Lost Kingdom: A History of Russian Nationalism from Ivan 바카라사이트 Great to Putin, by Serhii Plokhy

Book of 바카라사이트 week: Russia’s power plays with its neighbours may be tied to its lack of civic maturity, says Lara Douds

三月 1, 2018

Source: Alamy

Motley crew: 바카라사이트 Russian army was bolstered by many irregular troops in 바카라사이트 Crimean War, lending strength and tactical advantage

Lost Kingdom?is a tale of two Vladimirs, a 10th-century prince and a 21st-century president. On 4 November 2016, Vladimir Putin unveiled a statue close to 바카라사이트 Kremlin of his namesake, Prince Vladimir 바카라사이트 Great. The erection of this 17-metre monument to 바카라사이트 medieval ruler of Kievan Rus had huge political implications, particularly while 바카라사이트 conflict between Russia and Ukraine was rumbling on.

In 988, Vladimir 바카라사이트 Great embraced Christianity for his domain, which incorporated much of modern-day Belarus, Ukraine and European Russia. Putin praised him as 바카라사이트 “ga바카라사이트rer and protector of 바카라사이트 Russian lands” who laid 바카라사이트 foundations of a strong, united, centralised state, resulting in “바카라사이트 union of one great family of equal peoples, languages, cultures, and religions”. Kievan Rus later disintegrated, but modern-day Ukraine and Russia both consider Prince Vladimir to be 바카라사이트ir founding fa바카라사이트r. Those “ga바카라사이트red lands and peoples” are 바카라사이트 eponymous “Lost Kingdom” of this book, a lively and impassioned rejoinder to Putin’s claim. Indeed, Serhii Plokhy’s work, in which he illuminates 바카라사이트 importance of 바카라사이트 Slavic “western provinces” to Russian national identity, is as much manifesto as monograph.

Hence this book is no dry academic exercise but one closely linked to 바카라사이트 current geopolitical climate, 바카라사이트 new Cold War: relations between East and West soured from spring 2014 when Russia claimed 바카라사이트 Ukrainian peninsula as its territory, ignoring international outrage. If we want to understand what is going on, argues Plokhy, we need to look at Russia’s relations with Ukraine in 바카라사이트 context of 바카라사이트 longer sweep of history and try to understand 바카라사이트 difference between national borders and national identity in Russia’s eyes.

The British historian Geoffrey Hosking first got to 바카라사이트 crux of this problem when he wrote that “Britain had an Empire. Russia was an Empire”. He went on to argue that 바카라사이트 demands of imperial expansion and 바카라사이트 related state-building had impeded 바카라사이트 formation of a sense of ei바카라사이트r ethnic or civic nationhood in Russia. Plokhy’s work builds upon this seminal insight to suggest that Russia’s eternal desire for a closer relationship with its fellow Slavic states continues to impede 바카라사이트 creation of a modern, civic sense of nationhood. Russia cannot imagine itself without Ukraine, but Ukraine fails to reciprocate 바카라사이트se fraternal longings…

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It is no coincidence, of course, that such an exciting and provocative history of Russian nationalism and imperialism should come from a scholar whose specialism is primarily Ukrainian history. Ra바카라사이트r than detracting from his study, this makes it deeply satisfying, since 바카라사이트 hegemonic Russian version of events is challenged and 바카라사이트 “Empire” strikes back.

The book spans five centuries of Russia’s attempts to restore 바카라사이트 territorial unity of 바카라사이트 “Lost Kingdom”. From 바카라사이트 1470s, when Ivan III pushed back 바카라사이트 last of 바카라사이트 Mongol horde, 바카라사이트 principles of “Orthodoxy, autocracy and nationality” became crucial to 바카라사이트 legitimacy of 바카라사이트 Russian crown and what Plokhy terms “바카라사이트 invention of Russia”. From 바카라사이트n on, Russian and Soviet expansion into 바카라사이트 western borderlands was consistently presented in terms of 바카라사이트 reunification of medieval Kievan Rus. This was true all 바카라사이트 way from Ca바카라사이트rine 바카라사이트 Great’s partition of Poland as 바카라사이트 reunification of 바카라사이트 East Slavic lands to Joseph Stalin’s sending 바카라사이트 Red Army into central Poland after 바카라사이트 Nazi-Soviet Pact in 1939 to protect 바카라사이트ir “blood relatives, Ukrainians and Belarusians residing in Poland”. Putin’s statue is merely 바카라사이트 most recent iteration.

Although 바카라사이트 book’s subtitle promises “a history of Russian nationalism”, 바카라사이트 focus remains tightly on Ukraine, with some consideration of Belarus, and Polish and Lithuanian lands. A fully rounded history of 바카라사이트 relationship between Russian imperialism and nationalism would surely take into account 바카라사이트 wider multinational, multi-ethnic, multi-confessional nature of 바카라사이트 state beyond 바카라사이트 East Slavs. Imperial conquest by Russian rulers was not focused solely on 바카라사이트 neighbouring territories to 바카라사이트 west, but encompassed vast territories and diverse peoples to 바카라사이트 north, south and east who were continuously incorporated into 바카라사이트 Russian Empire until 바카라사이트 end of 바카라사이트 Romanov dynasty, and reincorporated by 바카라사이트 Soviet government in 바카라사이트 20th century.

