Explaining the Soviet Union

In this episode of History 102, 'WhatIfAltHist' creator Rudyard Lynch and co-host Austin Padgett examine Soviet communism from czarist origins through Stalin's totalitarian brutality to collapse and explore how Marxist ideology created history's most psychologically destructive regime.

--

SPONSOR: SHOPIFY⁠⁠⁠⁠

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://shopify.com/cognitive⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

--

FOLLOW ON X:

@whatifalthist (Rudyard)

@LudwigNverMises (Austin)

@TurpentineMedia

--

TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00:00) Introduction

(00:03:38) French Thinkers on Russia & America

(00:15:52) Sponsor: Shopify

(00:21:00) Czarist Russia - Nobility & Serfdom

(00:26:37) Underground Revolutionary Networks

(00:33:00) World War I - Russia's Breaking Point

(00:44:00) The Russian Revolutions of 1917

(00:47:24) Lenin Seizes Power

(00:51:00) Russian Civil War

(01:09:00) Stalin vs Trotsky

(01:11:38) Stalin's Rise to Power

(01:26:09) Stalin's Economic Plans & Brutal Conditions

(01:52:33) Stalin's Mass Purges & Genocides

(01:54:09) Holodomor - Ukrainian Famine

(02:01:36) The Gulag System

(02:08:09) World War II - Eastern Front

(02:14:12) Post-War Soviet Empire & Iron Curtain

(02:20:27) The Cold War

(02:30:00) Gorbachev & The Collapse (1989-1991)

(02:38:00) Closing

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

History 102 with WhatifAltHist's Rudyard Lynch and Austin Padgett

Where can you listen?

Episodes