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S Soviet 1991 coup attempt

History

Dated history of Soviet 1991 coup attempt (19-21 August 1991) in Moscow, Foros (Gorbachev), union republics.

Educational history. Casualty figures are documented ranges. This is not operational advice, a ranking of nations, or a how-to for weapons or coups.

At a glance
Timeline

Milestones in order. This is history, not a weekly activity grid.

1991-06 Yeltsin elected RSFSR president1991-08-20 Union treaty scheduled1991-08-19-am Committee announces1991-08-19 Yeltsin on the tank1991-08-20 Standoff1991-08-21 Three dead; collapse1991-08-22 Gorbachev returns1991-08-24 Gorbachev quits party post1991-12-08 Belovezha1991-12-26 USSR flag down
  1. Yeltsin elected RSFSR president
  2. Union treaty scheduled
  3. Committee announces
  4. Yeltsin on the tank
  5. Standoff
  6. Three dead; collapse
  7. Gorbachev returns
  8. Gorbachev quits party post
  9. Belovezha
  10. USSR flag down
Score intensity

Darker cells mean a higher score for this topic on that metric.

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Quick answers

Are the scores a ranking of nations or armies?

No. Scores are browsing aids inside an era-bounded atlas — not live league tables of countries.

How many died?

Three civilians in Moscow on 21 August are the named dead of the street events. The systemic "death" was the union, not a battlefield.

Who was in the GKChP?

Gennady Yanayev (vice-president), Dmitry Yazov (defence), Vladimir Kryuchkov (KGB), Boris Pugo (interior) and others -- a committee of the centre's last cadres.

What did Yeltsin do?

As RSFSR president he denounced the committee, used the White House as a platform, and became the televised face of resistance. That did not make him the sole cause of failure.

Why did it fail?

Hesitation to use decisive force, elite splits, republic resistance, a public that would not treat the committee as legitimate, and plotters who looked unsure on television. This is analysis of a past failure, not a manual.

Did it end the USSR?

It accelerated an end already underway. Formal dissolution was 26 December 1991.

Start with this section - History

The union treaty calendar is the fuse. Without 20 August on the diary, 19 August is unintelligible.

Baltic independence and the 1991 January violence are the year's preface.

Timeline

  1. Yeltsin elected RSFSR president

    A rival legitimacy in Moscow.

  2. Union treaty scheduled

    The fuse the GKChP named.

  3. Committee announces

    Tanks; Gorbachev "ill."

  4. Yeltsin on the tank

    The photograph of the three days.

  5. Standoff

    Crowds; units hesitate.

  6. Three dead; collapse

    Tunnel incident; committee flees the stage.

  7. Gorbachev returns

    To a different country.

  8. Gorbachev quits party post

    The CPSU unravels.

  9. Belovezha

    Russia, Ukraine, Belarus declare the USSR finished.

  10. USSR flag down

    The legal end in Moscow.

Eras

Perestroika crisis

Reform without a new union consent.

The putsch

GKChP, tanks, White House.

Acceleration

Party banned; republics leave.

Legal end

Belovezha to the lowered flag.

Memory

Yeltsin myth, later Russian revisits.

Milestones

A junta that lasted 72 hours

Duration as the fact.

Union legitimacy wrecked

The centre could not claim emergency successfully.

December follows August

Acceleration, not a solo cause.

Gorbachev's return was not a restoration. December was the sentence August started.

Yeltsin's August credit is real and incomplete as a life verdict.

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