Portal:Russia

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Welcome to The Russia Portal The flag of Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the largest country in the world, and extends across eleven time zones; sharing land borders with fourteen countries. Russia is the most populous country in Europe and the ninth-most populous country in the world. It is a highly urbanised country, with sixteen of its urban areas having more than 1 million inhabitants. Moscow, the most populous metropolitan area in Europe, is the capital and largest city of Russia, while Saint Petersburg is its second-largest city and cultural centre. Human settlement on the territory of modern Russia dates back to the Lower Paleolithic. The East Slavs emerged as a recognised group in Europe between the 3rd and 8th centuries CE. The first East Slavic state, Kievan Rus', arose in the 9th century, and in 988, it adopted Orthodox Christianity from the Byzantine Empire. Kievan Rus' ultimately disintegrated; the Grand Duchy of Moscow led the unification of Russian lands, leading to the proclamation of the Tsardom of Russia in 1547. By the early 18th century, Russia had vastly expanded through conquest, annexation, and the efforts of Russian explorers, developing into the Russian Empire, which remains the third-largest empire in history. However, with the Russian Revolution in 1917, Russia's monarchic rule was abolished and eventually replaced by the Russian SFSR—the world's first constitutionally socialist state. Following the Russian Civil War, the Russian SFSR established the Soviet Union with three other Soviet republics, within which it was the largest and principal constituent. The Soviet Union underwent rapid industrialisation in the 1930s, amidst the deaths of millions under Joseph Stalin's rule, and later played a decisive role for the Allies in World War II by leading large-scale efforts on the Eastern Front. With the onset of the Cold War, it competed with the United States for ideological dominance and international influence. The Soviet era of the 20th century saw some of the most significant Russian technological achievements, including the first human-made satellite and the first human expedition into outer space. (Full article...) Featured article   Featured articles are displayed here, which represent some of the best content on English Wikipedia. Giovanni Antonio Grassi SJ (anglicized as John Anthony Grassi; 10 September 1775 – 12 December 1849) was an Italian Catholic priest and Jesuit who led many academic and religious institutions in Europe and the United States, including Georgetown College in Washington, D.C., and the Pontificio Collegio Urbano de Propaganda Fide in Rome. Born in the Republic of Venice, Grassi was a promising student of mathematics and the natural sciences, especially astronomy. He completed his studies at the Jesuit College in Polotsk, in the Russian Empire, in 1804 and was appointed rector of the Institute for Nobles. The following year, he was ordered to replace the last remaining Jesuit missionary in China; this began a five-year journey across Europe in which he was ultimately unable to secure passage to the distant country. He instead began teaching at Stonyhurst College in England. (Full article...) German reconnaissance picture of Sovetsky Soyuz taken in June 1942 The Sovetsky Soyuz-class battleships (Project 23, Russian: Советский Союз, 'Soviet Union'), also known as "Stalin's Republics", were a class of battleships begun by the Soviet Union in the late 1930s but never brought into service. They were designed in response to the Bismarck-class battleships being built by Germany. Only four hulls of the fifteen originally planned had been laid down by 1940, when the decision was made to cut the program to only three ships to divert resources to an expanded army rearmament program. These ships would have rivaled the Imperial Japanese Yamato class and America's planned Montana class in size if any had been completed, although with significantly weaker firepower: nine 406-millimeter (16 in) guns compared to the nine 460-millimeter (18.1 in) guns of the Japanese ships and a dozen 16-inch (406 mm) on the Montanas. The failure of the Soviet armor plate industry to build cemented armor plates thicker than 230 millimeters (9.1 in) would have negated any advantages from the Sovetsky Soyuz class's thicker armor in combat. (Full article...) Sevastopol at Port Arthur in 1904 Sevastopol (Russian: Севастополь) was the last of three ships in the Petropavlovsk class of pre-dreadnought battleships built for the Imperial Russian Navy in the 1890s. Named for the siege of Sevastopol during the Crimean War, the ship was commissioned into the First Pacific Squadron of the Russian Pacific Fleet and was stationed at Port Arthur (today Lüshunkou District, Dalian, Liaoning, China), a Russian naval base acquired from China in 1898 as part of the Kwantung Leased Territory. One of the first ships to use Harvey nickel-steel armor and Popov radios, she displaced 