AllRefer
All Refer Reference: Soviet Union: Economic Policy
A great overview of the economic policies implemented in the Soviet Union between 1917 and 1985. Describes collectivization, economic priorities, successes, and failures. Readers will come away with a sound understanding of Soviet...
AllRefer
All Refer Reference: Soviet Union: The Khrushchev Era
This article surveys Soviet Union and its leader Nikita Khrushchev, who eventually wielded virtually supreme power after the death of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin in 1953.
AllRefer
All Refer Reference: Soviet Union: Congress of People's Deputies
The Congress of People's Deputies was a Russian representative body (legislature) created during the Gorbachev era. This is an excellent article describing how the body was formed, membership, and responsibilities.
PBS
Pbs: Red Flag
Read two eyewitness accounts of life under Stalin. They explain how Communism became "an all-consuming, all-explaining ideology that appealed to their deepest hopes and dreams."
PBS
Pbs: Commanding Heights: Mao Zedong
This is a great biography of Mao Zedong (1893-1976). Looks at his early life, political activism, military leadership, unifying China, and policies implemented under his rule. A great site for learning about Chinese History in the 20th...
Other
Trussel: Crimes of the Stalin Era
This site from Trussel.com provides the text of the report to the 20th Congress of the Soviet Communist Party by Nikita Khrushchev February 25, 1956 condemning the "cult of personality" surrounding Stalin and condemning Stalin's policies...
Hanover College
Hanover College: Ukrainian Famine
Archived by the Library of Congress and presented here by Hanover College, these are excerpts of historical records from the early decades of the Soviet Union, when Stalin forced collectivism and industrialization on the Russian people.
Travel Document Systems
Tds: Moldova: Government
Read about the government of Moldova and its political parties and problems with the territory of Transnistria. Information is from the U.S. State Dept. Background Notes.
Marxists Internet Archive
The Founding of Indochinese Communist Party
A speech given by Ho Chi Minh on the founding of the Indochinese Communist Party in 1930.
Steven Kreis, PhD
The History Guide: Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev
Biographical account of Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev, reformer of the Soviet Union. Includes information regarding Gorbachev's ascension to power with the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and his role in reducing the Cold War...
Steven Kreis, PhD
The History Guide: Khrushchev's Secret Speech, 1956
Excerpt of Nikita Khrushchev's "Secret Speech," delivered before a closed session of the Twentieth Party Congress in 1956. In this speech, Khrushchev admits the many crimes and atrocities of former Soviet leader Joseph Stalin.
Steven Kreis, PhD
The History Guide: Nicolae Ceausescu, 1918 1989
A look at the political career of Communist leader, Nicolae Ceausescu.
Oswego City School District
Regents Exam Prep Center: Communism
This site explains the history of communism throughout the world. Looks at the principles of Marxism and communism, Karl Marx, and major communist political victories around the world.
Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: Program for Communist of Indochina, 1930
This English translation of Ho Chi Minh's plan for the Communist Party of Indochina in 1930 provides a blueprint for his goal of the communist overthrow of the French colonial regime in Vietnam.
Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: The Manifesto of the Laodong Party
Ho Chi Minh wrote this manifesto in Februay 1951 to broaden his support among the working classes of Vietnam.
Other
More or Less: Heroes and Killers: Ho Chi Minh
A comprehensive biography of the Vietnamese revolutionary Ho Chi Minh. Organized in a timeline form which allows readers to jump different periods of his life quickly.
Digital History
Digital History: Collapse of Communism
Overview of the collapse of communism at the end of the 1980s and early 1990s ushered in by Mikhail Gorbachev and his reforms.
ibiblio
Ibiblio: Internal Workings of the Soviet System
This site briefly discusses the workings of the Soviet system and its leaders. Among those discussed are Stalin and his brutal use of police terror as well as Gorbachev and his perestroika plan.
Library of Congress
Loc: Ukrainian Famine
This site from the Library of Congress gives an account of Stalin's systematic elimination of Ukrainian nationalism and forced collectivization that resulted in the loss of millions of lives from 1932-1933.
Library of Congress
Loc: Repression and Terror: Stalin in Control
Brief account of Stalin's tactics for gaining total power by eliminating any individuals who opposed his policies.
PBS
Pbs: Int. With Nina Mihailovna Motova, Factory Worker
You've learned about the fall of the USSR in history books, but what did it mean to a common citizen? Read the interview with Motova, a ballbearing factory worker in Russia, for insight on her thoughts.
Other
Communism: Development and Duration: Map
Two maps showing the development and duration of Communism around the world.
My Hero Project
My Hero: w.e.b. Du Bois
The fist African American to earn a PhD from Harvard, W.E.B. DuBois was not only an inspirational and extraordinary individual, but a champion in the fight for equality and the end of racism. Read about his founding of the organization...