The Gang of 8
A weekend length rebellion
A short and not very sweet rebellion
The Gang of 8 was a counter revolutionary movement that only lasted two days, from August 19, 1991 to August 22, 1991. The State Committee on the State of Emergency, the group's formal name, was composed of 8 high level officials in the Soviet Union's government. This group was part of the Communist Party and did not want to see the fall of the Soviet Russia to democracy. The group tried to take control of Russia by trying to force President Mikhail Gorbachev from signing the new treaty that dispersed much of the power to the republics. The coup fell apart after only 2 days and the seven group members that were still alive were arrested. If the group had succeeded, then we could have seen the Soviet Union carry on as a Communist state for many years to come. Soon after President Gorbachev returned to power, the Soviet Union was dispersed and Russia began to become the modern country it is today.