The USSR was formed on the fragments of the former Russian Empire. He was one of two centers of power and influence throughout the twentieth century. It was the Union that caused the decisive defeat of fascist Germany, and its collapse became the most significant event of the second half of the last century. Which republics were part of the USSR, we will understand in the following article.
Problems of the national state structure on the eve of the appearance of the USSR
How many republics were there in the USSR? Different answers can be given to this question, because at the initial stage of the formation of the state, their number did not remain unchanged. To understand this in more detail, let us turn to history. By the time the Civil War ended, the territory of our state was a rather motley complex of various national and state entities. Their legal status often depended on the military-political situation, the strength of local government institutions and other factors. However, as the influence and power of the Bolsheviks increased, this issue became one of the main issues for the state and government. The leadership of the CPSU (b) did not have a consolidated opinion on the future structure of the country. Most of the party members believed that the state should be built on the basis of unitary principles, without taking into account the national component, its other members cautiously spoke out for the self-determination of nations within the country. But the decisive word was for V.I. Lenin.
A difficult dilemma in the bowels of the CPSU (b)
The republics that were part of the USSR, according to Lenin, should have had some independence, but recognizing this issue as rather complicated, he saw the need for a special analysis of it. This question was entrusted to I.V. To Stalin. He has been a consistent supporter of the autonomy of all the republics that are part of the new state formation. During the Civil War, the principle of federalism triumphed on the territory of the RSFSR , however, relations between the independent republics were regulated on the basis of special agreements. Another serious problem was the rather strong nationalist sentiments among the local Communists. This whole set of disagreements should have been taken into account in the formation of the new state.
Start of work on the creation of a single state
By the beginning of 1922, about 185 nations lived in the territory subject to the Soviets. To unite them, it was necessary to take into account all, even the smallest nuances, but the process of creating the USSR was not only a decision from above, the overwhelming majority of the people supported it. The formation of the USSR also had a foreign policy reason - the need to unite in the face of clearly hostile states. A special commission of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee was created to develop principles for organizing a future country. In the bowels of this structure, it was decided that the example of the existence of the RSFSR is the most acceptable option for the formation of a new state. However, this idea came up against decisive opposition from members of the commission of national regions. Stalin was little inclined to criticize his position. It was decided to test the method in the Caucasus. This area required special attention. A lot of national contradictions were concentrated here. In particular, Georgia for a short period of its independence has managed to build its economy and foreign policy relations quite effectively. Armenia and Azerbaijan were mutually suspicious of each other.
Disagreements of Stalin and Lenin on the formation of the USSR
The experiment ended with the creation of the Transcaucasian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic as part of Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. That is how they were supposed to enter the new state. At the end of August 1922, a commission was formed in Moscow to implement the association. According to the plan of "autonomy" I.V. Stalin, all the components of the Union will have limited independence. At this moment, Lenin intervened, he rejected Stalin's plan. According to his idea, the republics that were part of the USSR should be united on the basis of union treaties. In this edition, the project was supported by the majority of members of the plenum of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks. However, Georgia did not want to enter the new state formation as part of the Transcaucasian Federation. She insisted on concluding a separate agreement with the Union, outside the ZSFSR. But under the pressure of the center, the Georgian Communists were forced to agree to the original plan.
Formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
In December 1922, the Congress of Soviets announced the creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as part of the RSFSR, Ukraine, Belarus and the Transcaucasian Federation. That's how many republics were in the USSR at the time of its appearance. On the basis of the Agreement, the creation of a new state association as a federation of full and independent countries with the right to exit and free entry into its composition was declared. However, in reality, the exit procedure was not legally prescribed, which accordingly made it very difficult. This time bomb, laid down in the foundation of the state, showed itself with all its strength at the time of the collapse of the USSR, because in the 90s the countries that were part of the Union could not legally and civilized leave it, which led to bloody events . Foreign policy, trade, finance, defense, communications and communications were delegated in favor of the central organs of the USSR.
Further expansion of the country of Soviets
The next stage in the formation of the state was the national-administrative delimitation in Central Asia. On its territory there was a huge Turkestan republic, as well as two tiny territories - the Bukhara and Khorezm republics. As a result of long discussions in the Central Committee, the Uzbek and Turkmen Union republics were formed. The USSR subsequently separated the Tajik Republic from the first, part of the territory was transferred to the jurisdiction of Kazakhstan, which also became a union republic. The Kirghiz founded an autonomous republic within the RSFSR, however, at the end of the twenties of the last century, it was transformed into a union republic. And on the territory of the Ukrainian SSR it was allocated to the Union Republic of Moldova. Thus, at the end of the second decade of the last century, data on how many republics were in the USSR changed significantly.
In the thirties there was also a structural change in the composition of the Union. Since the Transcaucasian Federation was originally a non-viable entity, this was taken into account in the new Constitution of the USSR. In 1936, it was disbanded, and Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, having concluded agreements with the center, received the status of Union republics of the USSR.
Baltic States as part of the USSR
The next stage in the formation of the Union dates back to the late thirties of the last century. Then, in view of the difficult foreign policy situation, our country had to agree with Germany, which pursued an aggressive policy in Europe. Western Ukraine and Belarus were then part of Poland in order to historically reunite one people and secure their western borders. The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was signed between the USSR and Germany with a secret protocol. According to him, the territory of Eastern Europe departed into the sphere of influence of our country. In view of the extremely hostile position of the Baltic states, the leadership of the Red Army was introduced there by decision of the leadership; legitimate governments were liquidated in the territories of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. And instead of them, the construction of the political system began, following the example of the USSR. These republics were given union status. And it was possible to re-count how many republics there were in the USSR just before the start of the war with Germany.
The collapse of the Soviet Union
How many republics were part of the USSR immediately before the collapse? At the end of the eighties, the USSR included:
- RSFSR;
- Ukrainian SSR;
- Belorussian SSR;
- Moldavian SSR ;
- Kazakh SSR ;
- Turkmen SSR;
- Tajik SSR;
- Uzbek SSR;
- Kyrgyz SSR ;
- Lithuanian SSR;
- Latvian SSR;
- Estonian SSR;
- Georgian SSR;
- Armenian SSR;
- Azerbaijan SSR.
The economic crisis and national contradictions, as well as weak leadership led to the collapse of the Soviet state. Fifteen republics that were part of the USSR gained full national sovereignty during these events and formed their own states.