Union of Soviet Socialist RepublicsImages and Videos

Flag of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, 1922–91.
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Flag of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, 1922–91.

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: Soviet republics

The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

Soviet territorial gains after 1922.
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: Soviet territorial...

Soviet territorial gains after 1922.

Retouched photograph of Yury V. Andropov.
Andropov, Yury Vladimirovich

Retouched photograph of Yury V. Andropov.

Aleksey Nikolayevich Kosygin.
Kosygin, Aleksey Nikolayevich

Aleksey Nikolayevich Kosygin.

Mikhail Gorbachev, 1985.
Gorbachev, Mikhail

Mikhail Gorbachev, 1985.

U.S. President George Bush with Mikhail Gorbachev of the Soviet Union.
Bush, George; Gorbachev, Mikhail

U.S. President George Bush with Mikhail Gorbachev of the Soviet Union.

Russian President Boris N. Yeltsin (left) standing on an armoured vehicle parked in front of the White House in Moscow, as supporters hold a Russian federation flag, August 19, 1991.
Yeltsin, Boris
Russian President Boris N. Yeltsin (left) standing on an armoured vehicle parked...
Cold War-era poster of Soviet army equipment.
Red Army

Cold War-era poster of Soviet army equipment.

Germany invading the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa, June 22, 1941.
World War II: Operation Barbarossa (03:52)

Germany invading the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa, June 22, 1941.

The death of Joseph Stalin, 1953.
Stalinism (01:34)

The death of Joseph Stalin, 1953.

Learn about Mikhail Gorbachev’s efforts to reform the Soviet Union.
Gorbachev, Mikhail (03:51)

Learn about Mikhail Gorbachev’s efforts to reform the Soviet Union.

Overview of the Chernobyl disaster.
Chernobyl disaster (03:46)

Overview of the Chernobyl disaster.

The first summit meeting between U.S. Pres. Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, Geneva, November 1985.
Gorbachev, Mikhail; Reagan, Ronald: summit meeting (01:10)
The first summit meeting between U.S. Pres. Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail...
On a visit to Moscow in 1955, West German chancellor Konrad Adenauer persuaded the Soviets to release the last German prisoners of war from World War II.
World War II: German POWs released (03:27)
West German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer negotiating the release of 10,000 German...
In June 1948, the Soviet Union cut off supply routes to West Berlin, Germany. This action was called the Berlin blockade.
Berlin blockade (03:57)
Overview of the Soviet Union’s blockade of West Berlin, with a detailed discussion...
In 1948–49, the Western powers responded to the Soviet blockade of West Berlin, Germany, by flying supplies into the city. This action was called the Berlin airlift.
Berlin blockade and airlift (03:52)
Overview of the U.S. and British airlift of food, fuel, and supplies for the people...
Overview of the creation of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) in 1949.
German Democratic Republic (03:36)
Overview of the creation of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) in 1949.
The deterioration of relations between Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union, following the period of liberalization known as the Prague Spring and culminating in the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia and the seizure of Czechoslovak leader Alexander Dubček, 1968.
Prague Spring: aftermath (04:57)
The deterioration of relations between Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union, following...
East German visitors fleeing over the border of Hungary to Austria during the Pan-European Picnic near Sopron, Hungary, 1989.
Pan-European Picnic (03:23)
East German visitors fleeing over the border of Hungary to Austria during the...
In June 1941, German armoured divisions roll deep into the Soviet Union, but by winter they find their supply lines stretched thin and the Soviets determined to fight. From The Second World War: Triumph of the Axis (1963), a documentary by Encyclopædia Britannica Educational Corporation.
Barbarossa, Operation (02:19)
In June 1941, German armoured divisions roll deep into the Soviet Union, but by...
Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov, having negotiated the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact of August 1939, is greeted by German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop and other officials in Berlin. From “The Second World War: Prelude to Conflict” (1963), a documentary by Encyclopædia Britannica Educational Corporation.
German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact (00:33)
Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov, having negotiated the German-Soviet...
Overview of Mikhail Gorbachev, including a discussion of his policy of perestroika.
Gorbachev, Mikhail (03:07)
Overview of Mikhail Gorbachev, including a discussion of his policy of perestroika.
Industrialization under the Soviet Union’s first Five-Year Plan, 1928–32.
Soviet Union: first Five-Year Plan (01:33)

Industrialization under the Soviet Union’s first Five-Year Plan, 1928–32.

War in Europe ending with Germany’s unconditional surrender, May 1945.
World War II: German surrender (04:03)

War in Europe ending with Germany’s unconditional surrender, May 1945.

Newsreel about the mobilization of the Soviet people upon invasion by Germany, 1941.
Barbarossa, Operation: mobilization of the Soviet... (02:04)
Newsreel about the mobilization of the Soviet people upon invasion by Germany,...
Newsreel report on dogfight between American and Soviet planes over North Korea, 1950.
Korean War: newsreel of aerial combat between... (00:59)
Newsreel report on dogfight between American and Soviet planes over North Korea,...
A German video summarizes two events in World War II—the D-Day invasion and the Battle of the Bulge (Battle of the Ardennes).
World War II: Normandy Invasion (04:08)

Overview of the Normandy Invasion.

A German video looks at the Cuban missile crisis, with emphasis on the implications for Germany.
Cuban missile crisis (04:25)

Overview of the Cuban missile crisis and its effect on Germany, 1962.

“Helsinki Bombed,” newsreel showing the Russian bombing of the capital of Finland, 1939.
World War II: Russian bombing of Helsinki, capital... (01:11)
“Helsinki Bombed,” newsreel showing the Russian bombing of the capital of Finland,...
“The Russian Offensive,” Pathé Gazette newsreel describing the Russian counteroffensive in the summer of 1943, which drove the Germans out of the Ukraine.
World War II: Russian offensive in 1943 (02:45)
“The Russian Offensive,” Pathé Gazette newsreel describing the Russian counteroffensive...
The Soviet sinking of the MV Wilhelm Gustloff in January 1945, one of the greatest maritime disasters in history.
World War II: MV Wilhelm Gustloff (04:03)
The Soviet sinking of the MV Wilhelm Gustloff in January 1945, one of the greatest...
Excerpts from a Soviet documentary film depicting China’s industrial rebuilding during its First Five-Year Plan (1953–57). The anti-Chinese tone of the narration reflects the deterioration of relations between the Soviet Union and China in the early 1960s.
First Five-Year Plan: Soviet documentary film... (02:07)
Excerpts from a Soviet documentary film depicting China’s industrial rebuilding...
As Soviet troops entered Berlin, Adolf Hitler committed suicide, April 1945.
World War II: Soviet army entering Berlin (03:55)
As Soviet troops entered Berlin, Adolf Hitler committed suicide, April 1945.
An overview of the atomic bomb and the threat of nuclear warfare as reflected in the popular culture of the 1940s and ’50s, particularly in the “duck and cover” campaign and the film Godzilla.
Nuclear warfare: cultural aspects (03:37)
An overview of the atomic bomb and the threat of nuclear warfare as reflected...
Germany and the Soviet Union captured millions of each other’s soldiers during World War II. Many died while being held as prisoners of war.
World War II: prisoners of war (04:00)

Discussion of German and Soviet POWs during World War II.

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