9781422283622

MOSCOW SINCE THE 1700S

Moscow continued to grow and prosper in the eighteenth century, even though

it was no longer Russia’s capital. Business people set up factories there, and the population steadily increased (see page 24). But there were setbacks. Fires raged through the streets in 1737, 1748, and 1752. Then, in 1771, plague struck, and more than 57,000 people died. Napoleon Bonaparte In 1812 the French ruler Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Russia. In September the two sides fought the Battle of Borodino near Moscow. Neither side won, but the Russian commander ordered everyone to leave the city. Napoleon’s troops moved in to occupy Moscow, but then fire broke out. It burned for six days and destroyed 6,496

Russian troops at the Battle of Borodino. About 70,000 French and Russian soldiers were killed.

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Revolution By 1900 Moscow’s industry had expanded, but factory workers were poor and badly treated. They began to protest about conditions, and in 1905 revolution broke out in St. Petersburg and Moscow. It was crushed, but in 1917 the Russian Revolution began, and a Communist government led by Vladimir Lenin took over. In 1918 Moscow became Russia’s capital again, and in 1922 Russia joined the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

houses and 122 churches. The French soon retreated, and the following year the Russians began to rebuild their city.

Communist soldiers defended their Moscow headquarters during the Russian Revolution of 1917. Fighting in the city lasted ten days. ⌂

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Major World Cities