11,854 long tons (12,044 t) at full load and was 369 feet (112.5 m) long overall, and mounted a main battery of four 12-inch (305 mm) guns in two twin turrets. She was laid down in May 1892, launched on 1 June 1895 and completed in 1899. Her sea trials lasted until 1900. (Full article...) Lenin in 1920 Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (22 April [O.S. 10 April] 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until his death in 1924, and of the Soviet Union from 1922 until his death. As the founder and leader of the Bolsheviks, Lenin led the October Revolution which established the world's first socialist state. His government won the Russian Civil War and created a one-party state under the Communist Party. Ideologically a Marxist, his developments to the ideology are called Leninism. Born into a middle-class family in Simbirsk, Lenin embraced revolutionary socialist politics following his brother's execution in 1887. He was expelled from Kazan Imperial University for participating in protests against the Tsarist government, and devoted the following years to a law degree before relocating to Saint Petersburg in 1893 and becoming a leading Marxist activist. In 1897, Lenin was arrested for sedition and exiled to Siberia for three years, after which he moved to Western Europe and became a key figure in the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party. In the party's 1903 schism, he led his Bolshevik faction against the Mensheviks. Lenin briefly returned to Russia during the failed Revolution of 1905, and during the First World War campaigned for its transformation into a Europe-wide proletarian revolution, which he believed would cause the collapse of capitalism and the rise of socialism. After the February Revolution of 1917 ousted Tsar Nicholas II, Lenin returned to Russia and played a leading role in the October Revolution, in which the Bolsheviks overthrew the Provisional Government. (Full article...) Portrait by Ilya Repin, 1889 Nadezhda Vasilievna Stasova (Russian: Надежда Васильевна Стасова; June 24 [O.S. June 12] 1822 – October 9 [O.S. September 27] 1895) was a Russian educator, activist, and feminist of the 19th century. Stasova was born into a noble and wealthy family; Tsar Alexander I of Russia was her godfather, and she received extensive private tutoring as a child. After experiencing family tragedy and personal disappointment as a young woman, she dedicated herself to women's education and economic empowerment. Alongside Anna Filosofova and Maria Trubnikova, Stasova was one of the earliest leaders of the Russian women's movement. Together, the three friends and allies were referred to as the "triumvirate". (Full article...) Nansen in 1890 Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (Norwegian: [ˈfrɪ̂tːjɔf ˈnɑ̀nsn̩]; 10 October 1861 – 13 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and co-founded the Fatherland League. He led the team that made the first crossing of the Greenland interior in 1888, traversing the island on cross-country skis. He won international fame after reaching a record northern latitude of 86°14′ during his Fram expedition of 1893–1896. Although he retired from exploration after his return to Norway, his techniques of polar travel and his innovations in equipment and clothing influenced a generation of subsequent Arctic and Antarctic expeditions. He was elected an International Member of the American Philosophical Society in 1897. (Full article...) Peresvet at anchor, 1901 The Peresvet class was a group of three pre-dreadnought battleships built for the Imperial Russian Navy around the end of the 19th century. Peresvet and Pobeda were transferred to the Pacific Squadron upon completion and based at Port Arthur from 1901 and 1903, respectively. All three ships were lost by the Russians in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–05; Peresvet and Pobeda participated in the Battles of Port Arthur and the Yellow Sea and were sunk during the siege of Port Arthur. Oslyabya, the third ship, sailed to the Far East with the Second Pacific Squadron to relieve the Russian forces blockaded in Port Arthur and was sunk at the Battle of Tsushima with the loss of over half her crew. Peresvet and Pobeda were salvaged after the Japanese captured Port Arthur and incorporated into the Imperial Japanese Navy. Peresvet was sold back to the Russians during World War I, as the two countries were by now allies, and sank after hitting German mines in the Mediterranean in early 1917 while Pobeda, renamed Suwo, remained instead in Japanese service and participated in the Battle of Tsingtao in late 1914. She became a gunnery training ship in 1917. The ship was disarmed in 1922 to comply with the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty and probably scrapped around that time. (Full article...) Oslyabya leaving Bizerte, French Tunisia, 1903 Oslyabya (Russian: Ослябя) was the second of the three Peresvet-class second-class pre-dreadnought battleships built for the Imperial