History ignoramus here, but from that map it doesn’t exactly look like they conquered “Russia” per se, if most of Siberia and the northwestern part is left out
Most of Siberia was only colonized in the 17th and 18th centuries. Even then, it was (and to some degree, still is) a peripheral region of Russia - most of the population (80%) is in European Russia.
Siberia also isn’t where Napoleon or Hitler were stopped at.
It’s a bit like conquering Canada or Saudi Arabia. Most of the country is empty wilderness of little consequence. All the important stuff is concentrated in certain areas, so holding 10,000 square miles in the core is worth more than holding 10,000,000 square miles of empty wilderness.
History ignoramus here, but from that map it doesn’t exactly look like they conquered “Russia” per se, if most of Siberia and the northwestern part is left out
Most of Siberia was only colonized in the 17th and 18th centuries. Even then, it was (and to some degree, still is) a peripheral region of Russia - most of the population (80%) is in European Russia.
Siberia also isn’t where Napoleon or Hitler were stopped at.
It’s a bit like conquering Canada or Saudi Arabia. Most of the country is empty wilderness of little consequence. All the important stuff is concentrated in certain areas, so holding 10,000 square miles in the core is worth more than holding 10,000,000 square miles of empty wilderness.