Rossiiskaia istoriia
“Rossiiskaia Istoriia” (“Russian History”) is the most famous academic bimonthly periodical devoted to the history of Russia, the USSR and the Russian Federation, the leading national scientific journal publishing materials on history, historiography and historical research methods, published since March 1957. The journal was called “History of the USSR” until 1992, and in 1992—2008. — “National history”. For a long time it was the only Russian scientific periodical devoted entirely to the history of Russia in its various aspects.
The journal covers all fields in study of the Russian historical process from antiquity to the present times, encourages interdisciplinary and comparative approaches. The priority of the journal is the publication of original materials based on the new introduced sources and scientific works taking into account the latest domestic and foreign historiography. The journal also pays great attention to the professional discussion of new scientific publications (monographs, collections of articles and academic publications of sources), which is carried out both in the format of reviews (the criticism and bibliography section is the largest among Russian historical periodicals) and in the section “Dialogue about the book”.
“Russian History” is an indispensable source of information for all scholars of Russian History from ancient times to the present day. It is also a unique and universally recognized scientific and informational tool for the interaction of various categories of Russian scholars: academic researchers, employees of higher schools, local lore experts, museum workers, lovers of antiquity, and others. Among the authors are well-known domestic and foreign historians of different generations and political views, as well as young scholars, whose creative aspirations the magazine seeks to promote.
Media registration certificate: ПИ № ФС 77 – 82151 от 18.10.2021
Edição corrente
Nº 6 (2025)
The Russian elite
Children in the families of the Russian elite of the second half of the XVI – early XVII centuries (according to church memorial documentation)
Resumo
The article is devoted to establishing the exact number of children in the families of the Moscow elite in the second half of the XVI—early XVII centuries. It was revealed that there were 41 marriages for 22 men, of which 5 ended in divorce. Half of all men (11) were married two or more times. Of the 41 marriages, 13 were childless, while the remaining 28 accounted for 113 children. Of these, 83 (73,4%) died or perished in infancy and childhood. The reasons for such a high mortality rate are related, among others, to disgraces under Ivan the Terrible, on the eve of and during the Time of Troubles. These factors (as well as divorces) reduced the number of children born and the potential for children. However, external influences were not the main ones. A huge percentage of child mortality was in quite prosperous Godunov families. Obviously, the catastrophically high infant mortality rate was one of the reasons for the extinction of many clans of the Moscow aristocracy
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):3-22
3-22
The historian and the sourse
Sophia Palaiologina in „Russian History” by V. Tatishchev
Resumo
Tatishchev's information about the demarche of Sophia Palaiologina, which prompted Ivan III to end the Horde dependence, has no support in the sources and stems from Tatishchev's overestimation of Sophia's political role. Under the influence of his anticlerical views, Tatishchev kept silent about «The Epistle to the Ugra» by Vassian of Rostov and attributed the calls in this epistle to Sophia Palaiologina. In the draft versions of his "Russian History", changes in the succession to the throne and the distribution of appanages were associated with her influence. The historiographer's story about the participation of one of the Tatishchevs in the wedding embassy for Sophia to Rome is fictional.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):23-35
23-35
Scenarios and episodes
Educational qualifications and the replacement of certificates by officials at Moscow University in the 1810s
Resumo
This article explores the status of civil servants following the approval of the decree on rank examinations on August 6, 1809. Historically, this law has been seen as the implementation of the intention to introduce educational qualifications in the civil service, as announced in 1803 in the «Preliminary regulation for public education». However, in reality, the service levels that required a certain level of education after 1809 differed significantly from the plans of six years earlier. As a result, even officials with university degrees were affected by the educational qualifications, especially those who had lost their certificates of completion. By examining archival documents, this article delves into the circumstances surrounding the restoration of lost certificates at Moscow University and the potential for using these documents for promotion under the decree on rank examinations. Cases are identified in which individuals who had never attended university were able to obtain certificates that met the educational qualifications for promotion.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):36-56
36-56
Rus&world
Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich and the «three Athos»
Resumo