Russian Navy at the end of the nineteenth century, although construction delays meant that she was the last to be completed. The ship was part of the Second Pacific Squadron sent to the Far East during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–05, and served as the flagship of Rear Admiral Baron Dmitry von Fölkersam. Oslyabya was sunk on 27 May 1905 at the Battle of Tsushima, and was the first all-steel battleship to be sunk by naval gunfire alone. Sources differ on the exact number of casualties, but over half her crew went down with the ship. (Full article...) Nihonium is a synthetic chemical element; it has symbol Nh and atomic number 113. It is extremely radioactive: its most stable known isotope, nihonium-286, has a half-life of about 10 seconds. In the periodic table, nihonium is a transactinide element in the p-block. It is a member of period 7 and group 13. Nihonium was first reported to have been created in experiments carried out between 14 July and 10 August 2003, by a Russian–American collaboration at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) in Dubna, Russia, working in collaboration with the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, California, and on 23 July 2004, by a team of Japanese scientists at Riken in Wakō, Japan. The confirmation of their claims in the ensuing years involved independent teams of scientists working in the United States, Germany, Sweden, and China, as well as the original claimants in Russia and Japan. In 2015, the IUPAC/IUPAP Joint Working Party recognised the element and assigned the priority of the discovery and naming rights for the element to Riken. The Riken team suggested the name nihonium in 2016, which was approved in the same year. The name comes from the common Japanese name for Japan (日本, Nihon). (Full article...) Photo, c. 1914 Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia (Russian: Анастасия Николаевна Романова, romanized: Anastasiya Nikolaevna Romanova; 18 June [O.S. 5 June] 1901 – 17 July 1918) was the youngest daughter of Tsar Nicholas II, the last sovereign of Imperial Russia, and his wife, Tsarina Alexandra Feodorovna. Anastasia was the younger sister of Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, and Maria (commonly known together as the OTMA sisters) and was the elder sister of Alexei Nikolaevich, Tsarevich of Russia. She was murdered with her family by a group of Bolsheviks in Yekaterinburg on 17 July 1918. (Full article...) Bezhin Meadow (Бежин луг, Bezhin lug) is a 1937 Soviet propaganda film, famous for having been suppressed and believed destroyed before its completion. Directed by Sergei Eisenstein, it tells the story of a young farm boy whose father attempts to betray the government for political reasons by sabotaging the year's harvest and the son's efforts to stop his own father to protect the Soviet state, culminating in the boy's murder and a social uprising. The film draws its title from a story by Ivan Turgenev, but is based on the (largely fabricated) life story of Pavlik Morozov, a young Russian boy who became a political martyr following his death in 1932, after he supposedly denounced his father to Soviet government authorities and subsequently died at the hands of his family. Pavlik Morozov was immortalized in school programs, poetry, music, and film. Commissioned by a communist youth group, the film's production ran from 1935 to 1937, until it was halted by the central Soviet government, which said it contained artistic, social, and political failures. Some, however, blamed the failure of Bezhin Meadow on government interference and policies, extending all the way to Joseph Stalin himself. In the wake of the film's failure, Eisenstein publicly recanted his work as an error. Individuals were arrested during and after the ensuing debacle. (Full article...) The Santiago Bernabéu (pictured in 2009) held the final. The 1964 European Nations' Cup final was a football match played at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid, Spain, on 21 June 1964, to determine the winners of the 1964 European Nations' Cup. It was the second final of what has since been known as the European Championship, UEFA's quadrennial football competition for national teams. The match was contested between Spain and the Soviet Union, the previous tournament winners. En route to the final, Spain defeated Romania, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland over two-legged ties, before beating Hungary in the semi-finals. The Soviet Union received a bye in the qualifying round, before beating Italy, Sweden, and Denmark en route to the final. (Full article...) The history of Poland from 1945 to 1989 spans the period of Marxist–Leninist regime in Poland after the end of World War II. These years, while featuring general industrialization, urbanization and many improvements in the standard of living,[a1] were marred by early Stalinist repressions, social unrest, political strife and severe economic difficulties. Near the end of World War II, the