a single union Soviet socialist state was dictated by objective reasons. First of all, it was necessary to pool the economic and financial resources of the Soviet republics and coordinate their plans for socialist construction. Wherein big role played such factors as the historical division of labor and the unity of the main means of communication.

The world and civil wars had a detrimental effect on the state of the national economy of the country. In each district, it was precisely those sectors that were the subject of his specialization that suffered the most: mining and sugar industry in Ukraine, flax growing in the North-Western region, cotton growing in Central Asia etc. In addition to the direct destruction of the productive forces, severe damage was caused by the disruption of communications due to the emergence of various fronts and the disorganization of transport. The restoration of the national economy and economic ties between the Soviet republics, which began after the civil war, took place on the basis of the historically established division of labor. At the same time, the principles of the national policy of the Soviet government provided for the creation of new industrial centers, the development of minerals and other natural resources where this had not been done before. The changes introduced into the former division of labor were intended not to weaken, but to further strengthen economic ties between the Soviet republics.

The formation of a union Soviet state was dictated by the tasks of a planned socialist economy. Private property and capital separate people, collective property and labor bring them together. Back in 1920-1921, when the GOELRO plan was developed, all Soviet republics expressed their desire to participate in its implementation. Each of them was interested in the socialist reconstruction of their economy on the basis of electrification. The construction of a number of power plants was designed at the request of the republics: Dneprovskaya, Shterovskaya, Lisichanskaya, Grishinskaya - at the request of the Ukrainian SSR, Osipovskaya - of the Byelorussian SSR, Tashkent - of the Turkestan ASSR, Zemo-Avchalskaya - of the Georgian SSR. Commenting on the electrification map, G. M. Krzhizhanovsky, Chairman of the State Planning Commission, said that the GOELRO plan could not be fulfilled by the scattered efforts of individual republics. To carry out the socialist reconstruction of the national economy, to achieve an upswing in the productive forces and the well-being of all peoples, was possible only through the combined efforts of all Soviet nations within the framework of a union multinational Soviet state.

Treaties concluded in 1920-1921 between the Soviet republics, contained clauses on economic cooperation, but did not define its conditions and did not provide for the creation of joint planning and economic bodies. This caused great difficulties in the development of both the GOELRO plan and, in particular, the plan for the economic zoning of the Soviet country.

The project of economic zoning was developed by the State Planning Committee of the RSFSR in 1921-1922. with the direct participation of prominent Soviet scientists (G. M. Krzhizhanovsky, I. G. Aleksandrov, S. G. Strumilin, and others). Providing maximum favorable conditions development of the productive forces of all national republics and regions, this project assumed not departmental, but territorial management of the national economy. Its implementation opened wide opportunities for the creative initiative of the masses, and on the other hand, the role of planned management of the economy was strengthened.

Economic zoning provided for the formation of local economic conferences and the strengthening of the role of state plans and economic councils. This could not be achieved without the creation of unified planning and economic bodies. Therefore, in 1922, the Gosplan raised the question of establishing a planning center for all Soviet republics and put forward the idea of ​​further strengthening the Soviet federation by constitutional or contractual means.

In all the republics, the need for a closer unification of economic activity was keenly felt. In August 1922, the Ukrainian Economic Council decided "to carry out economic zoning in contact and cooperation with the State Planning Committee of the RSFSR." The resolution of the II Congress of the Communist Party of Azerbaijan stated: "We are faced with the task of establishing the closest connection between the economic bodies of Azerbaijan and the Supreme Council of the National Economy of the RSFSR." The Central Committee of the Russian Communist Party, in its report for 1922, wrote that the experience of the economic construction of the Soviet republics over the past year "showed the need for a state unification of the economic efforts of the republics and a planned distribution of the resources available to these republics."

The unification of the Soviet republics was also dictated by their international position and the tasks of strengthening their defense capability.

The Soviet government in its foreign policy proceeded from the possibility of peaceful coexistence between the Soviet republics and the capitalist countries. The victory over the interventionists and the White Guards gave the Soviet people a peaceful respite. However, the aggressive circles of the imperialist states still hoped to restore the bourgeois system in Russia, if not by force of arms, then by means of subversion, economic and political pressure. They also hoped to introduce discord among the Soviet peoples, to oppose some Soviet republics to others. In these difficult conditions, the Soviet republics had to observe strict unity of action in the international arena. In February 1922, eight republics instructed the delegation of the RSFSR to represent their interests at the Genoa Conference. In November, a joint Russian-Ukrainian-Georgian delegation was formed to participate in the Lausanne Conference. Contact between the People's Commissariats of the Soviet Republics was intensified, and uniform diplomatic missions were created abroad. The same unification of activities took place in the organs of foreign trade.

All Soviet republics were in favor of an early merger of the armed forces and military leadership. Party and Soviet organs of the Ukrainian SSR have several times noted the urgent need for this. Similar resolutions were adopted by the Central Committees of the Communist Parties in Georgia and Armenia.

Thus, in 1922, all the prerequisites for the creation of a Soviet multinational state were ripe.

The emergence and growth of confrontation.
But nevertheless, disagreements arose between the republics and the control center in Moscow. After all, having delegated their main powers, the republics lost the opportunity to make decisions independently. At the same time, the independence of the republics in the sphere of governance was officially declared.
Uncertainty in determining the boundaries of the powers of the center and the republics gave rise to conflicts and confusion. Sometimes state authorities looked ridiculous, trying to bring to a common denominator the people, about whose traditions and culture they knew nothing. So, for example, the need for the existence of a subject for the study of the Koran in the schools of Turkestan gave rise in October 1922 to a sharp confrontation between the All-Russian Central Executive Committee and the People's Commissariat for Nationalities, which was headed by Stalin until Lenin's death.

Creation of a commission on relations between the RSFSR and the independent republics.
The decisions of the central authorities in the sphere of the economy did not find proper understanding among the republican authorities and often led to sabotage. In August 1922, in order to radically reverse the current situation, the Politburo and the Organizing Bureau of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) considered the issue "On the relationship between the RSFSR and the independent republics", creating a commission, which included republican representatives. VV Kuibyshev was appointed chairman of the commission.
The commission instructed I. V. Stalin to develop a project for the "autonomization" of the republics. In the presented decision, it was proposed to include Ukraine, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia into the RSFSR, with the rights of republican autonomy. The draft was sent by the Republican Party Central Committee for consideration. However, this was done only in order to obtain a formal approval of the decision. Given the significant infringement of the rights of the republics provided for by this decision, JV Stalin insisted on not applying the usual practice of publishing the decision of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) if it was adopted. But he demanded to oblige the republican Central Committees of the parties to strictly implement it.

