Discover some fun facts about Russia

Discover some fun facts about Russia and learn a little about the country. Enjoy our flag printables and a collection of colouring pages and printables featuring some of Russia's most famous landmarks, and some new map worksheets.

Red Square in Moscow

Fun Facts about Russia

Geography:

• Russia is the world's largest country covering a seventh of the world's land. It extends so far that Vladivostok in the east is seven hours ahead of Moscow.
• The Urals Mountains range runs for 1600 miles from the Arctic Ocean to Kazakhstan, dividing the country between Europe and Asia.
• Steppes are grassless plains in Southern Russia and Ukraine were once home to the cossack horsemen.
• Russia has the most forests of any country. They are called taiga.
• In northern Siberia the tundra is a cold treeless area.
• Lake Baikal in Siberia is the deepest freshwater lake in the world and contains an amazing 20% of all the world's supply of drinkable water.
• Russia is rich in natural resources such as timber, natural gas and oil.
• Over 18,000 wild bears live in the wild Kamchatka region in the east! They are fond of eating salmon.

You can print this map, showing Russia's position within Europe, here

History:

• The Rus came from the Baltic and created an empire called Kievan Rus in the 9th century. The name Rus is Norse for "men who row".
• By the 13th century, Moscow was a trading post which became the capital of Muscovy. Now Moscow, the capital of Russia, is a thriving metropolis of 11 million people. Visitors head for Red Square, which contains Lenin's Tomb, the Kremlin Palace and St Basil's Cathedral.
• From 1613 until 1919 Russia was ruled by the Romanovs. The leader was called the Tsar, from the Roman name Caesar.
• The Russian Revolution in 1917 replaced the aristocracy with a communist state. From 1919 -1991 Russia was part of the USSR.
• St Petersburg, named after Peter The Great who made the city his capital in 1712, contains many beautiful palaces.

Celebrating Russia:

• Tourists can experience Russian culture at the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow and the Hermitage museum, in the Winter Palace, in St Petersburg.
• There are many famous creative Russians such as authors Chekov, Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy and composer Tchaikovsky, who wrote The Nutcracker Suite.
• Sochi, on the Black Sea, was the venue for the XXII Winter Olympics in 2014. It is the longest city in the world as it stretches for 145 kilometres along the coast.
• Russia will host the Fifa World Cup in 2018.
• Russians enjoy eating caviar or fish eggs, served on little pancakes called 'blini', topped with sour cream. It is very expensive.
• Borscht, a hearty soup made from beetroot, is very popular during the cold winter, although it was originally from the Ukraine.