This article examines the attention and support of representatives of the Russian Imperial House toward the «three Athos» (the Russian St. Panteleimon Monastery on Mount Athos, the New Athos Monastery of Simon the Canaanite, and the «Russian Athos» in Crimea). It demonstrates that Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolaevich played a key role in this regard. He became the first august pilgrim to the Holy Mountain, the Holy Land, and New Athos, contributed greatly to strengthening Russia's influence in the Middle East, and also showed interest in and supported the establishment of a domestic center for hermitage in Crimea. Many of his initiatives were supported by other members of the imperial family. All of this not only contributed to the development and prosperity of the monasteries (increasing their influence and authority, attracting pilgrims, and increasing the flow of donations) but also helped resolve a number of church and state issues. The Russian Athonite St. Panteleimon Monastery became one of the strongholds of Russian church policy in the Balkans and the Middle East, and the two «Athos» in the south of the Russian Empire, being spiritual and missionary centers, occupied a prominent place in the ecclesiastical, political, and social life of the country.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):57-73
57-73
Dialogue about the book. Yu.A. Pelevin. Alexander Mikhailov and his revolutionary era
75-79
The Movement of revolutionary populists in the monograph by Y.A. Pelevin
Resumo
The review highlights that the author convincingly defined the leadership of A.D. Mikhailov at the final stage of the Earth and Freedom Movement and the active phase of the revolutionary struggle of Narodnaya Volya in the 1879-1880s, and reasonably reconstructed the most important events of the revolutionary narodniks movement. The two-volume monograph by the talented historian Yu.A. Pelevin will take its rightful place among the major works of modern Russian historiography.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):79-84
79-84
«Groundless dreams» or a revolutionary alternative?
Resumo
The article analyzes the book by Yu.A. Pelevin "Alexander Mikhailov and his revolutionary era". The author notes both the undoubted advantages of the work and its inherent disadvantages. Thus, it is noted that the monograph is characterized by accuracy and attention to detail, careful attitude to particulars. It destroys existing stereotypes, mythologems and ideologems. However, along with this, the author's emphasized objectivist approach makes it impossible to create a true portrait of one of the leaders of Narodnaya Volya, as well as to present the diversity of ideological searches of the revolutionaries of the Seventies.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):84-88
84-88
Alexander the Janiter (Dvornik)
Resumo
The article is a review of a two-volume monograph by Yu. A. Pelevin about the revolutionary populist Alexander Mikhailov. The plots from the revolutionary's life described in the work (family atmosphere, initial path to radicalism, propaganda work among the Old Believers) are singled out as having laid the foundation for his personality and then - revolutionary ethics. The researcher's too close attention to the context of the revolutionary movement, pushing the figure of Mikhailov into the background, is criticized. Attention is drawn to Mikhailov's work with the underground agent in the police Kletochnikov, the romantic attachment of the protagonist, the story of his arrest as demonstrating the "human" in him and the position of the organization by the end of 1880 The document "Testament" of Mikhailov is analyzed.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):88-92
88-92
92-95
95-107
Persons and views
Doctor Dubrovin and the State Duma: from hope to boycott
Resumo
The article examines the attitude of the leader of the largest Black Hundred organization of the Russian Empire, the Union of the Russian People, A. I. Dubrovin, to the State Duma. For the first time in historiography, his views on all four convocations of the Duma, the participation of the leader of the Black Hundreds in election campaigns are reconstructed and analyzed in detail, and Dubrovin's assessments of the people's representation are introduced into scientific circulation. It is proved that despite the negative attitude towards the legislative State Duma established as a result of the First Russian Revolution and disappointment with all its convocations, Dubrovin did not deny the need for an elected body capable of conveying the “voice of the people” to the monarch, bypassing bureaucratic obstacles and contributing to the improvement of the people's life.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):108-125
108-125
Dialogue about the book. A.M. Popov. Two steps to the Abyss: intrigues against the Minister of War and the self-destruction of power in Russia 1907–1915
126-131
131-134
V.N. Kokovtsov and V.A. Sukhomlinov
Resumo
The article is devoted to the problem of relations between the Minister of War of the Russian Empire V.A. Sukhomlinov and the Minister of Finance V.N. Kokovtsov in the context of the struggle of departments for influence on Nicholas II. The problem of V.N. Kokovtsov's role in political intrigues against V.A. Sukhomlinov is considered. The relation of P.A. Stolypin and Nicholas II to Sukhomlinov and Kokovtsov is shown. It is concluded that the arguments in modern historiography about Kokovtsov's desire to achieve the political destruction of Sukhomlinov are unconvincing.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):134-138
134-138
Intrigue or politics?