Creation by V.I. Lenin of the concept of the state on the basis of the Federation.
Ignoring the independence and self-government of the subjects of the country, with the simultaneous tightening of the role of the central authorities, were perceived by Lenin as a violation of the principle of proletarian internationalism. In September 1922, he proposed the idea of ​​creating a state on the principles of federation. Initially, such a name was proposed - the Union of Soviet Republics of Europe and Asia, later it was changed to the USSR. Joining the union was supposed to be a conscious choice of each sovereign republic, based on the principle of equality and independence, under the general authorities of the federation. V. I. Lenin believed that a multinational state must be built based on the principles of good neighborliness, parity, openness, respect and mutual assistance.

"Georgian conflict". Strengthening separatism.
At the same time, in some republics, there is a tilt towards the isolation of autonomies, and separatist sentiments are intensifying. For example, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia flatly refused to remain a part of the Transcaucasian Federation, demanding that the republic be admitted to the union as an independent entity. Furious polemics on this issue between representatives of the Central Committee of the Party of Georgia and the chairman of the Transcaucasian Regional Committee G.K. Ordzhonikidze ended in mutual insults and even assault on the part of Ordzhonikidze. The result of the policy of strict centralization on the part of the central authorities was the voluntary resignation of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia in full force.
To investigate this conflict in Moscow, a commission was created, whose chairman was F. E. Dzerzhinsky. The commission took the side of G. K. Ordzhonikidze and subjected the Central Committee of Georgia to severe criticism. This fact outraged V. I. Lenin. He repeatedly tried to condemn the perpetrators of the clash in order to exclude the possibility of infringing on the independence of the republics. However, the progressing illness and civil strife in the Central Committee of the country's party did not allow him to complete the job.


The official date of formation of the USSR is December 30, 1922. On this day, at the first Congress of Soviets, the Declaration on the Creation of the USSR and the Union Treaty were signed. The Union included the RSFSR, the Ukrainian and Belarusian socialist republics, as well as the Transcaucasian Federation. The Declaration formulated the reasons and determined the principles for the unification of the republics. The treaty delimited the functions of the republican and central authorities. The state bodies of the Union were entrusted with foreign policy and trade, means of communication, communications, as well as issues of organizing and controlling finance and defense.
Everything else belonged to the sphere of government of the republics.
The All-Union Congress of Soviets was proclaimed the supreme body of the state. In the period between congresses, the leading role was assigned to the Central Executive Committee of the USSR, organized on the principle of bicameralism - the Union Council and the Council of Nationalities. M. I. Kalinin was elected chairman of the CEC, co-chairs - G. I. Petrovsky, N. N. Narimanov, A. G. Chervyakov. The government of the Union (Council of People's Commissars of the USSR) was headed by V. I. Lenin.

The GULAG repression machine, the executioners of the Cheka and the dogs of the NKVD
The formation of the USSR was not only due to the initiative of the leadership of the Communist Party. For many centuries, the prerequisites were formed for the unification of peoples into a single state. The harmony of the association has deep historical, economic, military-political and cultural roots. The former Russian Empire united 185 nationalities and nationalities. All of them went through a common historical path. During this time, a system of economic and economic ties has developed. They defended their freedom, absorbed the best of each other's cultural heritage. And, of course, they did not feel hostility towards each other.
It is worth considering that at that time the entire territory of the country was surrounded by hostile states. This also influenced the unification of peoples to no lesser extent. The unification into one multinational state did not contradict the interests of the peoples inhabiting the country's territory. Consolidation into the Union allowed the young state to take one of the leading positions in the geopolitical space of the world. However, the commitment of the top leadership of the party to the excessive centralization of government stopped the expansion of the powers of the country's subjects. Finally, JV Stalin put the country on the rails of the most cruel centralism at the end of the 1930s.

Stalin took over the USSR only a little over a year after its formation: it happened on January 28, 1924. He waited only 395 days for his time. In the year of the formation of the USSR, the first changes took place in Europe: Italy, humiliated and insulted by the results and promises of the British in the First World War, became the world's first fascist state. The case with Italy is generally unique: the country had 2 forms of government in the period from 1922 to 1945, being both a monarchical empire and a fascist dictatorship in one person, while Japan was only a monarchical empire, where power belonged to the emperor. In Nazi Germany, the monarchy was abolished, but Hitler took care of the life and safety of Kaiser Wilhelm, who was deposed in November 1919. In Spain, after the fall of the Azaña regime and the coming to power of Franco, on the contrary, the monarchy was not abolished as such, but it could return as a form of government only after the death of the caudillo, which happened on November 20, 1975, when Franco died. In general, November 20 is a special day in Spain and is very popular among the Spanish right-wing forces. Then, in 1936, the founder of the Falange, Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, was shot, and 39 years later Franco himself died. Interestingly, King Juan Carlos I left the throne to his son after 39 years on it, and the Spanish Civil War ended on April 1, 1939 (try to believe!). If anyone does not know what the number 39 means, I will explain simply and clearly: this is "thrice 13".


Stalin's rule was ambiguous. The Soviet Union in many ways grew out of the civil war and its victims; in fact, it was "built on the bones" of its own citizens, which distinguishes it from the creation of the Russian Empire. Back in the years of the Civil War, one of the founders of the Red Army, Leiba (Bronstein) Trotsky, formed the concept of "Red Terror" and "Decossackization", which grew into "dispossession", which dealt a blow primarily to ordinary people. All this was done under the pretext of fighting for socialism and fanning the fire of the red revolution. Surplus appropriation reigned in the country, the regime of "war communism" was introduced, and in fact - red fascism, when soldiers in Budyonnivka broke into the houses of peasants and took away the remnants of food. Those who did not obey the requirements were simply shot without trial or investigation. Bolshevism as such appeared in Russia back in 1905, when the First Congress of the CPSU (then called the RSDLP) was held. The underground red cell was a kind of political sect, like the Spanish Falange (Falange JONS), and its funding came from Germany, Switzerland, England and the USA. A. Parvus (aka I. Gelfand) played a special role in the beginning of the civil war in Russia, who had strong relations with the Bolshevik socialists, mainly with Ilyich.