advancing Soviet Red Army, along with the Polish Armed Forces in the East, pushed out the Nazi German forces from occupied Poland. In February 1945, the Yalta Conference sanctioned the formation of a provisional government of Poland from a compromise coalition, until postwar elections. Joseph Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union, manipulated the implementation of that ruling. A practically communist-controlled Provisional Government of National Unity was formed in Warsaw by ignoring the Polish government-in-exile based in London since 1940. During the subsequent Potsdam Conference in July–August 1945, the three major Allies ratified a massive westerly shift of Poland's borders and approved its new territory between the Oder–Neisse line and the Curzon Line. The area of Poland was reduced in comparison to its pre-World War II extent and geographically resembled that of the medieval early Piast dynasty era. Following the destruction of the Polish-Jewish population in the Holocaust, the flight and expulsion of Germans in the west, resettlement of Ukrainians in the east, and the expulsion and resettlement of Poles from the Eastern Borderlands (Kresy), Poland became for the first time in its history an ethnically homogeneous nation-state without prominent minorities. The new government solidified its political power, while the Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR) under Bolesław Bierut gained firm control over the country, which would remain an independent state within the Soviet sphere of influence. The July Constitution was promulgated on 22 July 1952 and the country officially became the Polish People's Republic (PRL). (Full article...) A bowl of borscht garnished with sour cream and dill Borscht (English: /ˈbɔːrʃt/ ⓘ) is a sour soup, made with meat stock, vegetables and seasonings, common in Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. In English, the word borscht is most often associated with the soup's variant of Ukrainian origin, made with red beetroots as one of the main ingredients, which give the dish its distinctive red color. The same name, however, is also used for a wide selection of sour-tasting soups without beetroots, such as sorrel-based green borscht, rye-based white borscht, and cabbage borscht. Borscht derives from an ancient soup originally cooked from pickled stems, leaves and umbels of common hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium), an herbaceous plant growing in damp meadows, which lent the dish its Slavic name. With time, it evolved into a diverse array of tart soups, among which the Ukrainian beet-based red borscht has become the most popular. It is typically made by combining meat or bone stock with sautéed vegetables, which—as well as beetroots—usually include cabbage, carrots, onions, potatoes, and tomatoes. Depending on the recipe, borscht may include meat or fish, or be purely vegetarian; it may be served either hot or cold, and it may range from a hearty one-pot meal to a clear broth or a smooth drink. It is often served with smetana or sour cream, hard-boiled eggs or potatoes, but there exists an ample choice of more involved garnishes and side dishes, such as uszka or pampushky, that can be served with the soup. (Full article...) The Norslunda runestone bearing runic inscription U 419, which mentions the personal name Kylfingr The Kylfings (Old Norse Kylfingar; Estonian Kalevid; Hungarian Kölpények; Old East Slavic Колбяги, Kolbiagi; Byzantine Greek Κουλπίγγοι, Koulpingoi; Arabic al-Kilabiyya) were a people of uncertain origin active in Northern Europe during the Viking Age, roughly from the late ninth century to the early twelfth century. They could be found in areas of Lapland, Russia, and the Byzantine Empire that were frequented by Scandinavian traders, raiders and mercenaries. Scholars differ on whether the Kylfings were ethnically Finnic or Norse. Also disputed is their geographic origin, with Denmark, Sweden and the Eastern Baltic all put forward as candidates. Whether the name Kylfing denotes a particular tribal, socio-political, or economic grouping is also much debated. They are mentioned on the Viking runestones, the sagas of Icelanders (most notably in Egil's Saga), and Old Norse poetry such as Þorbjǫrn hornklofi's Hrafnsmál, as well as Byzantine records and Rus' lawcodes. According to the sagas, the Kylfings opposed the consolidation of Norway under Harald Fairhair and participated in the pivotal late ninth century Battle of Hafrsfjord. After Harald's victory in that battle, they are described in the sagas as having raided in Finnmark and elsewhere in northern Norway and having fought against Harald's lieutenants such as Thorolf Kveldulfsson. (Full article...) Selected picture Monument to Nicholas I Photograph: Godot13 The Monument to Nicholas I is a bronze equestrian monument of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia located in Saint Isaac's Square in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Created by French sculptor