1. POINT DISTRIBUTION
Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V
Matching dynasties/Eras
True/False
Chronological Order
Identification by Matching
Short-Answer I.D.
1 pt. each / 10 pts. (plus 1 ex. cr.)
1 pt. each/ 15 pts. (plus 2 ex. cr.)
1 pt. each / 5 pts. (plus 1 ex. cr.)
2 pts. each/ 40 pts. (plus 6 ex. cr.)
3 pts. each / 30 pts. (plus 2 ex. cr.)
2. EXTRA CREDIT
Every section of the test has one or more extra bonus questions which, if
correct, can be used to substitute for incorrect answers within that section.
(Extra Credit)
3. TEST IS IN TWO PARTS
The first three parts of the test are automated and can be found in the “Final
Exam” unit of the Imperial Russia course in Module 12. The system will grade
these parts and total the correct answers (including extra credit questions).
AUTOMATED PORTION OF THE TEST (Take these sections of the
test online)
I.
Matching Dynasties/Eras (1 pts. each/ 10 pts. + 1 ex. cr.)
II.
True/False (1 pt. each /15 pts. + 2 ex. cr.)
III. Chronological Order via Multiple Choice (1 pt. each / 5 pts. = 1
ex. cr.)
WRITTEN PORTION OF THE TEST (.pdf format to be hand graded)
IV.
Identification by Matching (2 pts. each / 40 pts. + 6 ex. cr.)
V.
Short-Answer I.D. (3 pts. each / 30 pts. + 2 ex. cr.)
4. GRADING
Enter the raw score from the automated test:
(30 pts possible plus 4 extra credit)
________
Enter the score from the .pdf portion:
(70 pts possible plus 8 extra credit)
________
TOTAL
________
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I. MATCHING DYNASTIES/ERAS
To which dynasty or era of Russian History did these rulers belong? (1
pts. each/ 10 pts. + 1 ex. cr.)
A. Medieval Princes/Riurik
B. Interregnum (“Time of Troubles)
C. Romanov
1. C Alexander I
2. B. False Dmitri
3. A. Ivan IV (Terrible)
4. C. Mikhail I
5. C. Peter the Great
6. A. Vladimir (the Blessed)
7. C. Nicholas II
8. C. Catherine the Great
9. B. Boris Godunov
10. C. Empress Elizabeth
Extra Credit Bonus Point: ( 1 pt.)
A. Ivan the Great
II. TRUE/FALSE (1 pt. each /15 pts. + 2 ex. cr.)
1. FALSE Audiences in Moscow and St. Petersburg flocked to every new
performance of the Ballets russes.
2. TRUE Diaghilev, for all of his accomplishments as an arts’ entrepreneur,
wasn’t particularly skilled in any one art, but rather knew how to assemble
talent and create exotic and opulent productions.
3. FALSE The premiere of The Rite of Spring went smoothly, much more
smoothly than anyone expected during the challenging rehearsals.
4. TRUE In the ballet, Petrushka seems to be a bewitched puppet, but he
suffers grief and a broken heart through his mistreatment.
5. FALSE The composers in the group known as the Might Handfull or Mighty
Five were trained exclusively in music, experiencing little outside of music.
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6. FALSE Chekov plays are famous for their intense action which leaves
audiences breathless.
7. TRUE The first government after the February Revolution in 1917 failed, in
part, because of its inability to take decisive action.
8. FALSE Lenin understood it was would be a mistake to take Russia out of
World War I.
9. TRUE The great pianist Rachmaninov recognized he could not remain in a
Russia run by Bolsheviks.
10. FALSE The composer Rimsky-Korsakov, famous for his music about the
sea, never actually saw the ocean.
11. TRUE Events like the official Romanov Tercentennial showed how
unaware the tsars were of their precarious situation.
12. FALSE Marc Chagall avoided bold colors and traditional images in his
paintings.
13. FALSE The Bolsheviks were sympathetic to the plight of the arrested
Romanov family and helped them escape to London.
14. FALSE In Chekov plays, everyone in the city wants to escape to the
countryside, to the beauties of the estates.
15. FALSE Pushkin’s talent went largely unnoticed until he was well into his
20s.
