The Soviet Collapse

By

David L. Hoffmann

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Dilapidated Soviet propaganda.

Soviet Propaganda

Dilapidated Soviet propaganda in an abandoned Cultural Center in Pripyat, Ukraine. (Image by Brook Ward)

The 'Wall of Sorrow.'

Wall of Sorrow

The "Wall of Sorrow" at an exhibition that detailed the victims of Stalinism in Moscow, 1988.

Leaders of the Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarussian Soviet Republics sign the Belovezha Accords.

Belovezha Accords

Leaders of the Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarussian Soviet Republics sign the Belovezha Accords, which eliminated the USSR and established the Commonwealth of Independent States, 1991.

Tanks in Moscow's Red Square.

August Coup

Tanks in Moscow's Red Square during the 1991 coup attempt.

Lithuanian protestors line the streets of Šiauliai.

Lithuanian Protestors

Lithuanian protestors line the streets of Šiauliai for Gorbachev's 1990 visit.

The Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy.

The Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy

The Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy (VDHKh), Moscow, 1980

Mikhail Gorbachev speaking at a news conference.

Gorbachev

Mikhail Gorbachev speaking at a news conference after a Soviet-American summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, 1986.

A postage stamp from the Soviet Union.

Postage Stamp

A postage stamp from the Soviet Union promoting perestroika, 1988.

Negotiations at the 1986 Reykjavik Summit.

Reykjavik Summit

Negotiations at the 1986 Reykjavik Summit between Reagan and Gorbachev.

The Baltic Way was a protest in the form of a human chain that connected the three capitals of the Baltic states.

The Baltic Way

The Baltic Way, pictured here in Estonia, was a protest in the form of a human chain that connected the three capitals of the Baltic states. The protestors demanded independence for Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania from the Soviet Union, 1989.

Protestors prepare for a counterattack outside of a government building.

Barricades

Protestors prepare for a counterattack outside of a government building in Moscow during the August Coup, 1991.

Boris Yeltsin with the Russian flag.

Yeltsin at the August Coup

Boris Yeltsin with the Russian flag during the August Coup, 1991.

A flea market in the streets of Rostov-on-Don.

Flea Market

A flea market in the streets of Rostov-on-Don, 1992.

Vladimir Putin with Boris Yeltsin.

Vladimir Putin and Boris Yeltsin

Vladimir Putin with Boris Yeltsin on December 31st, 1999, when Yeltsin announced his resignation.

U.S. President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin.

Clinton and Yeltsin

U.S. President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin at the White House, 1995.

Soviet and American tanks face each other at Checkpoint Charlie.

Berlin Crisis

Soviet and American tanks face each other at Checkpoint Charlie during the Berlin Crisis, 1961.

Lenin, Trotsky, and Kamenev celebrating the second anniversary of the October Revolution.

Revolutionaries

Lenin, Trotsky, and Kamenev celebrating the second anniversary of the October Revolution, 1919.

The first exhibition on the crimes of Stalinism was held in Moscow in 1988.

Victims of Stalinism

The first exhibition on the crimes of Stalinism was held in Moscow in 1988 shortly after Gorbachev lifted censorship laws. This exhibition included the Wall of Sorrow (pictured, which detailed the individual victims.

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