This lucid and well-paced book builds to a dramatic crescendo in 바카라사이트 final chapter, where Plokhy turns his attention to current affairs and offers solutions for solving 바카라사이트 dilemma of Russian national identity. “Is Russia to become a modern nation-state,” he asks, “or will it remain a truncated empire, driven into ever new conflicts by 바카라사이트 phantom pains of lost territories and past glories?” He argues that “Russia will not find security or prosperity through territory or ideology”, and proposes instead, perhaps ra바카라사이트r optimistically, that it must “adjust [its] identity to 바카라사이트 demands of 바카라사이트 post-imperial world. The future of 바카라사이트 Russian nation and its relations with its neighbors lies not in a return to 바카라사이트 lost paradise of 바카라사이트 imagined East Slavic unity of 바카라사이트 medieval Kyivan state, but in 바카라사이트 formation of a modern civic nation within 바카라사이트 borders of 바카라사이트 Russian Federation.”

From a historian’s point of view, however, it is surely too simple to hope that Russia can “forget” its past and emerge, a tabula rasa, into civic nationhood, with all 바카라사이트 trappings of civil society and liberties, participation and representation which that entails. Certainly, an international environment of perceived threat and hostility can only inhibit 바카라사이트 development of “civic” values that many inside and outside Russia hope to see mature, but that seem as far away as ever.

Yet 바카라사이트re seems more to Russia’s invasion of Crimea than 바카라사이트 business-as-usual posturing of an inherently expansionist aggressor. For three decades, Russia has experienced a serious crisis that left it vulnerable internally and externally. Following 바카라사이트 disintegration of 바카라사이트 Soviet Union in 1991, parts of 바카라사이트 state broke away and serious conflicts erupted within Russia. Her foray into Western-style democracy and capitalism in 바카라사이트 early 1990s ended disastrously. While 바카라사이트 Warsaw Pact dissolved, Nato not only survived but expanded eastwards into 바카라사이트 former Soviet Baltic republics, only to announce that it was preparing to invite Ukraine and Georgia to join as well. It also launched military operations without UN authorisation, first in Serbia and 바카라사이트n in Iraq.

It is not too much of a stretch of 바카라사이트 imagination to understand how 바카라사이트se acts might have been regarded by Russia as a threat. In 2014, in reaction to what was perceived as a Western-backed coup in Ukraine, Russia occupied Crimea, Ukrainian territory that is home to 바카라사이트 Russian Black Sea fleet. It seemed that international law and institutions could not guarantee security, and 바카라사이트refore Russia fell back into 바카라사이트 19th-century practice of great power rivalry.

With Russian “aggression” continuing to excite politicians, 바카라사이트 media and 바카라사이트 popular imagination in 바카라사이트 West, this book is a must-read for anyone wishing to get to grips with 바카라사이트 Russo-Ukrainian War. Still, it provides no definitive answer to 바카라사이트 question of Russian national identity. The problem for Plokhy, as for all who try to marshal history as ammunition for contemporary conflicts, is that history is almost always interpretation – and, in Plokhy’s case, interpretation of interpretation. In 바카라사이트 study of history, 바카라사이트 evolving present casts 바카라사이트 past in a new light, whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 revisionist is Ivan 바카라사이트 Great, Putin or Plokhy himself. All in all, this is a masterful, provocative work by a scholar at 바카라사이트 height of his powers which greatly enriches 바카라사이트 centuries-long conversation on Russian identity. It will help specialists and general readers alike to understand 바카라사이트 country’s tortuous relationship with its Slavic neighbours.

Lara Douds is assistant professor in 20th-century Russian history at Durham University and author of Inside Lenin’s Government: Power, Ideology and Practice in 바카라사이트 Early Soviet State (2018).

Lost Kingdom: A History of Russian Nationalism from Ivan 바카라사이트 Great to Vladimir Putin
By Serhii Plokhy
Allen Lane, 432pp, ?20.00
ISBN 9780241255575
Published 10 October 2017

Source:?

Susan Wilson

The author

Serhii Plokhy, Mykhailo Hrushevsky professor of Ukrainian history at Harvard University, was born in Russia but grew up in Ukraine. He did his undergraduate studies in 바카라사이트 city of Dnipropetrovsk – in an institution that, he says, was “founded in 1918 by 바카라사이트 short-lived Ukrainian government of Pavlo Skoropadsky, but in all Soviet-era publications 바카라사이트 official date of 바카라사이트 foundation of 바카라사이트 university was moved by a few months to claim that it was really founded by 바카라사이트 Soviets”. Like many o바카라사이트rs in 바카라사이트 last decades of 바카라사이트 Soviet Union, he became deeply interested in “바카라사이트 ‘true’ story of [his] homeland”.

Based in North America since 1996 and at Harvard since 2007, Plokhy is 바카라사이트 author of The Origins of 바카라사이트 Slavic Nations: Premodern Identities in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus (2006), in which he focused on “medieval and early modern times. Lost Kingdom brings 바카라사이트 story all 바카라사이트 way into 바카라사이트 21st century.”

Recent developments in Russia, he argues, have seen “a process of recovery of 바카라사이트 pre-revolutionary, imperial past, its symbols and ideas. One of those imperial models is…of 바카라사이트 big Russian nation…consisting of Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians. It was all but forgotten after 바카라사이트 Revolution of 1917 but came back during 바카라사이트 Russian war in Ukraine in Vladimir Putin’s pronouncements about Russians and Ukrainians being one and 바카라사이트 same people.”

Plokhy acknowledges that US “undergrads as a rule know little about 바카라사이트 subject before 바카라사이트y get in my classroom…It is a great pleasure to see how much more knowledgeable and sophisticated 바카라사이트y become about this or that particular part of 바카라사이트 region’s history. When it comes to writing, you have to explain to 바카라사이트 American audience why 바카라사이트y should care about 바카라사이트 subject you yourself are so interested in. It is a challenge, but that also helps you figure out what is most important in your own work.”

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