Under Stalin, the country took a sharp course towards industrialization and the country's economy began to work at full capacity. Thanks to 5-year plans, the economy of the USSR rose to 2nd place in the world after the United States, where at that time the Great Depression reigned at first, but since 1933, the New Deal program of Roosevelt allowed the Americans to regain their lost positions in the world. One way or another, but after the Second World War, both states will converge in a cold confrontation with each other.

The repressions of the 37th hit the country hard. The Red Army was practically destroyed (if anyone does not know or forgot, the destruction of the top command staff of the Red Army was a black operation of the Abwehr), which naturally went into the pocket of both Hitler and the world Jewish lobby. The results of the repressions gave their echo in the shameful Soviet-Finnish war and the defeats at the initial stages of the Great Patriotic War. There was also Katyn, which today is a lie that has become history and which will be discussed in another material, where a new answer will be given to the question "who is to blame for the execution of Polish officers in the spring of 1940."

Despite all the difficulties of the Stalinist era, the USSR emerged victorious in the main hot conflict of the 20th century. By 1945, we got that USSR, the image of which we are trying to drum into our children from the cradle, so as not to disgrace our veterans. And this USSR in the early 50s. in the skies over North Korea showed that it is we, and not the Americans, who are the masters of the sky, and have no right today, almost 25 years after its collapse, to lose this dominance. The Soviet defense industry in many ways made a good leap many years ahead, and our country was in many ways an example to follow.




What is also curious is that if it took Peter the Great 21 years to turn Russia into an Empire, then it took 23 years for the communist elite of the USSR. To some extent, Stalin repeated the strategic feat of Peter the Great, when in 1949, after the Second World War, the first Soviet atomic bomb was tested. By the middle of the 20th century, the USSR was healthy body, whose top leadership pursued a competent foreign policy, and Stalin assigned a special historical role to the Russian people. If not for the gullibility of people, who knows, maybe by the mid-60s we could have done away with America.

Patching holes or fighting bourgeois nationalism?

If our people were more enlightened and thoughtful, and not gullible, then perhaps the USSR would have avoided breaking its national map. It is a pity that history, or rather freaks, ordered contrary to the course of history in order to try to throw us back into the medieval past

Immortality of the Trinity


Despite the fact that the USSR no longer exists, and as such it is no longer subject to restoration, nevertheless, in no case should the members of the Trinity quarrel with each other, which has always stood guard over the security of Eurasia. It's time to cast aside ideological and other prejudices against each other and lend each other hands of help and support. The era of the red and liberal (Yeltsin) plague has long migrated from Russia to the United States, which has already stepped on the rake of all pre-existing empires, where the FBI has long become the American NKVD, surpassing the "red demons in uniform" in every sense. As for the current Ukraine, it is doomed to collapse and the emergence of Novorossiya will become the core of the formation of a new Ukraine without Bandera and overseas external control.
God grant that this day comes as soon as possible and we will bring it closer as soon as we ourselves can. By their common efforts without external help.
Because we can do everything ourselves!

Site materials used http://www.history-at-russia.ru And http://www.russlav.ru

An important role in the successful socialist construction was played by the state association of the Soviet socialist republics. The voluntary unification of the sovereign Soviet republics into a single union multinational socialist state was dictated by the course of their political, economic and cultural development and was prepared practically as a result of the implementation of the Leninist national policy. The joint struggle of the peoples of the Soviet republics against external and internal enemies showed that the contractual relations between them, established in the early years of Soviet power, were not enough to restore the economy and further socialist construction, in order to defend their state independence and independence. It was possible to successfully develop the national economy only if all the Soviet republics were united into a single economic entity. Great importance It also had the fact that an economic division of labor and interdependence had historically developed between the various regions of the country. This led to mutual assistance and close economic ties. The threat of military intervention from the imperialist states demanded unity in foreign policy and the strengthening of the country's defense capability.

Union cooperation of the republics was especially important for those non-Russian peoples who had to go the way from pre-capitalist forms of economy to socialism. The formation of the USSR followed from the presence of a socialist way of life in the national economy and from the very nature of Soviet power, international in its essence.

In 1922, a mass movement of working people for unification into a single union state developed in all the republics. In March 1922 it was proclaimed Transcaucasian Federation, which took shape in December 1922 in Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (TSFSR). The question of the forms of unification of the republics was developed and discussed in the Central Committee of the Party. The idea of ​​autonomization, i.e., the entry of independent Soviet republics into the RSFSR on the basis of autonomy, put forward by I. V. Stalin (since April 1922 General Secretary of the Party Central Committee) and supported by some other party workers, was rejected by Lenin, then by the October Plenum (1922) of the Central Committee RCP (b).
Lenin developed a fundamentally different form of unification of the independent republics. He proposed the creation of a new public entity - Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, into which all the Soviet republics would enter together with RSFSR on equal terms. The congresses of Soviets of the Ukrainian SSR, BSSR, TSFSR, held in December 1922, as well as the 10th All-Russian Congress of Soviets, recognized the timely unification of the Soviet republics into a single union state. On December 30, 1922, the First Congress of Soviets of the USSR opened in Moscow, which approved the Declaration on the Formation of the USSR. It formulated the basic principles for the unification of the republics: equality and voluntariness of their entry into the USSR, the right to freely secede from the Union and access to the Union for new Soviet socialist republics. The congress considered and approved the Treaty on the Formation of the USSR. Initially, the USSR included: RSFSR, Ukrainian SSR, BSSR, ZSFSR. The formation of the USSR was a triumph of Lenin's national policy and was of world-historical significance. It became possible thanks to the victory of the October Revolution, the establishment of the dictatorship of the proletariat and the creation of a socialist order in the economy. The 1st Congress of Soviets elected the supreme body of power of the USSR - the Central Executive Committee of the USSR (chairmen: M. I. Kalinin, G. I. Petrovsky, N. N. Narimanov and A. G. Chervyakov). At the 2nd session of the Central Executive Committee, the government of the USSR was formed - the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR, headed by Lenin.

The unification of material and labor resources in a single state was of great importance for successful socialist construction. Lenin, speaking in November 1922 at the plenum of the Moscow City Council and summing up the results of the five years of Soviet power, expressed confidence that "... out of NEP Russia there will be socialist Russia" (ibid., p. 309).

