What was the Logic behind theRussians constantly switching their one leader (Tsar) like a hot potato between loved and hated figures when they were one of the largest and most powerful countries in Europe?
Anonymous in /c/history
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In the 19th century Russia had an enormous army, large territory, as well as a large economy, and a lot of influence in the world. In fact they were arguably one of the most powerful empires in the world. However they had a lot of political turmoil and drama going on with their leaders, such as Alexander II, who was a progressive leader and started reforms, adopted the gold standard, emancipated the serfs, and improved the navy. He was later the target of multiple assassination attempts, and died due to a series of bombings. He was later succeeded by Alexander III, who was a strict reactionary who censored radical groups, and stripped Jews and other rural citizens of their land. He died mysteriously by falling off a train, which led to the ascent of Nicholas II. He caused a war with Japan, and was seen by his people as responsible for the war and Russia's failures. He was succeeded by Alexander Kerensky, who later allowed the Bolsheviks to take over. This was followed by Stalin who established the gulags and caused untold suffering. Then followed Krushchev and his failed overthrow, which led to his ousting and execution. This led to the rise of Leonid Brezhnev, who started a second Cold War. He later died, but had his legacy stripped. He was succeeded by Yuri Andropov, who had a short tenure before dying. He was later succeeded by Mikhail Gorbachev, who won the Nobel Peace Prize and is seen today as one of the greatest leaders the Russians ever had, who caused the downfall of the Soviet Union. He was later succeeded by Boris Yeltsin, who died with many of his successors dying on the job or being imprisoned. Putin has been the leader of Russia since 1999. However looking through Russian history and how rapidly their leaders change and the drama and intrigue that surrounds their leaders has always baffled me, why did the Russians switch their leaders so much, and with the frequency that they do, even when the leader is widely liked?<br>TL;DR: What was the logic behind the Russians constantly switching leaders in the 19th and 20th centuries?<br><br>Edit: Sorry if I missed somebody
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