In the history of Russia, coups d'état took place several times. The change of power was carried out with the use of force and the arrest or murder of the current leaders. The most significant are the palace coups of the 18th century, the October and February revolutions, the August putsch.
Palace coups in the Russian Empire
The 18th century is considered the era of palace coups. In 1722, Peter I issued a new Decree on succession to the throne, according to which the throne was to be transferred not through the descendants of the male line, but appointed by the will of the emperor. Peter I did not want to see his son and grandson at the head of the state, who were not supporters of his reforms. However, the emperor did not manage to appoint an heir to the throne and died.
After the death of Peter I, his wife Catherine I took the throne, leaving behind a successor to Peter II Alekseevich. But he too soon died, leaving no will behind him. The Supreme Privy Council elected Anna Ioannovna Empress. After her death, John Antonovich came to power, who was overthrown by Elizaveta Petrovna. She chose Peter III as her successor. But his wife Catherine II deposed him from the throne and led the country. She wanted her grandson to be her successor, but did not have time to write a will. Her son Paul I came to power, who was killed and removed from the throne by his own son Alexander I. It was with the accession of Alexander Pavlovich that the era of palace coups ended.
Revolution of 1917
The February revolution unfolded in Petrograd. As a result of the coup, Emperor Nicholas II was overthrown. In Russia, the rule of the Romanov dynasty ended and the first Provisional Government was formed. At the same time, a parallel body of power was created, called the Petrograd Soviet. A dual power was formed in the country.
In October 1917, the Russian Civil War began. The Provisional Government was overthrown. A new government came to power headed by V. I. Lenin, Ya. M. Sverdlov and L. D. Trotsky. A completely new form of government was established in Russia - Soviet power.
August putsch
On August 19, 1991, an attempted coup d'etat was carried out in the USSR. At this time, President Gorbachev was in Crimea. A group of conspirators created a new State Committee for the State of Emergency. GKChP was headed by G. I. Yanaev. By his order, Gorbachev was blocked at his dacha and did not even have a telephone connection with Moscow. It was announced to the people of the USSR that the president had resigned for health reasons and that the state headed the State Emergency Committee.
The next day, the signing of the Union Treaty was to take place, according to which the Union of Sovereign States was created instead of the USSR. The main goal of the conspirators was to prevent the collapse of the USSR.
The coup failed. The protest wave was led by B. N. Yeltsin, who during the putsch took over the duties of the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. On August 21, the conspirators were arrested. The August putsch had disastrous consequences. The union republics refused to sign a new treaty and one after another declared their state independence. By December 1991, the USSR had ceased to exist.
