OOC: A Brief History of Russia
Sometimes, it is very difficult to reconcile the history of a country with their persona, and nowhere is this more difficult than with Russia. Granted, it’s because he tends to be mad as a hatter, but there’s a lot going on beneath that fine stepford smile of his. His madness began long before any revolution, back when he was a young, new country. Even then, he was bigger than most others ever would be, and he was routinely invaded by the Tartars, who demanded tribute. Ivan the III, or Ivan the Great as he became known, was Russia’s very first Tsar, and he drove the Tartars out. Russia was never successfully invaded again. Why, you might ask?
Because according to Hetalia, Russia sought a pact with General Winter when the invaders were first repelled. The terms of the contract were very simple: in exchange for an unnamed sacrifice, General Winter would prevent anyone else from taking over Russia ever again. Russia, being young, large, and alone, agreed with this. And General Winter lived up to the bargain, repelling everyone from Napoleon to the Turks from getting much farther than Moscow. And Russia lived up to his end of the bargain, because his winters were so cold and terrible that it started to rub off on him.
He wanted allies, real ones, so he began to latch onto the Baltic states as he expanded his empire to larger and larger heights. He was always rather alone because of his size, so whenever he had a new ally, he’d cling to them and never quite let go. Afraid of rebellion and even more bloodshed, he’d shout at them and force them to do what he said. He’d been left alone in winter for far too long, so he desired the warmth of friends. Of all the Baltics, he held onto Lithuania the hardest, but still he tried to be kind. He was so unused to friendship that he mistook blind obedience for it, and that suited him fine. Russia did whatever he thought would make his friends happy, to make his friends love him, but he’d never, ever let them leave.
This is why Bloody Sunday and the 1905 revolt hit him harder than a pipe to the skull. Because on top of his own people decided they wanted no further part of his kindness, Lithuania tried to leave him. Russia decided, right about here, that if they didn’t want to stay out of friendship, then they could stay out of fear. However, in a last ditch attempt to make it work; he did make some last second concessions and offers and bribes. In a desperate attempt to get someone, anyone to stay with him. In order to try, just one more time, to get it right. Lithuania took them all, and Russia was able to hold on to some vestige of sanity for a few more years.
But it was a stall at best, and when the revolution came around again in 1917, there was no amount of concessions or pleas could stop it. This time, everything he worked so hard to build came tumbling down. This time, the Tsar was murdered in a bid to hold on to power by the Bolsheviks. This time, Russia was glad to get rid of them, if it meant a chance of gaining more and more territory. And clearly, his new government was much, much better than the last one. So, clearly, he had to spread it to all his friends, and further than that, until everyone was one with him and then he’d never, ever be alone again. He wouldn’t let it. True, some of his friends, especially Lithuania, managed to leave during the ensuing civil war and chaos, but they’d be back. And once they came back, they’d never leave.
So, to review: Russia is a possessive, terrifying, often cold, and definitely traumatized nation. He never seems to have grown up from the childlike state he made the pact with General Winter in. He thinks water comes out of the pipe regardless where the pipe is attached. He doesn’t seem to realize that he’s crossed the boundary line between kindness and fear. He drops countless lines about trying to take over the world because he honestly seems to think that they’d *want* to be with him. He’s become sadistic and cruel because that’s the only thing he knows how to do. On the flip side, he is clearly, clearly unused to genuine kindness from anyone because the very concept is alien to him. He’s always expecting a catch or a trick or a lie, so it’s very hard for him to trust people. Once he does, he clings, and the cycle of abuse starts again.
And sometimes, most cruelly of all, beneath the layers and layers of craziness and horror, if you know him well enough, you can catch a glimpse of the naïve, large boy he used to be. Chances are if it involves summer or sunflowers, he’d revert back to the strong, bold, more innocent person he used to be before he lost it all. But it’s only temporary, because as Russia’s learned all too well, nothing gold can stay.