In the autumn of that year, Lenin fell seriously ill. While ill, he wrote a number of important letters and articles: “Letter to the Congress”, “On giving legislative functions to the State Planning Committee”, “On the question of nationalities or on “autonomization”, “Pages from a diary”, “On cooperation”, “On our revolution”, “How do we reorganize the Rabkrin”, “Less is better”. In these works, Lenin summed up the results of the development of Soviet society and indicated specific ways of building socialism: the industrialization of the country, the co-operation of peasant farms (collectivization), the conduct of a cultural revolution, and the strengthening of the socialist state and its armed forces. Lenin's instructions, made by him in his last articles and letters, formed the basis for the decisions of the 12th Party Congress (April 1923) and all subsequent policy of the Party and government. Summing up the results of the NEP for 2 years, the congress outlined ways to implement the new economic policy. The decisions of the congress on the national question contained a comprehensive program of struggle for the elimination of the economic and cultural inequality inherited from the past between peoples.

Despite significant successes in restoring the national economy, in 1923 the country was still going through serious difficulties. There were about 1 million unemployed. Private capital controlled up to 4,000 small and medium-sized light and food industry enterprises, three-fourths of retail trade, and about half of wholesale and retail trade. The Nepmen in the city, the kulaks in the countryside, the remnants of the defeated SR-Menshevik parties and other hostile forces waged a struggle against Soviet power. Economic difficulties were exacerbated by a crisis in the sale of industrial goods caused by differences in the pace of industrial recovery and Agriculture, deficiencies in planning, violations of price policy by industrial and commercial authorities. Prices for manufactured goods were high, while prices for agricultural products were extremely low. The discrepancy in prices (the so-called scissors) could lead to a narrowing of the base of industrial production, undermining industry, and weakening the alliance between the working class and the peasantry. Measures were taken to eliminate the difficulties that had arisen, to eliminate the sales crisis: the prices of manufactured goods were reduced, and the monetary reform (1922-24) was successfully carried out, which led to the establishment of a hard currency.

Taking advantage of the acute domestic as well as the prevailing international situation and Lenin's illness, the Trotskyists launched new attacks on the party. They blackened the work of the Central Committee of the party, demanded the freedom of factions and groupings, opposed the reduction in prices for goods, proposed raising taxes on peasants, closing unprofitable enterprises (which were of great national economic importance), and increasing the import of industrial products from abroad. The 13th Party Conference (January 1924), condemning the Trotskyists, declared that “... in the face of the present opposition we have before us not only an attempt to revise Bolshevism, not only a direct departure from Leninism, but also a clearly expressed petty-bourgeois deviation” (“CPSU in resolutions…”, 8th ed., vol. 2, 1970, p. 511).

On January 31, 1924, the 2nd Congress of Soviets of the USSR approved the first Constitution of the USSR. It was based on the Declaration and Treaty on the Formation of the USSR, adopted by the First All-Union Congress of Soviets in 1922. The Central Executive Committee included two equal chambers: the Union Council and the Council of Nationalities. A single union citizenship was established: a citizen of each republic is a citizen of the USSR. The Constitution provided the working people of the USSR with broad democratic rights and freedoms and active participation in government. But at that time, in an atmosphere of acute class struggle, the Soviet government was forced to deprive voting rights of class alien elements: kulaks, merchants, ministers of religious cults, former employees of the police and gendarmerie, etc. The Constitution of the USSR was of great international and internal significance. In accordance with its text, the constitutions of the union republics were developed and approved.

Nation-state construction continued. The process of government was completed Russian Federation(by 1925 it included, in addition to provinces, 9 autonomous republics and 15 autonomous regions). In 1924, a number of counties of the Smolensk, Vitebsk and Gomel provinces, populated mainly by Belarusians, were transferred from the RSFSR to the BSSR, as a result of which the territory of the BSSR more than doubled and the population almost tripled. The Moldavian ASSR was formed as part of the Ukrainian SSR. In 1924-25, the national-state delimitation of the Soviet republics of Central Asia was carried out, as a result of which the peoples of Central Asia received the opportunity to create sovereign national states. From the regions of the Turkestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, the Bukhara and Khorezm Republics, inhabited by Uzbeks and Turkmens, the Uzbek SSR and the Turkmen SSR were formed. From the regions of the Turkestan ASSR and the Bukhara Republic inhabited by Tajiks, the Tajik ASSR was formed, which became part of the Uzbek SSR. The areas inhabited by Kazakhs, which were previously part of the Turkestan ASSR, were reunited with the Kazakh ASSR. From the areas inhabited by the Kirghiz, the Kirghiz Autonomous Okrug was formed as part of the RSFSR.

The 3rd Congress of Soviets of the USSR (May 1925) accepted the newly formed union republics, the Uzbek SSR and the Turkmen SSR, into the USSR.

On December 30, 1922, the formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was approved at the First All-Union Congress of Soviets.

In December, the Union, in July - the government.

The agreement on the formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was signed on December 29, 1922 at a conference of delegations from the congresses of Soviets of the RSFSR, Ukrainian SSR, BSSR and ZSFSR and approved by the First All-Union Congress of Soviets. December 30 is considered the official date of the formation of the USSR, although the government of the USSR and the allied ministries were created only in July 1923.

From 4 to 16.

Over the years, the number of union republics in the USSR varied from 4 to 16, but for the longest time the Soviet Union consisted of 15 republics - the RSFSR, the Ukrainian SSR, the Byelorussian SSR, the Moldavian SSR, the Armenian SSR, the Georgian SSR, the Azerbaijan SSR, the Kazakh SSR, the Uzbek SSR, Kirghiz SSR, Turkmen SSR, Tajik SSR, Latvian SSR, Lithuanian SSR and Estonian SSR.

Three Constitutions in 69 years.

For nearly 69 years of its existence, the Soviet Union has changed three constitutions, which were adopted in 1924, 1936 and 1977. According to the first, the supreme body state power in the country was the All-Union Congress of Soviets, according to the second - the bicameral Supreme Soviet of the USSR. The third constitution also initially had a bicameral parliament, which in the 1988 edition gave way to the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR.

Kalinin led the USSR the longest.

Legally, the head of state in the Soviet Union in different years was considered the Chairman of the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR, the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR and the President of the USSR. Formally, the longest head of the USSR was Mikhail Ivanovich Kalinin, who for 16 years held the post of Chairman of the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR, and then for eight years was the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.