Auguste de Montferrand and unveiled in 1859, the statue was considered a technical wonder at the time of its creation and is one of only a few bronze statues with just two support points (the rear hooves of the horse). Sukhoi Superjet 100 Photograph: Katsuhiko Tokunaga/SuperJet International The Sukhoi Superjet 100 is a modern fly-by-wire twin-engine regional jet with 8 to 108 passenger seats. Development began in 2000; the aircraft had its maiden flight on 19 May 2008 and entered commercial service on 21 April 2011. This aircraft is seen flying off the coast of Italy near Sanremo. Bolshoi Theatre Photograph: DmitriyGuryanov The Bolshoi Theatre is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, which holds ballet and opera performances. The company was founded on 28 March [O.S. 17 March] 1776, when Catherine the Great granted Prince Pyotr Urusov a licence to organise theatrical performances, balls and other forms of entertainment. Usunov set up the theatre in collaboration with English tightrope walker Michael Maddox. The present building was built between 1821 and 1824 and designed by architect Joseph Bové. Coat of arms of the Russian Empire The Great Coat of Arms of the Russian Empire, as presented to Emperor Paul I in October 1800. The use of the double-headed eagle in the coat of arms (seen in multiple locations here) goes back to the 15th century. With the fall of Constantinople and the end of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, the Grand Dukes of Moscow came to see themselves as the successors of the Byzantine heritage, a notion reinforced by the marriage of Ivan III to Sophia Paleologue. Ivan adopted the golden Byzantine double-headed eagle in his seal, first documented in 1472, marking his direct claim to the Roman imperial heritage and his assertion as sovereign equal and rival to the Holy Roman Empire. Siberian tiger Photo: Dave Pape A female Siberian tiger (Panthera tigris altaica), a subspecies of tiger native to Central Asia, and her cub. The Siberian tiger is the largest of the extant tiger subspecies as well as the largest felid, attaining 320 kg (710 lb) in an exceptional specimen. Considered an endangered subspecies, the wild population is down to several hundred individuals and is limited to eastern Siberia. Charge of the Light Brigade Artist: William Simpson; Restoration: Adam Cuerden On October 25, 1854, during the Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War, British cavalry units charged heavily fortified Russian opposition, an action known as the Charge of the Light Brigade. By mischance, they attacked the wrong target, as the orders were unclear, and as a result suffered great casualties. Alfred, Lord Tennyson's famous poem made the charge a symbol of warfare at both its most courageous and its most tragic. Kikin Hall Photograph: Florstein Kikin Hall, commissioned by Alexander Kikin in 1714, is one of the oldest buildings in Saint Petersburg. Incomplete at the time of Kikin's execution, the building was seized by the Russian crown and used for a variety of purposes. In the 1950s, Irina Benois arranged for the restoration of the dilapidated building. It is now home to a music school. Ivan the Terrible Showing His Treasury to Jerome Horsey Artist: Alexander Litovchenko Alexander Litovchenko's 1875 painting depicting Ivan IV of Russia seated in the Kremlin Armoury, his half-witted heir Fyodor standing behind, a group of distrustful boyars whispering at a distance, and the Tsar's jester in a skomorokh cap addressing the English diplomat Jerome Horsey. Horsey was a resident of the Russia Company in Moscow from 1572 to 1585. Moscow State University Photograph: Dmitry A. Mottl The current main building of the Moscow State University in Sparrow Hills, Moscow, Russia. Designed by Lev Rudnev and completed by 1953, the 240-metre (790 ft) tall structure was the tallest building in Europe until the completion of the Messeturm in 1990. Lenin Photograph credit: Andrew Shiva Lenin, a Soviet nuclear-powered icebreaker, was both the world's first nuclear-powered surface ship and the first nuclear-powered civilian vessel. The ship entered operation in 1959 and worked to clear sea routes for cargo ships along Russia's northern coast. Nuclear power proved to be an ideal technology for a vessel working in such a remote area, as it obviated the need for regular replenishment of fuel. From 1960 to 1965, the ship covered over 85,000 mi (137,000 km) during the Arctic navigation season, of which three-quarters was through ice. After being decommissioned in 1989, the vessel was subsequently converted into a museum ship and is now permanently based at Murmansk. Sadko Painting: Ilya Repin Sadko is a character in the Russian medieval epic Bylina. An adventurer, merchant and gusli musician from Novgorod, Sadko becomes wealthy with the help of the Sea Tsar, but is thrown in the sea when he fails to pay the Sea Tsar his due respects. This story was widely adapted in the 19th century, including in a poem by Alexei Tolstoy and an opera