1991 Soviet Coup Attempt Fails After Four Days
In August 1991, a group of Soviet high-ranking officials attempted a coup to overthrow President Mikhail Gorbachev and prevent the signing of a new union treaty, leading to a four-day standoff in Moscow that ended with the collapse of the coup and the eventual dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Consensus
- The State Committee on the Emergency Situation (GKChP) was formed in August 1991 by high-ranking Soviet officials.
- The coup aimed to remove President Mikhail Gorbachev from power.
- Gorbachev was isolated at his dacha in Foros, Crimea.
- A state of emergency was declared in the USSR on August 18, 1991.
- Military forces, including tanks, were deployed in Moscow.
- Boris Yeltsin emerged as a key opposition figure and opposed the coup.
- The coup lasted from August 18 to August 21, 1991.
- The coup was declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Oversight Committee of the USSR.
- The coup failed and the participants were later arrested.
- The events are known as the 'August Putsch'.
Points of divergence
- The GKChP included the Vice President of the USSR, Gennadiy Yanayev, Prime Minister Valentin Pavlov, First Deputy Chairman of the Defense Council Oleg Baklanov, Minister of Defense Dmitry Yazov, Minister of Internal Affairs Boris Pugo, Chairman of the KGB Vladimir Kryuchkov, Chairman of the Peasant Union Vasily Starodubtsev, and Chairman of the Association of State Enterprises Alexander Tizyakov. — fontanka
- The GKChP consisted of high-ranking officials who de facto claimed full power in the country. — vm
- Boris Pugo committed suicide on August 22, 1991. — vm
- On August 18, the military commander Dmitry Yazov ordered the airborne troops to combat readiness. — fontanka
- On August 19, the TV channels broadcast the ballet 'Swan Lake' throughout the day. — vm
- The GKChP was dissolved on August 21, 1991. — vm
- On August 19, the KGB ordered the arrest of Boris Yeltsin, and the Alpha special forces moved toward his home but did not act. — fontanka
- The coup was officially labeled a 'state coup' after its failure. — vm
- All former GKChP members were released under a non-exit bond from June 1992 to January 1993. — vm
- The trial began in April 1993, and on February 23, 1994, the State Duma granted amnesty to the defendants despite Yeltsin's objections. — vm
- General V.I. Varenikov refused to accept the amnesty. — vm
Coverage (2 sources)
- Protection of freedom or fatal mistake? The winners of the August Coup — on what they did in 1991 and whether they regret it 35 years later — Фонтанка
- «Contract Match» of Gorbachev and Yeltsin: who really destroyed the Soviet Union — Вечерняя Москва
Key entities
- Soviet Union
- USSR
- Moscow
- State Committee for the Defense of the Constitutional Order
- Yeltsin
- Gorbachev
- MSK1.RU