The flag was approved later than the Constitution.

In the Treaty on the Formation of the USSR, it was determined that the new state has its own flag, but it was not given a clear description. In January 1924, the first Constitution of the USSR was approved, but there was no indication of how the flag of the new country looked like. And only in April 1924, the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR approved a scarlet flag with a red five-pointed star, a sickle and a hammer as a flag.

In America - stars, in the USSR - slogans.

In 1923, the coat of arms was approved Soviet Union- an image of a sickle and a hammer against the background of the globe, in the rays of the sun and framed by ears of corn, with an inscription in the languages ​​of the union republics "Proletarians of all countries, unite!". The number of inscriptions depended on the number of republics in the USSR, just as the number of stars on the US flag depends on the number of states.

universal anthem.

From 1922 to 1943, the anthem of the Soviet Union was "The Internationale" - a French song with music by Pierre Degeyter and words by Eugene Pottier, translated by Arkady Kots. In December 1943, a new national anthem was created and approved with lyrics by Sergei Mikhalkov and Gabriel El-Registan and music by Alexander Alexandrov. Alexandrov's music with a modified text by Mikhalkov is currently the anthem of Russia.

A country the size of a mainland.

The Soviet Union occupied an area of ​​22,400,000 square kilometers, being by this indicator the largest country on the planet. The size of the USSR was comparable to the size of North America, including the territories of the USA, Canada and Mexico.

The boundary is one and a half equator.

The Soviet Union had the longest border in the world, over 60,000 kilometers, and bordered on 14 states. It is curious that the length of the border of modern Russia is almost the same - about 60,900 km. At the same time, Russia borders on 18 states - 16 recognized and 2 partially recognized.

The highest point of the Union.

The highest point of the Soviet Union was a mountain in the Tajik SSR with a height of 7495 meters, which in different years was called Stalin Peak and Communism Peak. In 1998, the authorities of Tajikistan gave it a third name - Samani Peak, in honor of the emir who founded the first Tajik state.

Unique capital.

Despite the tradition that existed in the USSR of renaming cities in honor of prominent Soviet figures, this process did not actually affect the capitals of the union republics. The only exception was the capital of the Kirghiz SSR, the city of Frunze, renamed in honor of the Soviet commander Mikhail Frunze, who was a local native. At the same time, the city was first renamed, and then became the capital of the union republic. In 1991, Frunze was renamed Bishkek.

The Soviet Union in the mid-1950s - early 1960s made a kind of "scientific and technical hat-trick" - in 1954 it created the world's first nuclear power plant, in 1957 it launched the world's first artificial satellite into orbit, and in 1961 launched the world's first manned spacecraft. These events took place respectively 9, 12 and 15 years after the end of the Great Patriotic War, in which the USSR suffered the greatest material and human losses among the participating countries.

The USSR did not lose wars.

During its existence, the Soviet Union officially participated in three wars - the Soviet-Finnish war of 1939-1940, the Great Patriotic war 1941–1945 and in the Soviet-Japanese War of 1945. All these armed conflicts ended with the victory of the Soviet Union.

1204 Olympic medals.

During the existence of the USSR, athletes of the Soviet Union took part in 18 Olympics (9 summer and 9 winter), winning 1204 medals (473 gold, 376 silver and 355 bronze). According to this indicator, the Soviet Union to this day ranks second, second only to the United States. For comparison, the third-placed Great Britain has 806 Olympic awards with 49 participation in the Olympic Games. As for modern Russia, it takes 9th place - 521 medals after 11 Olympiads.

First and last referendum.

In the entire history of the existence of the USSR, the only all-Union referendum was held, which took place on March 17, 1991. It raised the question of the future existence of the USSR. More than 77 percent of the referendum participants voted for the preservation of the Soviet Union. In December of the same year, the heads of the RSFSR of the Ukrainian SSR and the Byelorussian SSR announced the termination of the existence of a single country.

Happy New Year 2017 to all users of the USSR website. I wish you and your family and friends all the best and prosperity. Let New Year will bring only good, good, eternal!

Years of existence of the USSR - 1922-1991. However, the history of the world's largest state began with the February Revolution, or more precisely, with the crisis of Tsarist Russia. Since the beginning of the 20th century, opposition moods have been wandering in the country, which now and then resulted in bloodshed.

The words spoken by Pushkin in the thirties of the XIX century were applicable in the past, do not lose their relevance today. Russian rebellion is always merciless. Especially when it leads to the overthrow of the old regime. Let us recall the most important and tragic events that took place during the years of the existence of the USSR.

background

In 1916, the royal family was discredited by scandals around an odious personality, the secret of which has not been fully solved to date. We are talking about Grigory Rasputin. Nicholas II made several mistakes, the first in the year of his coronation. But we will not talk about this today, but recall the events that preceded the creation of the Soviet state.

So the first World War in full swing. Rumors are circulating in Petersburg. Rumor has it that the empress divorces her husband, goes to a monastery, and from time to time is engaged in espionage. Formed opposition to the Russian Tsar. Its participants, among whom were the closest relatives of the king, demanded the removal of Rasputin from government.

While the princes were arguing with the king, a revolution was being prepared that was supposed to change the course of world history. Armed rallies continued for several days in February. ended coup d'état. A Provisional Government was formed, which did not last long.

Then there was the October Revolution, the Civil War. Historians divide the years of the existence of the USSR into several periods. During the first, which lasted until 1953, a former revolutionary was in power, known in narrow circles under the nickname Koba.

Stalin years (1922-1941)

By the end of 1922, six politicians were in power: Stalin, Trotsky, Zinoviev, Rykov, Kamenev, Tomsky. But one person should govern the state. A struggle began between the former revolutionaries.

Neither Kamenev, nor Zinoviev, nor Tomsky felt sympathy for Trotsky. Stalin especially did not like the people's commissar for military affairs. Dzhugashvili had a negative attitude towards him since the time of the Civil War. They say he did not like the education, the erudition that used to read the French classics in the original at political meetings. But, of course, that's not the point. In the political struggle there is no place for simple human likes and dislikes. The clash between the revolutionaries ended in Stalin's victory. In subsequent years, he methodically eliminated his other associates.