by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Shown here is Sadko in the Underwater Kingdom, an 1876 painting by Ilya Repin. It depicts Sadko meeting the Sea Tsar under the sea. Saint Michael's Castle Photograph credit: Andrew Shiva Saint Michael's Castle is a former royal residence in the historic centre of Saint Petersburg, Russia. It was built for Emperor Paul I between 1797 and 1801, and named after Saint Michael, the patron saint of the royal family. Constructed like a castle around a small octagonal courtyard, the four facades were built in different architectural styles, including French Classicism, Italian Renaissance and Gothic. The emperor was assassinated in the castle forty days after taking up residence. After his death, the imperial family returned to the Winter Palace and the building was transferred to the Russian Army's Main Engineering School. In 1990, it became a branch of the Russian Museum, and now houses its portrait gallery. Mohammed Alim Khan, Emir of Bukhara, 1911 Mohammed Alim Khan Credit: Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky An early colour photograph of the Emir of Bukhara, Mohammed Alim Khan, in 1911, taken by Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky as part of his work to document the Russian Empire from 1909 to 1915. Alim Khan, a direct descendant of Genghis Khan, was the last emir of the Manghud dynasty. He reigned from 1911 to 1920, fleeing to Afghanistan when the Bolsheviks annexed Bukhara and proclaimed the Bukharan People's Soviet Republic. Nilov Monastery on Stolobnyi Island in Lake Seliger in Tver Province, Russia Nilov Monastery Credit: Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky This photo of the Nilov Monastery on Stolobny Island in Tver Oblast, Russia, was taken by Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky in 1910 before the advent of colour photography. His process used a camera that took a series of monochrome pictures in rapid sequence, each through a different coloured filter. By projecting all three monochrome pictures using correctly coloured light, it was possible to reconstruct the original colour scene. Sukhoi Su-30 Photo: Sergey Krivchikov The Sukhoi Su-30 is a twin-engine, two-seat supermanoeuverable fighter aircraft developed by Russia's Sukhoi Aviation Corporation. It is a multirole fighter for all-weather, air-to-air and air-to-surface deep interdiction missions. Its primary users are Russia, India, China, Venezuela, and Malaysia. Lugano by Prokudin-Gorsky Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky Credit: Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky was a Russian pioneer of color photographer. This view of Lugano was most likely taken in 1909. Although James Clerk Maxwell made the first color photograph in 1861, the results were far from realistic until Prokudin-Gorsky perfected the technique with a series of improvements around 1905. His process used a camera that took a series of monochrome pictures in rapid sequence, each through a different colored filter. Prokudin-Gorskii then went on to document much of the country of Russia, travelling by train in a specially equipped darkroom railroad car. Yuri Gagarin Photograph credit: Arto Jousi; restored by Adam Cuerden Yuri Gagarin (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet Air Forces pilot and cosmonaut who became the first human to journey into outer space; his capsule, Vostok 1, completed a single orbit of Earth on 12 April 1961. Gagarin became an international celebrity and was awarded many medals and titles, including Hero of the Soviet Union, his nation's highest honour. In 1967, he served as a member of the backup crew for the ill-fated Soyuz 1 mission, after which the Russian authorities, fearing for the safety of such an iconic figure, banned him from further spaceflights. However, he was killed the following year, when the MiG-15 training jet that he was piloting with his flight instructor Vladimir Seryogin crashed near the town of Kirzhach. This photograph of Gagarin, dated July 1961, was taken at a press conference during a visit to Finland approximately three months after his spaceflight. Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov/Élie Metchnikoff Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov Credit: This image comes from Gallica Digital Library and is available under the digital ID btv1b6926750k/f1 Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov is the Russian scientist who discovered phagocytes and won the 1908 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Natalya Naryshkina Painting: Anonymous Natalya Naryshkina (1651–1694) was the Tsaritsa of Russia from 1671–1676 as the second spouse of Tsar Alexis I of Russia. She was the mother of Tsar Peter I of Russia (Peter the Great), who was born in 1672. Did you know... ... that St. Michael's Castle (pictured) was built like a medieval fortress for the personal protection of the Russian Emperor Paul I, who ironically was assassinated in his bedroom shortly after moving