Russian History

The Tsar, Tsaritsa, and Tsarevich gracing the front cover of the 16 March 1917 cover of The Daily Mirror.

The legendary Russian mystic died 100 years ago, on Dec. 30, 1916. Here's what to know about the truth behind 5 myths about his life.

One hundred years ago, Lenin’s Bolshevik uprising overturned centuries of feudalism in Russia. But what does it mean for politics today?

Postcard with famous Russian rulers, sent by Postcrosser in Russia.

Step one: Erase everything you may have internalized from the movie "Anastasia." Step two: Watch "The Last Czars" on Netflix.

Map of the Russian Empire at the time it entered the First World War

Once upon a time there was a vast Empire stretching from the beaches of the Crimea to the deep Siberian forests. Its capital never knew the darkness of the night in summer, its countryside flourished with myths and folk legends.... It was a country of great men and of small, a land where beauty and suffering lived side by side. A world swept away, imprisoned forever in books and pictures.

In the summer of 1812, Napoleon Bonaparte, at the height of his power launched an invasion of Russia. It was the largest invading force that the world has ever seen, his Grande Armee of over 600,000 men from all over Europe poured into the Russian countryside, the majority of them would never return...

Poster : Social pyramid This is another Mayakovsky-Radakov collaboration for Parus. Clearly a caricature, the poster shows the tsar at the top with his ermine robe flowing down on either side to cloak the people. From top to bottom: "We reign. We pray for you. We judge you. We protect you. We feed you. And you work." The most popular satirical stories until the summer of 1917 were anti-clerical and anti-monarchical, aimed specifically at Tsar Nicholas II and his wife.