The Stalin years were marked by repressions. First there was forced collectivization, then arrests. How many people in this terrible time turned into camp dust, how many were shot? Hundreds of thousands of people. The peak of Stalin's repressions came in 1937-1938.

The Great Patriotic War

During the years of the existence of the USSR, there were many tragic events. In 1941, the war began, which claimed about 25 million lives. These losses are incomparable. Before Yuri Levitan announced on the radio about the attack of the German armed forces on no one believed that there was a ruler in the world who was not afraid to direct his aggression towards the USSR.

WWII historians divide into three periods. The first begins on June 22, 1941 and ends with the battle for Moscow, in which the Germans were defeated. The second one ends with the Battle of Stalingrad. The third period is the expulsion of enemy troops from the USSR, the liberation from the occupation of European countries and the surrender of Germany.

Stalinism (1945-1953)

Was not ready for war. When it started, it turned out that many military leaders were shot, and those who were alive were far away, in camps. They were immediately released, brought back to normal and sent to the front. The war is over. Several years passed, and a new wave of repressions began, now among the highest command personnel.

Major military leaders close to Marshal Zhukov were arrested. Among them are Lieutenant General Telegin and Air Marshal Novikov. Zhukov himself was slightly harassed, but not particularly touched. His authority was too great. For the victims of the last wave of repressions, for those who survived in the camps, the year was the happiest day. The “leader” died, and with him the camps for political prisoners went down in history.

Thaw

In 1956, Khrushchev debunked Stalin's personality cult. He was supported at the top of the party. After all, over the years, even the most prominent political figure could at any moment be in disgrace, which means being shot or sent to a camp. During the existence of the USSR, the years of the thaw were marked by the softening of the totalitarian regime. People went to bed and were not afraid that in the middle of the night they would be picked up by state security officers and taken to Lubyanka, where they would have to confess to espionage, an attempt to assassinate Stalin, and other fictitious crimes. But denunciations and provocations still took place.

During the years of the thaw, the word "chekist" had a pronounced negative connotation. In fact, distrust of the special services originated much earlier, back in the thirties. But the term "chekist" lost official approval after the report made by Khrushchev in 1956.

The era of stagnation

This is not a historical term, but a propaganda-literary cliché. Appeared after Gorbachev's speech, in which he noted the emergence congestion in the economy and social life. The era of stagnation conditionally begins with the coming to power of Brezhnev and ends with the beginning of perestroika. One of the main problems of this period was the growing shortage of goods. In the world of culture, censorship rules. During the years of stagnation, the first terrorist acts took place in the USSR. During this period, there are several high-profile cases of hijacking passenger aircraft.

Afghan war

In 1979, a war broke out that lasted ten years. Over the years, more than thirteen thousand have died. Soviet soldiers. But these data were made public only in 1989. The biggest losses came in 1984. Soviet dissidents actively opposed the Afghan war. Andrei Sakharov was sent into exile for his pacifist speeches. The burial of zinc coffins was a secret matter. At least until 1987. On the grave of a soldier it was impossible to indicate that he died in Afghanistan. The official date for the end of the war is February 15, 1989.

The last years of the existence of the USSR (1985-1991)

This period in the history of the Soviet Union is called perestroika. Last years The existence of the USSR (1985-1991) can be briefly described as follows: a sharp change in ideology, political and economic life.

In May 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev, who by that time had held the post of General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU for just over two months, uttered a significant phrase: "It's time for all of us, comrades, to reorganize." Hence the term. Perestroika was actively talked about in the media, and a dangerous desire for change arose in the minds of ordinary citizens. Historians divide the last years of the existence of the USSR into four stages:

1. 1985-1987. The beginning of the reform of the economic system.
2. 1987-1989. An attempt to rebuild the system in the spirit of socialism.
3. 1989-1991. Destabilization of the situation in the country.
4. September-December 1991. The end of perestroika, the collapse of the USSR.

The enumeration of the events that took place from 1989 to 1991 will be a chronicle of the collapse of the USSR.

Acceleration of socio-economic development

Gorbachev announced the need to reform the system at the plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU in April 1985. This meant the active use of the achievements of scientific and technological progress, a change in the planning procedure. Democratization, glasnost and the socialist market have not yet been discussed. Although today the term "perestroika" is associated with freedom of speech, which was first talked about a few years before the demise of the USSR.

The years of Gorbachev's rule, especially at the first stage, were marked by the hopes of Soviet citizens for change, for long-awaited changes for the better. However, gradually the inhabitants of a vast country began to become disillusioned with a politician who was destined to become the last Secretary General. The anti-alcohol campaign drew particular criticism.

No alcohol law

History shows that attempts to wean the citizens of our country from drinking alcohol do not bear any fruit. The first anti-alcohol campaign was carried out by the Bolsheviks back in 1917. The second attempt was made eight years later. They tried to fight against drunkenness and alcoholism in the early seventies, and in a very peculiar way: they banned the production of alcoholic beverages, but expanded the production of wines.

The alcohol campaign of the eighties was called "Gorbachev's", although Ligachev and Solomentsev became the initiators. This time, the authorities tackled the issue of drunkenness more radically. Production was significantly reduced alcoholic beverages, a huge number of shops were closed, the prices for vodka were raised more than once. But Soviet citizens did not give up so easily. Some purchased alcohol at an inflated price. Others were engaged in the preparation of drinks according to dubious recipes (V. Erofeev spoke about such a method of combating dry law in his book “Moscow - Petushki”), and still others used the simplest method, that is, they drank cologne, which could be purchased at any department store.

Gorbachev's popularity, meanwhile, was declining. Not only due to the prohibition of alcoholic beverages. He was verbose, while his speeches were of little substance. At every official meeting he came with his wife, who called Soviet people particular annoyance. Finally, perestroika did not bring the long-awaited changes into the lives of Soviet citizens.

Democratic socialism

By the end of 1986, Gorbachev and his aides realized that the situation in the country could not be changed so easily. And they decided to reform the system in a different direction, namely in the spirit of democratic socialism. This decision was facilitated by a blow to the economy caused by many factors, including the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Meanwhile, in some regions of the Soviet Union, separatist sentiments began to appear, interethnic clashes broke out.

Destabilization in the country

In what year did the USSR end its existence? In 1991 On final stage"perestroika" there was a sharp destabilization of the situation. Economic difficulties have developed into a large-scale crisis. There was a catastrophic collapse in the living standards of Soviet citizens. They learned about unemployment. The shelves in the stores were empty, if something suddenly appeared on them, endless lines instantly formed. Irritation and dissatisfaction with the authorities grew among the masses.