Extra Bonus Points (1 each/ 2 pts)
a. TRUE If you had to pick one Russian realist painter to gain insight into
Russian history, culture, and art in the 2nd half of the 19th century, a good
choice would be Ilya Repin.
b. FALSE Tsar Nicholas I responded to the incident known as the Decembrist
Uprising by instigating a series of democratic and socially liberal reforms.
III. Chronological Order via Multiple Choice (1 pt. each / 5 pts. = 1 ex.
cr.)
Choose which is the correct order for these people or events:
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1.
a. Bloody Sunday, Execution of Lenin’s brother Alexander, Bolshevik
Revolution
b. Execution of Lenin’s Brother, Bolshevik Revolution, Bloody Sunday
c. Bolshevik Revolution, Execution of Lenin’s Brother, Bloody Sunday
d. Execution of Lenin’s Brother, Bloody Sunday, Bolshevik
Revolution
2.
a. Peter the Great, Catherine the Great, Alexander I
b. Alexander I, Peter the Great, Catherine the Great
c. Catherine the Great, Peter the Great, Alexander I
d. Peter the Great, Alexander I, Catherine the Great
3.
a. Pushkin, Derzhavin, Tolstoi
b. Derzhavin, Pushkin, Tolstoi
c. Pushkin, Tolstoi, Derzhavin
d. Tolstoi, Pushkin, Derzhavin
4.
a. Abolition of Serfdom, Assassination of Alexander II, Decembrist Revolt
b. Assassination of Alexander II, Decembrist Revolt, Abolition of
Serfdom
c. Decembrist Revolt, Assassination of Alexander II, Abolition of
Serfdom
d. Decembrist Revolt, Abolition of Serfdom, Assassination of
Alexander II
5.
a. Bortniansky, Glinka, Tchaikovsky
b. Glinka, Bortniansky. Tchaikovsky
c. Bortniansky, Tchaikovsky Glinka
d. Glinka, Tchaikovsky, Bortniansky
Extra Bonus Point (1 ea. / 1 pt)
a. Borodino, Sevastopol, Russo-Japanese War
b. Russo-Japanese War, Borodino, Sevastopol
c. Borodino, Sevastopol, Russo-Japanese War
d. Sevastopol, Russo-Japanese War, Borodino
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IV. IDENTIFICATION BY MATCHING (2 points ea. / 40 pts. + 2 ex. cr.)
Please Note: the list of names / events / terms contains extra items that
will be not be used.
Samovar
Old Believers
Izba
Mighty Handful
The Wanderers
Konstantin Stanislavsky
Vaslav Nijinsky
Serfdom
Duma
Anton Chekov
Bloody Sunday
Rasputin
Mikhailovskoe
Alexander Ulyanov
Carlo Rossi
Decembrists
Duma
George Gordon Byron
Dacha
Golden Age
World of Art
Prince Igor
Lev Tolstoi
Slavophiles
Sergei Diaghilev
George D’Anthes
Andrei Voronikhin
Natalia Goncharova
Alexander Benois
Fedor Dostoevsky
Scorched Earth
1. Chekov Russian writer at turn of the 20th century who wrote masterful
dramas set in the Russian countryside and based on everyday events and
human circumstances of the formerly well-off Russian gentry.
2. Decembrists Uprising of upper-class youths who, ill-advisedly and brashly,
violently challenged the authority of the tsar, and then were arrested, either
exiled or executed.
3. Bloody Sunday Uprising that began as a peaceful demonstration of the
people petitioning the tsar and ended up as a massacre.
4. D’Anthes Young French officer who killed Pushkin in a duel.
5. Stanislavsky Developed an innovative approach to teaching actors known
as Method Acting that stresses taking on a role in a psychologically realistic
manner.
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6. Scorched Earth A drastic strategy employed by Muscovites credited with
saving the city from being conquered by the invading Grand Armée of
Napoleon.
7. Mikhalovskoe Estate where Pushkin spent two years in exile, absorbing
the tales and folk wisdom of his nanny.
8. Serfdom System of enslavement that ensnared, disenfranchised, and
impoverished the vast majority of Russian commoners.
9. Wanderers. A group of artists concerned with depicting the “real” Russia
with all of its poverty, injustices, and national problems.
10. World of Art. An organization of avant-garde Russian artists, assembled
and led by one of the world’s most clever and forceful entrepreneurs.
