Welcome to the Soviet Union, the former communist state that played a significant role in world history. From the Bolshevik Revolution to the Cold War, the Soviet Union was a major-player in shaping the global political landscape. While the Soviet Union may no longer exist, its legacy lives on, and it continues to fascinate people around the world. So, let’s explore 25 interesting Soviet Union facts that shed light on its culture, politics, and impact on the world stage.
1-5 Crazy Facts About Soviet Union
1. 80% of males born in the Soviet Union in 1923 did not survive World War II.
2. In 1897, only a third of men and a tenth of women in the USSR were literate, but by 1950, literacy rates had almost reached 100%.
3. The first space station was built by the USSR.
4. The Soviet Union lost four times more soldiers than all the other Allies combined during WWII.
5. Sweden was the first country to acknowledge the Chornobyl disaster, not the USSR, despite the explosion occurring within Soviet territory.
6-10 Interesting Facts About Soviet Union
6. In an attempt to study the brains of prominent figures, including Lenin, Stalin, poet Vladimir Mayakovsky, and filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein, a government department was founded. While Lenin’s brain has been preserved, it is not on display like the embalmed body of the Soviet Union’s founding leader, which remains in the mausoleum in Red Square.
7. Before Yuri Gagarin became the first human to enter space, the USSR sent a street dog named Laika into orbit to test the effects of atmospheric pressure on living organisms.
8. Joseph Stalin banned the movie “The Grapes of Wrath” in the Soviet Union because it depicted even the poorest Americans owning a car.
9. During the Cold War, the USSR was able to identify a fake passport because the staples in genuine would corrode due to the poor quality of the metal.
10. The Soviet Union loved Bollywood films, as the recurring themes of good triumphing over evil and India’s partition and independence from British rule resonated with the audience. Actor Raj Kapoor was as popular in the Soviet Union as he was in his home country.
11-15 Insane Facts About Soviet Union
11. During the Cold War, the CIA considered dropping large condoms labeled “medium” over the Soviet Union to demoralize the male population.
12. In a race to drill the deepest hole into the Earth’s crust, the Soviet Union dug the Kola Superdeep Borehole in the Murmansk region, which was the deepest-hole in the world at the time, unearthing evidence of biological activity that was over two billion years old.
13. Despite the official collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, it technically made it into the digital world with the emergence of early internet providers in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The Soviet Union had a domain name, .su, which lasted for only around 15 months but remained a popular choice for cybercriminals.
14. The Soviet Union helped replace a bridge in West Virginia after the state government ignored the town’s request.
Read More 25 Fascinating West Virginia Facts That You Need To Know
15. Kim Philby, the head of the MI6 anti-communist section, was accused of helping two KGB moles escape and forced to resign. He was later exonerated by the government but then defected to the Soviet Union after working as a KGB double agent for 30 years.
16-20 Surprising Facts About Soviet Union
16. The Carmen Sandiego Show (1991-1995; 295 episodes) was created as a response to a National Geographic survey that revealed Americans had alarmingly little knowledge of geography, with one in four unable to locate the Soviet Union or the Pacific Ocean.
17. During the Soviet Union’s push toward Berlin, an SS soldier was forced to play the piano for his captors. They conveyed in sign language that he would be executed if he stopped. He played for 22 hours before collapsing in tears and was then congratulated before being shot.
18. US Navy officer John Anthony Walker, a US Navy officer who reported secrets to the Soviet Union for 18 years. He got his son involved and even tried to involve his daughter. He was finally exposed when his ex-wife reported him. When asked about his spying, he said “KMart has better security than the Navy.”
19. A woman whose husband died fighting the Nazis in WWII requested to be allowed to drive a tank to avenge him. She proved herself a skilled tank driver, died from injuries obtained in battle, and was posthumously named Hero of the Soviet Union.
20. The Soviet Union was the first and only country to explore the surface of Venus, marking a significant achievement in space exploration.
21-25 Shocking Facts About Soviet Union
21. Joseph Stalin’s reign saw the deaths of approximately 2.9 million Russians, but historians estimate the number to be as high as 30 million, or about 22% of the population.
22. During WWII, Stalin refused to exchange Friedrich Paulus, a German Field Marshal captured by the Soviets, for his son Yakov, who died in Nazi captivity.
Read More 25 Shocking Facts About Stalin That Will Surprise You
23. In the 1940s, Coca-Cola created a clear coke that resembled vodka for Georgi Zhukov, Marshal of the Soviet Union, so he could be seen drinking it without offending Joseph Stalin.
24. Guards in Soviet prisons were forbidden from shooting images of national leaders, so prisoners would get tattoos of Stalin and Lenin as a form of protection.
25. The Soviet Union provided free education at all levels from age 3 to 22, with government stipends for students aged 17 to 22 receiving higher education, and longer for those pursuing advanced degrees like a Ph.D.
That’s it for this post guys, I hope you had fun while reading 25 Interesting Soviet Union Facts.
Read More:
30 Mind-Blowing Facts about World War I That You Should Know
Unveiling the Truth About the Vietnam War: 20 Eye-Opening Facts
