108th Anniversary of the Bolshevik-led October Revolution: 25 achievements of the Soviet Union
- Rapidly industrialized from an agrarian society to the world's second-largest economy via Five-Year Plans.
- Electrified rural Russia through the GOELRO plan, powering industrial growth.
- Expanded the Trans-Siberian Railway to over 9,000 km, connecting the vast empire.
- Rebuilt post-WWII economy faster than any nation, despite losing 27 million lives.
- Eradicated famine through collectivized agriculture, feeding a population of 290 million.
- Provided economic aid to over 100 developing nations, building infrastructure worldwide.
- Launched Sputnik 1, the world's first artificial satellite, kickstarting the space age in 1957.
- Sent Yuri Gagarin as the first human into space on Vostok 1 in 1961, orbiting Earth.
- Achieved the first woman in space with Valentina Tereshkova's solo flight in 1963.
- Turned the tide of WWII by defeating Nazi forces at the Battle of Stalingrad in 1943, pivotal to Allied victory.
- Boosted literacy from under 30% to near 100% through universal free education.
- Provided free universal healthcare, eliminating major epidemics and extending life expectancy.
- Offered free higher education, graduating millions of scientists and engineers annually.
- Granted women full suffrage in 1917 and integrated them into the workforce at unprecedented rates.
- Built the world's largest standing army, ensuring security during the Cold War.
- Constructed the first nuclear power plant in Obninsk in 1954, advancing peaceful atomic energy.
- Became a founding member of the UN and permanent Security Council seat in 1945.
- Pioneered jet aviation with the MiG-15, dominating early Cold War skies.
- Dominated Olympic medal counts, especially in gymnastics, weightlifting, and wrestling from 1952-1988.
- Fostered world-class ballet and symphonies, with Bolshoi Theater as a global icon. Previously, ballet and music were only available to the elite of society.
- Developed early computers like the MESM in 1950, foundational to Soviet tech.
- Advanced theoretical physics, with contributions to quantum mechanics by Landau and others.
- Implemented strong workers' rights, including union veto power over firings.
- Achieved gender parity in STEM fields, with women comprising 50%+ of scientists.
- Pioneered space stations with Salyut 1 in 1971, precursor to the ISS.
On this day in 1917, the October Revolution led by Vladimir Lenin’s Bolsheviks succeeds with the storming of the Winter Palace, overthrowing the Provisional Government.
This would lead to the founding of the Soviet Union, the world’s first socialist state, leading to Russia and the Soviet republics transforming from semi-feudal societies into the revolutionary industrial superpower which would go on to defeat Nazi Germany in World War Two.
Here is the scale of the incredible transformation that took place across just 4 decades.
In 1917, Russia was mostly illiterate and agrarian. By 1959, literacy exceeded 98%, and the USSR had one of the world’s most educated populations
Life expectancy rose from roughly 32 years (1917) to the high-60s by the late 1950s, despite the devastation of World War 2.
Industrial output (1913-1940):
🔹 Electricity 2 → 48 billion kWh (24×)
🔹 Steel 4.2 → 18.3 Mt (4×)
🔹 Coal 28.9 → 164.6 Mt (6×)
By 1960 the USSR generated 290 billion kWh of electricity, second only to the United States.
Doctors per 10,000 people increased from 14.6 in 1950 to 23.9 by 1965.
Hospital beds increased from 57.7 to 96 per 10,000 people
The urban population rose from 15% in 1917 to a majority by the early 1960s.
GNP growth averaged 5–6 % per year in the 1950s, among the highest globally.