The collapse of the USSR

In what year the Soviet Union ceased to exist, we figured it out. The official date is December 26, 1991. On this day, Mikhail Gorbachev announced that he would cease his activities as president. With the collapse of the huge state, 15 former republics of the USSR gained independence. There are a lot of reasons that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union. This is the economic crisis, and the degradation of the ruling elites, and national conflicts, and even the anti-alcohol campaign.

Let's summarize. Above are the main events that took place during the existence of the USSR. From what year to what year was this state present on the world map? From 1922 to 1991. The collapse of the USSR was perceived by the population in different ways. Someone rejoiced at the abolition of censorship, the opportunity to engage in entrepreneurial activities. The events that took place in 1991 shocked someone. After all, it was a tragic collapse of the ideals on which more than one generation grew up.

In 1913, the future head of the first socialist state, V.I. Lenin, being a unitarian like Marx and Engels, wrote that a centralized large state "is a huge historical step forward from medieval fragmentation to the future socialist unity of all countries." In the period from February to October 1917, the centuries-old state unity of Russia collapsed - a number of bourgeois-nationalist governments arose on its territory (the Central Rada in Ukraine, Cossack circles on the Don, Terek and Orenburg, Kurultai in the Crimea, national Soviets in the Transcaucasus and the Baltic states, etc. .), seeking to isolate themselves from the traditional center. The threat of a sharp reduction in the territory of the socialist proletarian state, the loss of hopes for an early world revolution forced the leader of the party that came to power in Russia to reconsider his point of view on its state structure - he became a fierce supporter of federalism, however, at the stage of transition "to complete unity". The slogan of "one and indivisible Russia", professed by the leaders of the white movement, was opposed by the principle of the right of all nations to self-determination, which attracted the leaders of national movements ...

However, the Constitution of the RSFSR of 1918 was a step backwards from a true federation, since it only declared the form of the state structure of Russia (it did not even provide for the representation of future members of the federation in the authorities of the center), in fact, it proclaimed a unitary state created from above on the initiative of the ruling party by joining those conquered in during the Civil War of the Territories. The division of powers between federal and local bodies in the Russian Federation was based on the principles of the exclusive competence of the first and the residual - the second ...

The first intra-Russian national borders appeared in late 1918 - early 1919 with the formation of the Labor Commune of the Volga German Region and the Bashkir Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, by the end of 1922 there were already 19 autonomous republics and regions in the RSFSR, as well as 2 labor communes created on a national basis. National-state formations coexisted with administrative-territorial units, both of which had a very weakly expressed independence.

The Russian Federation, according to the plan of its founders, was to become a model of a larger socialist state, allowing the restoration of the Russian Empire, the collapse of which during the revolution and the “triumphal procession” of the Soviet power could not be avoided. Until the middle of 1918, only two republics existed as independent states - the RSFSR and Ukraine, then the Byelorussian Republic, three republics in the Baltic states, three in Transcaucasia ...

From the first days of their existence, the RSFSR, itself in need of the most necessary, provided them with assistance in different areas state life. The armies of the independent republics were supplied by the People's Commissariat (People's Commissariat) for military affairs of the RSFSR. A decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of June 1, 1919 "On the unification of the socialist republics of Russia, Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus for the struggle against world imperialism" formalized a military alliance. The armies of all the republics were united into a single army of the RSFSR, the military command, management of railways, communications, and finances were united. monetary system of all republics was based on the Russian ruble, the RSFSR took over their expenses for the maintenance of the state apparatus, armies, and for the establishment of the economy. The republics received from her industrial and agricultural products, food and other assistance. The union, along with other factors, helped all the republics to get out of the war ...

Over time, the state apparatus of all the republics began to be built in the likeness of the RSFSR, their plenipotentiary representations appeared in Moscow, which had the right to enter on behalf of their governments with representations and petitions to the All-Russian Central Executive Committee, the Council of People's Commissars (Sovnarkom), people's commissariats of the RSFSR, to inform the authorities of their republic about the most important events of the RSFSR, and the authorities of the latter on the state of the economy and the needs of their republic. On the territory of the republics, there was an apparatus of authorized representatives of some people's commissariats of the RSFSR, customs barriers were gradually overcome, and border posts were removed.

After the blockade of the Entente was lifted, the RSFSR concluded trade agreements with England, Italy, Norway, and Ukraine with Austria, Czechoslovakia and other states. In March 1921, a joint delegation of the RSFSR and Ukraine concluded an agreement with Poland. In January 1922, on behalf of the organizers of the Genoa Conference, the Italian government invited only the RSFSR from all the republics to participate in it. In February 1922, at the initiative of the Russian Federation, nine republics signed a protocol authorizing it to represent and protect their joint interests, to conclude and sign treaties with foreign states on their behalf. Thus, the military, bilateral military-economic treaties were supplemented by a diplomatic agreement. The next step was the formation of a political union.

FOUR REPUBLICS INSTEAD OF ONE EMPIRE

By 1922, 6 republics had formed on the territory of the former Russian Empire: the RSFSR, the Ukrainian SSR, the Byelorussian SSR, the Azerbaijan SSR, the Armenian SSR and the Georgian SSR. Between them from the very beginning there was a close cooperation, due to the common historical fate. During the years of the civil war, a military and economic alliance was formed, and at the time of the Genoa Conference in 1922, a diplomatic one. The unification was also facilitated by the common goal set by the governments of the republics - the construction of socialism on the territory located "in the capitalist environment."

In March 1922, the Azerbaijan, Armenian and Georgian SSRs merged into the Transcaucasian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. In December 1922, the First Transcaucasian Congress of Soviets addressed the Presidium of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee with a proposal to convene a united Congress of Soviets and discuss the issue of creating a union of Soviet republics. The same decisions were taken by the All-Ukrainian and All-Belarusian Congresses of Soviets.

IT WAS NOT STALIN-STYLE

There was no consensus on the principles of creating a union state. Among a number of proposals, two stood out: the inclusion of other Soviet republics in the RSFSR on the basis of autonomy (proposal) and the creation of a federation of republics with equal rights. Project I.V. Stalin "On the Relations of the RSFSR with the Independent Republics" was approved by the Central Committee of the Communist Parties of Azerbaijan and Armenia. The plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia recognized it as premature, and the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Belarus spoke in favor of maintaining the existing contractual relations between the BSSR and the RSFSR. The Ukrainian Bolsheviks refrained from discussing the Stalinist project. Nevertheless, the autonomization plan was approved at a meeting of the commission of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) on September 23-24, 1922.

