The Fall of Soviet Communism, 1986-1991

by Jeremy Smith

Overview

In 1991, Communist rule in the Soviet Union came to an end after 84 years, and the world's largest state, one of the two global superpowers, broke up into fifteen independent countries. Few had predicted such an outcome when Mikhail Gorbachev became the leader of the Soviet Union six years before. Jeremy Smith discusses the long-term and short-term factors behind this extraordinary collapse, assessing the impact of economic crisis, nationalism, personalities and democratization in the process.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781403916020
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	08/06/2005
Series:	Studies in European History , #39
Edition description:	2005
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.31(d)

About the Author

JEREMY SMITH is Lecturer in Russian History at the Centre for Russian and East European Studies at the University of Birmingham, UK, and has previously worked at the University of Helsinki, Finland. His previous publications include The Bolsheviks and the National Question, 1917-23 (1999), also published by Palgrave Macmillan.
JEREMY SMITH is Lecturer in Russian History at the Centre for Russian and East European Studies at the University of Birmingham, UK, and has previously worked at the University of Helsinki, Finland. His previous publications include The Bolsheviks and the National Question, 1917-23 (1999), also published by Palgrave Macmillan.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
Glossary
Introduction
PART I: BACKGROUND
The Soviet Political System
The Soviet Economy
The Nationalities Question
Early Attempts at Reform
Gorbachev and Yeltsin
PART II: REFORM FROM ABOVE
Personnel and Policies
Economic Reforms
Structural and
Constitutional Reform
Glasnost and Democratisation
Liberals and Conservatives
PART III: MOVEMENTS FROM BELOW
National Conflicts and Popular Fronts
Strikes and Mass Protest
Repression and Resistance
The International Impact
The Returban of Yeltsin
The August Coup
The End of Communism
Conclusion
Chronology of Events
Select Bibliography
Index.

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From the Publisher

'A clear, concise and well-judged account of the demise of Soviet communism and of the USSR as a state.' - Stephen White, University of Glasgow