The Last Ditch Attempt to Save the USSR - August Coup of 1991 (Short Animated Documentary)

Summary by Krater

This video details the events of the August 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt against Mikhail Gorbachev, explaining how the State Committee on the Emergency Situation failed due to lack of military backing, widespread protests, and public resistance.

From the video

Answers: What caused the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt to fail?

• August 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt
• Mikhail Gorbachev's reforms
• Boris Yeltsin's rise to power
• Dissolution of the Soviet Union
• Failure of the State Committee on the Emergency Situation

What it concludes

• The 1991 Soviet coup failed primarily because citizens took to the streets and stared down armed soldiers to prevent a return to old politics.
• The coup leaders miscalculated their ability to override the people and their support for changes, dooming the Soviet Union and the Communist Party.
• The failure of the coup and its inability to spark a wider revolutionary conflict led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union within four months.