11. Diaghilev He began working in avant-garde art but, eventually, turned to
stage opulent productions of dance, hiring the best and most cutting edge
talent he could find across Europe.
12 Nijinsky Brilliant young dancer who beguiled with his magical roles and
shocked audiences with his difficult, contorted choreography.
13. Golden Age Name given to describe the first half of the 19th-century,
when a strong group of writers and composers like Pushkin, Turgenev, and
Glinka, were making their careers
14. Rasputin Evil-minded who functioned as a “holy man” and ingratiated
himself with the Royal Family, psychologically controlling the Tsarina.
15. Mighty Five Nickname for a group of composers who focused on
expressing more Russian elements of Russian history, literature, folklore, and
tradition, in their music.
16. Duma The Russian equivalent of the a parliament from the verb “to
think.”
17. Izba Traditional Russian hut where every aspect has a superstitious
and/or symbolic meaning.
18. Byron English poet (made a “Lord”) whose romantic verses and image
influenced writers across the Western world in the early 19th century.
19. Tostoi His most famous novel about war is set in Napoleonic times, but
in his old age he was viewed almost as a visionary and philosophical hero.
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20. Prince Igor A significant Medieval poetic epic, it became the basis for an
important opera by one of the Mighty Handful.
Extra Credit Bonus Points (2 pts. each / 6 pts.)
a. Slavophiles. A philosophical movement in 19th-century Russia that
looked inward, towards things native and Russian, for inspiration in
forming the culture and art, rather than towards the European
models.
b. Dacha. A favorite of Russians—a house in the countryside, whether a
shack with tiny garden or something more substantial and nicer.
c. Voronikhin Born a serf, he attained liberation, studied abroad, and
ultimately designed the magnificent Neoclassical Kazan Cathedral in
STrue Petersburg.
V. Short Answer. Identify or define the following in 1-3 sentences (3 pts.
each / 30 pts. + 2 ex. cr. / 6 pts
Remember, the following points are possibilities. No student is
expected to use all of these, and other information, if correct, can
certainly be included.
1 . Evgenii Onegin
 A novel-in-verse by Alexander Pushkin
 His most popular and significant work
 Name of one of the two main characters in the story
 A person who is sophisticated but cold, and not only breaks the heart
of Tatiana, but causes a situation for his friend Lensky that results in a
duel fatal to Lensky.
 Some elements of the story ended up being similar to Pushkin’s own
death.
 An opera by Tchaikovsky, based on Pushkin’s story.
2. banya
 The Russian name for bath
 The Russian tradition of the sauna
 These are important in folk tradition and even modern life.
 One practice involves “beating” people with dried leaves of birch
trees.
 Some people leave the hot sauna and roll in snow or jump in cold
lakes.
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Both for the stoves and the banya, Russians need to store up a lot of
wood.
The banya is more than a way to get clean: it’s a way of life.
3. Repin
 Russian Realist painter in the 2nd half of the 19th century
 Painted across a long life-span
 Chose historical topics
 His paintings of some figures, like Ivan IV clutching his dead, bleeding
son, are the images most people think of when they hear these names.
 Painted poverty, the discrepancy between the powerless and the
powerful.
 Painted many portraits, including Musorgsky, and many of Tolstoi.
 Lived and painted long enough even to pick up the late 19th-century
Impressionist style.
4. Gogol
 Russian writer, particularly of short stories
 Writing during the so-called Golden Age under Alexander I and
Nicholas I
 Stories contain satire and keen observations about the Russian
bureaucratic system.
 Stories are brilliant for their dark humor.
 His stories use wacky, fantastic elements.
 A reserved and private man
 The Overcoat is his most famous and saddest story, wherein a poor
office worker saves for a long time to buy a decent winter coat, and
cruelly loses it.
 A wacky but biting story, The Nose is a spoof on bureaucracy and selfimportance.
5. Nicholas I
 Tsar after Alexander I
 The youngest of 3 grandsons of Catherine the Great
 Became tsar after the next in line, the middle brother Konstantin,
abdicated
 Became tsar right after a bloody and distressing uprising by upperclass soldiers and intellectuals, known as the Decembrist Uprising
 In response to this uprising, became strong-armed, repressive, and
very careful about what was going on among the people
 A real Golden Age of Arts and Literature flourished during his reign.
