A Dark History: Russia

Russia is a country steeped in history but also in authoritarianism, secrecy, and corruption. From monarchy to the worlds's first socialist state, from Communism to Capitalism, from mass poverty to the new super rich, Russia has seen immense revolutions in the past century, including purges, poisonings, famines, assassinations, and massacres. In that time, it has also endured civil war, world war, and the Cold War. But the extremes of Russian history aren't restricted to the past 100 years. When Napoleon invaded in 1912, the Russians retreated, slashing and burning their own country, rather than conceding defeat to Napoleon. They were victorious, but at immense cost. Russia's history is also spiked with mystery. Did Stalin die of natural causes or was he killed by his inner circle? Who ordered the killing of Rasputin? Or the shooting of Anna Politkovskaya and the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko? In addition, it is a history of appalling disasters, such as at the Chernobyl nuclear power station and the sinking of the Kursk submarine. A Dark Russia explore the violence and turbulence, the chronic cruelty and suffering that seems to have dogged its history more or less throughout.