Russian history books take you through more than a thousand years, from the princes of Kievan Rus to the end of the Soviet Union in 1991. Here they are free in PDF, sorted by era.
Start with a complete overview of Russia, then go deeper into the age of the tsars. You'll meet the rulers of the Romanov dynasty, from its first tsar to the last.
Then follow the Soviet Union from Stalin's five-year plans to the Khrushchev Thaw and Chernobyl. Every book downloads free, with no sign-up.
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Overview
Books on the History of Russia
Start here if you want the whole story of Russia in one place. These Russian history surveys run from the Eastern Slavs and Kievan Rus to the collapse of the USSR and the Putin era.
A clear, well sourced history of Russia from the Eastern Slavs and Kievan Rus to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Written by specialists for the Library of Congress, it covers the tsars, the revolutions, Stalin, the Cold War and Gorbachev's reforms.
A compact overview of Russian history in 26 short chapters, from the early Slavs and the Vikings to Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, the Revolution and the Soviet Union. Ideal as a first read before a longer survey.
How Russia has told its own history, from the dynastic myths of the tsars through Lenin and Stalin to Putin's use of the past. A sharp guide to why history has always been a political tool in Russia.
A historian's reading of modern Russia, from the revolutions of 1917 through Stalin's terror, the Second World War and the early Cold War. It explains how the Soviet state and its social structure were built and what that legacy means for Russia today.
Essays on how Russia tried to modernise across a century, from late tsarism and Soviet industrialisation to the reforms of the 1990s and 2000s. Includes data tables on population, work and education in the USSR.
These books follow Imperial Russia from Muscovy to the last Romanovs, with full biographies of Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great and Catherine the Great. Others explain how the tsars used ritual, religion and information to hold their empire together.
The first volume of the classic history by Russia's greatest 19th century historian. It follows the Eastern Slavs, the Viking princes and the rise and fall of Kievan Rus, the foundation of everything that came after.
A full biography of the first tsar of Russia, from his troubled childhood to the terror of the Oprichnina and the conquest of Kazan. A vivid portrait of Muscovy in the 16th century.
The story of the Romanov dynasty's first century, from the election of Michael in 1613 to the reign of Peter the Great. It shows how Muscovy turned into the modern Russian state.
A classic biography of the tsar who built St. Petersburg and dragged Russia toward Europe. It covers his travels, his wars with Sweden, his reforms and his private life.
The life of Catherine the Great, from German princess to empress of Russia. It follows her coup, her court, her favourites and the ideas that shaped her long reign.
Collected essays on how the Russian tsars presented their power, from Muscovite ceremonies and coronations to the image of the last Romanovs. A leading historian of the monarchy shows how ritual and symbol held the empire together.
Two leading scholars explain how Russians came to see the tsar as a sacred figure, from Muscovy to the age of Peter the Great. Essential reading on religion and power in Imperial Russia.
How the Russian state gathered and moved information, from early maps and the postal system to news and bureaucracy under Catherine the Great. Includes maps and period illustrations.
These Soviet history books show life in the USSR, from Stalin's industrialization and propaganda to the Second World War and the Khrushchev Thaw. You'll also see how the Soviet state built its nuclear cities, all the way to Chernobyl.
How electricity became a political project, from late tsarist engineers to Lenin's GOELRO plan and the NEP years. It shows the roots of Soviet planning in a single technology.
A history of Soviet nurses from the revolution and civil war through Stalin's 1930s and the Second World War. It shows daily life, ideology and medicine through the women who did the work.
How Stalin's regime paid for industrialization by trading food for the gold, silver and dollars of hungry citizens during the famine years. Based on archives opened after 1991.
How propaganda posters turned Stalin into a father, teacher and saviour between 1929 and 1953. Richly illustrated with dozens of original posters in full colour.
Essays on Soviet Jews on the Eastern Front, as Red Army soldiers, war reporters and witnesses of the Holocaust, and on how the war was remembered in the USSR.
Everyday Soviet life seen through clothing, from the Moscow Fashion House to the GUM department store. A fresh look at consumer culture under Khrushchev and Brezhnev.
The Khrushchev Thaw told through the lives of Soviet Jews: rehabilitation after Stalin, Birobidzhan, culture, emigration and the fight against Zionism up to 1967.
That completes our collection of free Russian history books, from the first princes of Rus to the last years of the Soviet Union. For the Bolsheviks and the year 1917, see our Russian Revolution books.
