Eastern Europe & Russia

History & Background By 4000 B.C. many people had invaded and settled in this region, sometimes called “Eurasia”. It came to be dominated by Poland and Lithuania, the Ottoman Empire, the Austrian Empire, and Russia. The Russian Empire was overthrown in 1918 and replaced with the Soviet Union, which adopted communism and dominated Eastern Europe until it broke up in 1991. COMMUNISM- A system in which the government controls almost all aspects of political and economic life. When the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, it broke Russia up, creating smaller countries. Since then, constant ethnic eruptions have occurred.

Eastern Europe

Russia

Regional Characteristics Boundary between Europe & Asia formed by the Ural Mts. The region is flat in the west and rises toward the east and south. Multi-ethnicity is common in Central Europe because of a lack of physical borders that deter migration

The Volga is the largest river in Europe and it is considered the national river of Russia as it mainly flows through the western part of Russia. Many of the largest cities in Russia are in the Volga basin. The Danube river is also one of the most important river in Eurasia. It flows eastwards for a distance of some 2850 km (1771 miles), passing through several Central and Eastern European capitals, before emptying into the Black Sea via the Danube Delta in Romania and Ukraine.  The river flows through — or forms a part of the borders of — ten European countries: Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, and Ukraine.

Eurasia has a cool to cold climate Eurasia has a cool to cold climate. Tundra & sub-arctic in much of Russia. Central Europe is largely continental as it lies far from the moderating effects of ocean water Subarctic and Tundra stretch across much of Russia. Humid Continental covers much of the south and west. Semiarid lies along the Black and Caspian seas. Several climate zones extend over the Balkans and along the western border of the region.

Tundra, taiga, and steppe are the most extensive ecosystems/vegetation Tundra and coniferous forest extend across northern Russia. Mixed forest covers much of the western parts of the region. Temperate grassland stretches from the Black Sea coast east along much of the southern border of Russia.

People & Culture With few natural barriers, easy migration has led to most of the region being multiethnic. Orthodox Christianity has been important in Central Europe for centuries. Central Europe and Northern Eurasia are home to dozens of ethnic groups, groups of people who share such things as culture, language, and religion. Many cities show a mixture of traditional architecture & modern businesses.

Economy Since the late 1980s, economies of the region have moved from communism to some form of capitalism. Women make up more than 50 percent of the workforce in Russia. Manufacturing and trade are based in the western parts of the region, where industry has contributed to acid rain. Commercial farming is important to the southern and western parts of the region.

Video Notes The Cold War: USA vs USSR Fight! The Cold War: Crash Course World History #39 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9HjvHZfCUI&t=1s