Soviet Union timeline
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Soviet Union Launches Invasion of Finland
On 30 November, Soviet forces invaded Finland with 21 divisions, totaling some 450,000 men, and bombed Helsinki. Later the Finnish statesman J.K.... Read more
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Soviet Union Forms Puppet Government Intended to Rule Finland
On 1 December, the Soviet Union formed a puppet government intended to rule Finland once the war was over. Called the Finnish Democratic Republic,... Read more
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Battle of Tolvajärvi
The Battle of Tolvajärvi ['tol.va.jær.vi] was fought on 12 December 1939 between Finland and the Soviet Union. It was the first large victory for... Read more
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Soviet Union is Expelled from the League of Nations
At the start of the Winter War, Finland brought up the matter of the Soviet invasion before the League of Nations. The League expelled the Soviet... Read more
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Soviet Tanks Advance on Finnish Village of Summa
The Battle of Summa was fought between the Soviet Union and Finland, in two phases, first in December 1939 and then in February 1940. It was part... Read more
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Joseph Stalin Is Named Time Magazine's 'Person Of The Year'
Since J. Stalin became the supreme power in Russia, much of the Revolution's history has been rewritten to magnify his part in those stirring... Read more
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Heavy Fighting Along the Raate Road as Finns Break Soviet 44th Rifle Division
The Battle of Raate Road was fought during the Winter War between the Soviet Union and Finland in January, 1940, as a part of the Battle of... Read more
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Soviets Launch All-Out Offensive on Karelian Isthmus
Although the Karelian Isthmus front was less active in December than in January, the Soviets began increasing bombardments, wearing down the... Read more
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Soviet Politburo Members Sign Order to Execute 25,700 Polish Prisoners
On 5 March, 1940, pursuant to a note to Stalin from Beria, the members of the Soviet Politburo — Stalin, Vyacheslav Molotov, Kliment Voroshilov and... Read more
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Signing of the Moscow Peace Treaty Between Finland and the Soviet Union
The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on March 12, 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on March 21. It marked... Read more
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Soviets Begin Month-long Murder of Polish Prisoners, Known as the Katyn Massacre
After 3 April, 1940, at least 22,436 POWs and prisoners were executed: 15,131 POWs (most or all of them from the three camps) and at least 7,305... Read more
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Katyn Forest Massacre
On April 13, 1943, the Germans announced that mass graves had been discovered in the Katyn Forest, in their area of occupation, containing the... Read more
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Hitler Orders 'Aufbau Ost', the Mobilization of Troops as Preparation for the Invasion of Russia
Aufbau Ost (German: Building in the East) was the German operational code name for the mobilisation of forces prior to the commencement of... Read more
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Leon Trotsky is Killed by Soviet Agent Ramón Mercader
Despite the misgivings of Natalia and Trotsky's guards, Mornard was again allowed to see Trotsky alone—"three or four minutes went by," Natalia... Read more
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Lossberg Study for the Invasion of the Soviet Union
Lossberg study is a German military plan prepared by Lieutenant Colonel Bernhard von Lossberg and developed under Alfred Jodl in OKW on September... Read more
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Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact Is Signed
The Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact was signed between Russia and Japan two years after the war between Russia and Japan at the Manchurian and... Read more
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Operation Barbarossa Begins
Operation Barbarossa (German: Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the code name for Nazi Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that... Read more
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Battle of Białystok–Minsk
The Battle of Białystok–Minsk was a German strategic operation conducted by the Army Group Centre during penetration of the Soviet border region... Read more
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Battle of Raseiniai
The Battle of Raseiniai (23–27 June 1941) was a tank battle fought between the elements of the 4th Panzer Army and two Soviet Mechanized Corps in... Read more
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Battle of Brody (1941)
The Battle of Brody (other names in use include Battle of Dubna, Battle of Dubno, Battle of Rovne, Battle of Rovne-Brody) was a tank battle fought... Read more
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Battle of Smolensk (1941)
The Battle of Smolensk was a successful encirclement operation by Army Group Centre's 2nd Panzer Army led by Heinz Guderian and the 3rd Panzer Army... Read more
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Battle of Uman
The "Battle of Uman" (July 15 – August 8, 1941) was an English name given to the German encirclement of the 6th (General Lieutenant I.N.... Read more
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Battle of Kiev (1941)
The Battle of Kiev was the German name for the operation that resulted in a very large encirclement of Soviet troops in the vicinity of Kiev during... Read more
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Siege of Leningrad Begins
By September 8, 1941 German forces had largely surrounded the city, cutting off all supply routes to Leningrad and its suburbs. Unable to press... Read more
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Battle of Moscow Begins
The Battle of Moscow (Russian: Битва под Москвой, Romanized: Bitva pod Moskvoy, German: Schlacht um Moskau) is the name given by Soviet historians... Read more