in to his new castle? ... that the Polish 4th Rifle Division was the only Polish military unit that fought in the Russian Civil War and returned to Poland undefeated? ... that the First Engineer Bridge in St. Petersburg, Russia, named after the nearby Engineer Castle, is one of the most decorative of the city's more than 500 bridges? In this month April 1, 1434 - Yury of Zvenigorod arrived in Moscow and again declared himself the Grand Prince. April 8, 1783 - The Crimean Khanate was incorporated into the Russian Empire. April 20, 1876 - April Uprising of 1876: Bulgarian nationalists attacked the Ottoman police headquarters in Oborishte. April 28, 1920 - With the Azerbaijani capital Baku under Eleventh Army occupation, the parliament agreed to transfer power to the Communist government of the Azerbaijan SSR. April 30, 1975 - Fall of Saigon: The South Vietnamese capital of Saigon was captured by the People's Army of Vietnam. Selected food or cuisine – Cellar in the Abrau-Durso winery, near Novorossiysk Russian wine refers to wine made in Russia, at times also including the disputed region of Crimea. The vast majority of Russia's territory is unsuitable for grape growing, with most of the production concentrated in parts of Krasnodar and Rostov regions, as well as Crimea. The Russian market is characterized by the presence of many low-cost products, with a significant part of local wines having a retail price of less than 100 rubles ($1.71). Attempts to shift away from the low-quality reputation of Soviet wines has been moderately successful, though 80% of wines sold in Russia in 2013 were made from grape concentrates. (Full article...) List of selected food/cuisine articles Ryazhenka Pozharsky cutlet Udmurt cuisine Chicken Kiev Guriev porridge Oladyi Tushonka Paskha Dressed herring Shchi Stroganina Vologda butter Mors (drink) Chebureki Tula pryanik Kurnik (pirog) Peremech Krasnaya Polyana Balsam Tarasun Pirozhki Pastila Coulibiac Selected biography – Ivan Khristoforovich Bagramyan, also known as Hovhannes Khachaturi Baghramyan (2 December [O.S. 20 November] 1897 – 21 September 1982), was a Soviet military commander of Armenian origin who held the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union. As commander of the 1st Baltic Front, he orchestrated the offensives which pushed German forces out of the Baltic republics during World War II. During World War II, Bagramyan was the second non-Slavic military officer, after Latvian Max Reyter, to become a commander of a front. He was among several Armenians in the Soviet Army who held the highest proportion of high-ranking officers in the Soviet military during the war. (Full article...) List of featured biographies Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia Anton Chekhov Leonhard Euler Nikita Filatov Nikita Khrushchev Manuel I Komnenos Laika Vladimir Lenin El Lissitzky Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna of Russia Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia Sergo Ordzhonikidze Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Dmitri Shostakovich Eduard Streltsov Sviatoslav I of Kiev Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Irakli Tsereteli Aleksandr Vasilevsky Nikita Zotov Vladimir Putin In the news 24 April 2025 – Russian invasion of Ukraine Kyiv strikes Two people are killed and fifty-four others, including six children, are injured by a missile strike on Kyiv, Ukraine. (NDTV) 23 April 2025 – Russian invasion of Ukraine Attacks on civilians in the Russian invasion of Ukraine Russian forces launch a drone strike on a bus in Marhanets, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine, killing nine people. (The Guardian) 22 April 2025 – Russian invasion of Ukraine Zaporizhzhia strikes Russian guided bombs target Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, killing one person and wounding 26 others, according to regional governor Ivan Fedorov. (Reuters) More Did you know (auto generated) ... that the inclusion of the Canadian song "How Long" in a bootleg Russian DVD resulted in a sixteen-year search for the track's creator? ... that shortly after a missile strike on the Russian Black Sea Fleet headquarters, Oleksiy Danilov said that the fleet could be "sliced up like a salami" at a later date? ... that the North-Western Regional Committee of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) ran an underground network to distribute literature to German soldiers in occupied areas? ... that Wallachian statesman Radu Golescu, who worked with Russian occupiers in 1806, was described as "immeasurably thirsty for wealth, and mean-spirited"? ... that LGBTQ activist Alexey Davydov became the first person to be charged with violating Russia's 2013 anti-gay law after he displayed a sign that read "being gay is normal" at a children's library? ... that near the end of her life, feminist and educator Nadezhda Stasova wrote that Russian women "still have not learned to stop being men's slaves"? 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