IN AND. Lenin, who did not participate in the discussion of the project, after reading the materials presented to him, rejected the idea of ​​autonomization and spoke in favor of forming a union of republics. He considered the Soviet Socialist Federation the most acceptable form of government for a multinational country.

NATIONAL LIBERALISM OF ILYICH

On October 5 - 6, 1922, the Plenum of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) adopted the plan of V.I. Lenin, however, this did not lead to an end to the struggle in the party on issues of national policy. Although the "autonomization" project was rejected, it still enjoyed some support from a number of senior officials both at the center and in the localities. I.V. Stalin and L.B. Kamenev was urged to show firmness against Ilyich's "national liberalism" and, in fact, to abandon the previous version.

At the same time, separatist tendencies in the republics are intensifying, which manifested itself in the so-called "Georgian incident", when the party leaders of Georgia demanded that it be included in the future state as an independent republic, and not as part of the Transcaucasian Federation. In response to this, the head of the Transcaucasian Regional Committee G.K. Ordzhonikidze was furious and called them "chauvinistic rot", and when one of the members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia called him "Stalin's donkey", He also beat the latter hard. In protest against Moscow's pressure, the entire Central Committee of the Communist Party of Georgia resigned.

Commission chaired by F.E. Dzerzhinsky, created in Moscow to investigate this "incident", justified the actions of G.K. Ordzhonikidze and condemned the Georgian Central Committee. This decision aroused the indignation of V.I. Lenin. It should be recalled here that in October 1922, after an illness, although he began to work, he still could not fully control the situation due to health reasons. On the day of the formation of the USSR, being bedridden, he dictates his letter "On the question of nationalities or autonomization", which begins with the words: "I seem to be very guilty before the workers of Russia for not intervening energetically and sharply enough into the notorious question of autonomization, officially called, it seems, the question of the union of Soviet socialist republics.

UNION AGREEMENT (ONE UNION INSTEAD OF FOUR REPUBLIC)

AGREEMENT ON THE FORMATION OF THE UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS

The Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (RSFSR), the Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic (Ukrainian SSR), the Byelorussian Socialist Soviet Republic (BSSR) and the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (ZSSR - Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia) conclude this Union Treaty on unification into one union state - Union of Soviet Socialist Republics...

1. The jurisdiction of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, represented by its supreme bodies, shall be:

a) representation of the Union in international relations;

b) changing the external borders of the Union;

c) conclusion of agreements on the admission of new republics to the Union;

d) declaration of war and conclusion of peace;

e) conclusion of external state loans;

f) ratification of international treaties;

g) establishment of foreign and domestic trade systems;

h) establishing the foundations and general plan for the entire national economy of the Union, as well as concluding concession agreements;

i) regulation of transport and postal and telegraph business;

j) establishing the foundations for organizing the armed forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics;

k) approval of the unified state budget of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the establishment of a monetary, monetary and credit system, as well as a system of all-union, republican and local taxes;

l) establishment of general principles of land management and land use, as well as the use of subsoil, forests and waters throughout the territory of the Union;

m) common union legislation on resettlement;

o) establishing the foundations of the judiciary and legal proceedings, as well as civil and criminal union legislation;

o) establishment of basic labor laws;

p) establishing the general principles of public education;

c) the establishment of general measures in the field of public health protection;

r) establishment of a system of measures and weights;

s) organization of all-Union statistics;

t) the basic legislation in the field of union citizenship in relation to the rights of foreigners;

u) the right to a general amnesty;

v) repeal of resolutions of congresses of Soviets, Central Executive Committees and Soviets of People's Commissars of the Union Republics that violate the Union Treaty.

2. The supreme authority of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is the Congress of Soviets of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and in the periods between congresses - the Central Executive Committee of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

3. The Congress of Soviets The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is composed of representatives of city Soviets at the rate of 1 deputy per 25,000 voters and representatives of provincial congresses of Soviets at the rate of 1 deputy per 125,000 inhabitants.

4. Delegates to the Congress of Soviets of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are elected at the provincial congresses of Soviets.

…eleven. The executive body of the Central Executive Committee of the Union is the Council of People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Council of People's Commissars of the Union), elected by the Central Executive Committee of the Union for the term of the latter, consisting of:

Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the Union,

Vice Presidents,

People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs,

People's Commissar for Military and Naval Affairs,

People's Commissar for Foreign Trade,

People's Commissar of Communications,

People's Commissar of Posts and Telegraphs,

People's Commissar of the Workers' and Peasants' Inspectorate.

Chairman of the Supreme Council of the National Economy,

People's Commissar of Labour,

People's Commissar of Food,

People's Commissar of Finance.

…13. Decrees and resolutions of the Council of People's Commissars of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are obligatory for all union republics and are carried out directly throughout the entire territory of the Union.

…22. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics has its own flag, coat of arms and state seal.

23. The capital of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics is the city of Moscow.

…26. Each of the Union Republics retains the right to freely secede from the Union.

Congresses of Soviets in documents. 1917-1936. vol. III. M., 1960

1917, night of 26 to 27 October. Elected by the II All-Russian Congress of Soviets as head of the Soviet government - Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars.

1918, beginning of July. The 5th All-Russian Congress of Soviets adopts the Constitution of the RSFSR, which clarifies the status of the post of Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, which is occupied by V.I. Lenin. November 30th. At the plenary meeting of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of Workers', Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies, the Council of Workers' and Peasants' Defense is approved, the Council is given full rights in the matter of mobilizing the forces and means of the country for its defense. V.I. Lenin is approved as the Chairman of the Council.

1920, April. The Council of Workers' and Peasants' Defense is transformed into the Council of Labor and Defense (STO) of the RSFSR under the chairmanship of V.I. Lenin.

1923, 6 July. The session of the Central Executive Committee elects V.I. Lenin as chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR. July 7th The session of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of the RSFSR elects V.I. Lenin as chairman of the Council of People's Commissars of the RSFSR. July 17th. The Council of Labor and Defense under the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR is being created under the chairmanship of V.I. Lenin.