The History of the Soviet Union: Every Month

See the history of the USSR from its formation in 1922 to its fall in 1991, including the different Union Republics and ASSRs within.

Corrections:
Kalmyk ASSR should be dissolved between Dec 1943 and Jun 1958.

Music Credits:
"Industrial Revolution", "Five Armies", and "Hiding Your Reality" by Kevin MacLeod

Information Credits:
- Assanov, S. (2014) "The History of the State Border of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan"
- John O'Loughlin, Gearóid Ó Tuathail & Vladimir Kolossov (2008) "The Localized Geopolitics of Displacement and Return in Eastern Prigorodnyy Rayon, North Ossetia, Eurasian Geography and Economics"
- Maps made by GeoAlex
- Maps made by Hellerick
- Past works
- Yan Xishan's "The Chinese Civil War (1945 and Beyond): Every Day"

[EmperorTigerstar]

Thanks for watching through 2022! Here's to 2023!

[The_Memos]

A great video, but I found a mistake: Kalmyk ASSR was dissolved in 1943 following the deportation of the Kalmyks, and was later re-established in 1958.

[scoutdude]

I love detailed timelapses like this, great job!

[northdakotafacts]

North Dakota Fact:
North Dakota is not a member of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

[BennygoatHistory]

fantastic video!
love the detail of including "sovereign entity" for the places that were effectively sovereign but had yet to declare full independence, solves a lot of the murky waters over how the breakup of the Soviet Union happened

[AnthonySpecialeJr]

7:07 definitely interested at the idea that leading up to total breakup, Russian ASSRs declared themselves SSRs, and may have been considered technically independent for a short time

[SaveznaRepublikaJugoslavija]

Made on the 100th anniversary of the USSR, right down to the day!

[In_Our_Timeline]

“Were the Soviet Union to sink tomorrow under the waters of the ocean, the American military-industrial establishment would have to go on, substantially unchanged, until some other adversary could be invented. Anything else would be an unacceptable shock to the American economy.”
― George F. Kennan

[GeneralFalcon]

Fun fact: Kazakhstan was the last country to leave the USSR

[alejandrofonseca]

You forgot the decline of the Aral sea and didn't show the reservoirs of the Dnieper river that arose over time.

[nicknameless]

There is a bit missing. In march 1944, besides parts of Chechen-Ingush ASSR, Georgian SSR also recieved parts of Karachay-Cherkessia and Kabardino-Balkaria ASSRs.

[Firmus]

It's weird that the map doesn't extend more to the west since it shows military occupation and satelite states there, but other than that it's a good video as always.

[GregBartlesbyProductions]

My Soviet grandmother had a local saying from Magnitogorsk: "When heart burn bright red like Soviet, lava cannot hurt you. El strupa!"

[BrianLyons]

6:12 But then, Brezhnev got really old and died, and was replaced by this guy who was really old and died, and was replaced by this guy who was really old and died, and he was replaced by Mikhail Gorbachev.

[Cockroach-fr]

This guy always make the most detailed historical maps

[BloxxterT]

I'm glad to see some people valuing these anniversaries, amazing work ETS!

[YeastCartography]

Missing the All Tungus Revolt and a few others, but overall very well done. I noticed you showed South Ossetia declaring independence in September 1990 which is a detail too many miss.

[Anonymous-hizq]

Never knew the Mongolian Chinese border changed also nice video hope happy new year

[dimitriantanov]

Should include the Autonomous oblasts. They arent ASSRs, but many wanted to be ASSRs and lot of post-Soviet conflicts involve those regions. Like with Nagorno-Karabakh.

[morsecode]

A part of me wishes Gorbachev’s New Union Treaty was passed, just on the chance that the USSR could reform into a democratic entity without totally breaking up.

If the treaty passed, the USSR would’ve kept its name, but uses of the word “socialist” would be replaced by “sovereign, ” e.g. the “Union of Soviet *Sovereign* Republics.” You can see the country start to change into that form in 1990 and 1991 prior to August, but the coup that month basically ruined everything.