 Had a slogan of Autocracy, Orthodoxy, and Nationalism
 Reigned for 30 years
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6. Borodino
 Battle that took place 30 minutes outside of Moscow between
Napoleon’s Grand Army (Grand Armée) and Russian troops in 1812, as
French were marching into Moscow
 Terrible loss of life--approx. 250,000 casualties (unheard-of numbers
for the time)
 Russians withdrew, preserving what they could of the army.
 Technically Napoleon & the French troops won, but at great cost.
 The cost in men, supplies, and morals, weakened the “invincible”
French Army.
 In hindsight, it was a bad omen for what was going to happen when
the French reached Moscow as supposed conquerors.
7. Sevastopol
 Most devastating and final battle of the Crimean War
 It was a standoff—a siege that lasted 11 months.
 Russian army was fighting against the Ottomans (Turks).
 The Ottomans were backed by Britain and France, so it became a
bigger (European) war.
 At stake was the question of which territory Russians would occupy,
and whether Russians would have access to the Mediterranean.
 The casualties were more than 100,000 per side.
 The war was an embarrassment to Russia, who ultimately withdrew.
 It’s considered a negative on Nicholas I’s record.
8. Ballets russes
 A company founded by Diaghilev, a connoisseur of art and
entrepreneur
 Talent was gathered from Russia and elsewhere in Europe.
 At first, Diaghilev took Russian opera singers to Paris, but quickly
moved to dance.
 Performances of the Ballet russes were primarily in Paris, also
London, other cities (Monte Carlo).
 They never performed in Russia.
 The most famous dancer was Nijinsky, who became a choreographer
too.
 One of the star composers was Igor Stravinsky.
 Stravinsky’s most famous ballets for the ensemble included Petrushka
and Rite of Spring.
 Rite of Spring was one of the great, all time, scandalous premieres.
 Some of the greatest dancers, costume designers, set designers,
composers of the early 20th century worked for Diaghilev.
 After Bolshevik Revolution, most of them stayed abroad, in exile.
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9. The Bronze Horseman
 A nickname for the famous equestrian statue given by Catherine II
(the Great) to honor Peter I (the Great)
 A symbol of St. Petersburg and Peter the Great’s achievements
 A poem by Pushkin
 In the poem, a poor citizen loses his darling, his hopes and dreams,
and blames Peter for founding the city in a dangerous flood area.
 The statue comes “alive” and pursues him (perhaps he’s gone mad).
 The grandeur of the statue contrasts sharply with the eerie sadness of
the poem. (Pushkin was a genius in this respect.)
10. Ipatiev House
 Ill-fated house (it has been torn down)
 Known as a house where the Romanov family (Nicholas, Alexandra,
daughters, son, staff) were kept in 1918.
 They were brought to cellar in the middle of the night, supposedly to
be prepared to move to a “safer” place.
 There were brutally murdered there in awful mass murder.
 The process and aftermath of the murders were hideous.
 The idea that one or more of the children, Anastasia primarily,
escaped, has been believed by many people, although seemingly
disproven lately by DNA testing.
Bonus Points 2 extra credit = 6 pts
a. Paul I
 Catherine the Great’s ill-fated legitimate son
 He waited many years to begin his reign.
 Reigned only five years before being assassinated.
 He was not loved or well-treated by his mother.
 His one life success was his marriage to Maria Fedorovna.
 Together they built palaces and studied design and architecture.
 Valued very different things than his mother
 Worked to undo his mother’s achievements.
 He was paranoid, and built an unattractive palace so as to feel safe in
St. Petersburg (Mikhailovskoe Fortress).
 He was ultimately smothered inside that very fortress.
 Had three sons, two of whom would become tsars.
 The eldest son, Alexander I, would always feel guilt for his father’s
death, even though not at fault.
b. “Tatiana”
 One of two main characters in Pushkin’s Evgenii Onegin
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



She is a romantic, and dreams of someone to take her to a more
interesting life.
Dares to write a confessional letter, risking social humiliation
Survives the awful event of the duel between Onegin and Lensky
Marries “wisely” an older, wealthy, well-placed man, becomes an
esteemed woman of society.
When fate brings Onegin back into her life, she chooses a noble path, a
path of honor, despite her emotions.
Even though a made-up literary character, Tatiana is an important
symbol to Russians, and seems very real.
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