Today, textbooks of modern history without fail host such an extraordinary event as the August putsch in Moscow, which took place from 19 to 21. 08 1991. Despite the fact that the conspirators did not succeed in achieving their goals, the very fact of such an event became a cause of discontent both for the supporters of the new policy pursued by Gorbachev and Yeltsin and his opponents. The situation in the country was so tense that any spark could lead to serious events, right up to the civil war.
So, in order to objectively evaluate everything that happened then, one should carefully illuminate the socio-economic situation that developed in the late 80s in the USSR. With the advent of Mikhail Gorbachev to power in 1985, the government began to implement a policy that later became known as “perestroika”. It was aimed at fundamentally transforming the planned system of the economy and introducing market levers of economic management into it. In addition, there was also a weakening in the ideological system, since citizens had the opportunity to have different views on certain events from the official government.
The August putsch became the apotheosis of a tense situation when the country, as a result of these extraordinary events, was divided into two camps - supporters of the new policy and its opponents. The rebellion was led by G. Ya. Yanaev, V. A. Kryuchkov and D. T. Yazov. The situation in the late 80s was further complicated by the fact that as a result of the current policy, as well as some inconsistency in the actions of the authorities and executive bodies on the ground, a food and goods crisis arose in the country. This prompted many citizens to try to return the socialist system, but there was no turning back ...
On August 19, 1991 in Moscow it was announced that the President of the USSR M. Gorbachev was temporarily removed from the board for health reasons, and all power passed to the State Committee on the State of Emergency (GKChP). This was the August putsch, which clearly showed the severity of the situation that prevailed then in the country. Fortunately, thanks to the quick and clear response from the State Security Committee, the military leaders, as well as B. Yeltsin, managed to avoid bloodshed, and as a result of the whole incident only a few people were injured.
The putschists set as their goal the removal of Gorbachev, the prevention of Boris Yeltsin coming to power, the return to the old socialist system, and the prevention of the collapse of the USSR.
Most of our citizens at that time reacted negatively to the putsch, since it really was a return to the old totalitarian regime, with strict censorship, a clear distribution of the means of production, and the lack of the ability to engage in entrepreneurial activity. However, from the perspective of today, the August putsch of 1991 can be evaluated more soberly, since future events of 1992-1995 showed that at some points the rebels were right, because at that time our country was really simply plundered, many enterprises were stopped, competent specialists were left without work, the country was swept by a wave of banditry and hyperinflation. Fortunately, we managed to overcome this time, but the August putsch must be remembered, since it was a kind of warning of the possibility of such a development of events that occurred in the future.
Of course, no one justifies the conspirators, since a coup d'etat should not take place in any country. Everything should happen exclusively in a peaceful democratic way, however, history shows that there are almost never peaceful revolutions, since in most cases they are accompanied by mass casualties.
The putsch in Moscow caused a great social resonance, which for several years affected the society, as well as the views of ordinary citizens and government officials. History must always be remembered, since it tends to repeat itself ...