The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a socialist state in Eurasia that existed from 30 December 1922 to 26 December 1991. Nominally a union of multiple national Soviet republics, its government and economy were highly centralized. The country was a one-party state, governed by the Communist Party with Moscow as its capital in its largest republic, the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. Other major urban centres were Leningrad, Kiev, Minsk, Alma-Ata, and Novosibirsk. It spanned over 10,000 kilometres east to west across 11 time zones, and over 7,200 kilometres north to south. It had five climate zones: tundra, taiga, steppes, desert and mountains.
Stanisław II Augustus, who reigned as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1764 to 1795, was the last monarch of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. He remains a controversial figure in Polish history. Recognized as a great patron of the arts and sciences and an initiator and firm supporter of progressive reforms, he is also remembered as the King of the Commonwealth whose election was marred by Russian intervention. He is criticized primarily for his failure to stand against the partitions, and thus to prevent the destruction of the Polish state.
General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was an office of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) that by the late 1920s had evolved into the most powerful of the Central Committee's various secretaries. With a few exceptions, from 1929 until the union's dissolution the holder of the office was the de facto leader of the Soviet Union, because the post controlled both the CPSU and the Soviet government. Joseph Stalin elevated the office to overall command of the Communist Party and by extension the whole Soviet Union. Nikita Khrushchev renamed the post First Secretary in 1953; the change was reverted in 1966.
The Kościuszko Uprising was an uprising against the Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia led by Tadeusz Kościuszko in the Commonwealth of Poland and the Prussian partition in 1794. It was a failed attempt to liberate the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from Russian influence after the Second Partition of Poland (1793) and the creation of the Targowica Confederation.
The Polish–Russian War of 1792 was fought between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth on one side, and the Targowica Confederation and the Russian Empire under Catherine the Great on the other.
The Constitution of 3 May 1791 was adopted by the Great Sejm (parliament) of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, a dual monarchy comprising the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Drafted over 32 months beginning on 6 October 1788, and formally adopted as the Government Act, the legislation was designed to redress the Commonwealth's political defects. The system of Golden Freedoms, also known as the "Nobles' Democracy," had conferred disproportionate rights on the nobility (szlachta) and over time had corrupted politics. The adoption of the Constitution was preceded by a period of agitation for—and gradual introduction of—reforms beginning with the Convocation Sejm of 1764 and the election of Stanisław August Poniatowski as the Commonwealth's last king.
The 1793 Second Partition of Poland was the second of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. The second partition occurred in the aftermath of the Polish–Russian War of 1792 and the Targowica Confederation of 1792, and was approved by its territorial beneficiaries, the Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. The division was ratified by the coerced Polish parliament (Sejm) in 1793 in a short-lived attempt to prevent the inevitable complete annexation of Poland, the Third Partition.
The Great Sejm, also known as the Four-Year Sejm was a Sejm (parliament) of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that was held in Warsaw between 1788 and 1792. Its principal aim became to restore sovereignty to, and reform, the Commonwealth politically and economically.
The Patriotic Party, also known as the Patriot Party or, in English, as the Reform Party, was a political movement in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the period of the Four-Year Sejm of 1788–92, whose chief achievement was the Constitution of 3 May 1791. The reformers aimed to strengthen the ailing political machinery of the Commonwealth, to bolster its military, and to reduce foreign political influence, particularly that of the Russian Empire. It has been called the first Polish political party, though it had no formal organizational structure. The Party was inspired by the ideals of the French Revolution, and its name, proudly used by themselves, was a tribute to the Dutch Patriots.
Silent Sejm is the name given to the session of the Sejm (parliament) of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth of 1 February 1717 held in Warsaw. A civil war in the Commonwealth was used by the Russian Tsar Peter the Great as an opportunity to intervene as a mediator. It marked the end of Augustus II of Poland's attempts to create an absolute monarchy in Poland, and the beginning of the Russian Empire's increasing influence and control over the Commonwealth.
The government reforms of Peter I aimed to modernize the Tsardom of Russia based on Western and Central European models.
The First Deputy Premier of the Soviet Union, also known as First Vice Premier of the Soviet Union, was the deputy head of government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR); despite the title, the office was not necessarily held by a single individual. A total of 26 individuals had held this post; 18 of them held other posts simultaneously with their First Deputy Premiership. The first officeholder was Valerian Kuibyshev, who was inaugurated in 1934 as First Deputy Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars. Lavrentiy Beria spent the shortest time in office and served for 113 days. At over seventeen years, Vyacheslav Molotov spent the longest time in office, and held his position through most of Joseph Stalin's tenure as Premier, as well as through the tenureships of Georgy Malenkov and Nikolai Bulganin.
The College of War was a Russian executive body, created in the government reform of 1717. It was the only one of the six original and three later colleges to survive the decentralising reforms of Catherine II of Russia. Under Paul I, it became the model for a newly centralised government.
The Collegium of Commerce was a Russian executive body (collegium), created in the government reform of 1717. It was de-established in 1796 or 1786 following the decentralising reforms of Catherine II of Russia. Its first President was Pyotr Tolstoy.
The Collegium of Justice was a Russian executive body (collegium), created in the government reform of 1717. It was de-established during the decentralising reforms of Catherine II of Russia. Its first President was Andrey Matveev.
The Collegium of Foreign Affairs was a Russian executive body (collegium), created in the government reform of 1717. In 1802, it was made subordinate to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was abolished in 1832. Its first President was Fyodor Golovin.
The Collegium of State Income was a Russian executive body (collegium), created in the government reform of 1717. It was de-established during the decentralising reforms of Catherine II of Russia. Its first President was Dmitry Golitsin.
The Collegium of State Expenses was a Russian executive body (collegium), created in the government reform of 1717. It was de-established during the decentralising reforms of Catherine II of Russia. Its first President was Ivan Musin-Pushkin.
The Collegium of Mining and Manufacturing was a Russian executive body (collegium), created in the government reform of 1717. Its first President was Ivan Musin-Pushkin.
The Hetmans' Party, also known as the Magnates' Party, the Muscovite Party, the Conservative Party and the Old-Nobility Party, was a political party that opposed reforms advocated in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth by the Patriotic Party. The Hetmans' Party was aligned with the Russian Empire and supported preservation of the status quo and the "Golden Freedoms". Its various names come from the fact that it was headed by two hetmans, represented the interests of conservative nobles and magnates, and was aligned with the Russian Empire.