Resumo
A review of A.M. Popov's book "Two Steps to the Abyss: Intrigues against the Minister of War and the Self-Destruction of Power in Russia. 1907-1915" (Moscow, 2023) discusses the study's contribution to the study of the struggle within Russian government circles in the first half of the 1910s. It demonstrates that A.M. Popov thoroughly examined the background and history of the conflict between V.N. Kokovtsov and V.A. Sukhomlinov in 1912, refuting a number of established historiographic notions. However, in other cases, the author's assertions appear questionable.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):138-142
138-142
Another study of a well-studied topic
Resumo
The article is part of a discussion about a recent monograph by A.M. Popov. A critical analysis of this work is given, especially the source and methodological base of the research. It is concluded that, despite a number of serious shortcomings, the work of A.M. Popov makes a definite contribution to the study of the influence of the activities of S.N. Myasoedov and V.A. Sukhomlinov on the political crisis in Russia on the eve and during the World War I and the popularization of the studied topic among a wide readership.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):142-143
142-143
The «dark» sides of interagency cooperation
Resumo
This is a review of the book by A.M. Popov, published in 2023, "Two Steps to the Abyss. Intrigues against the Minister of War and the self-destruction of power in Russia in 1907-1915", which became a significant contribution to the study of the internal politics of the Russian Empire in the early twentieth century.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):144
144
Is the case closed?
Resumo
The review is dedicated to the book by A.M. Popov, published in 2023, «Two Steps to the Abyss. Intrigues against the Minister of War and the self-destruction of power in Russia in 1907-1915». Its main themes are considered: the so-called «Myasoedov Affair», political intrigues against the Minister of War in 1912 and 1915, and the specifics of the functioning of the state apparatus of the Russian Empire in 1907-1915. Special attention is paid to the establishment of a counterintelligence service in Russia.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):145
145
«The Myasoedov Affair» and the peculiarities of Russian constitutional construction at the beginning of the 20th century
Resumo
The article notes that the attempt to fit Myasoedov's case into the broad political and social context of the early XX century is well founded. Indeed, the episode considered by A.M. Popov is interesting not so much in itself as in connection with the political struggle that unfolded around it. At the same time, the author's "myasoedovcentrism" rather prevents us from considering the significant institutional changes that took place in Russia on the eve of 1917. It is not correct to reduce the scandals and conflicts of that time to the intrigues of even very influential people. This is an integral part of the political process, with its own alignment of forces, becoming the rules of the game.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):146-149
146-149
Institutions and communities
The activities of the Petrograd Slavophile society «Slavic Meals» during the First World War
Resumo
The article is devoted to the activities of the Slavic Meals Society, which existed in the capital of the Russian Empire from February 1912 until the February Revolution of 1917. The features of the organization of the group, its social composition, as well as the ideological principles that incorporated Slavophil and pan-Slavic ideas are analyzed. The analysis of the range of issues that were considered by the participants of the "meals" (the construction of projects for the future structure of the Slavic world, the fight against "German dominance", etc.) is carried out. The author concludes that the organization did not directly exert political influence on the emperor, but contributed to the formation of public opinion at court and in society. The subsequent defeats of the Russian army contributed to the crisis of the group and radicalization of its political program.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):150-164
150-164
«Serving the Law»: Society of St. Petersburg Women Lawyers (1913–1917)
Resumo
The article presents the history of the creation and functioning of an association unknown to historians, which formed in St. Petersburg of women with higher legal education shortly before the fall of the Russian Empire. It arose as a feminist one and aimed primarily at winning for Russian women the right to work in the legal sphere, which was prevented by the then govern-ment. Attention is drawn to the leaders and opponents of the organization, and its composition, structure and methods of work are described. The main directions of the association’s activities are studied, which primarily included the struggle for the admission of women to the bar and to serve on juries. Questions about the role of the association in the women’s movement, its iden-tity and identification are considered.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):165-179
165-179
Training of physical education personnel at higher and secondary vocational educational institutions at the turn of the 1920s and 1930s
Resumo
This article examines a range of issues related to the training of physical education personnel in the USSR between the 1920s and 1930s. The relevance of this issue stems from both the recent increased interest in the history of Soviet sports and the paucity of research on the subject. Changes in the system of higher and secondary physical education are linked to general changes in Soviet policy, identifying the challenges faced by the leadership in this area and methods for addressing them. Overall, the reforms yielded positive results: the network of physical education institutions was expanded eightfold, and they received financial support from the state. However, strict regulations on the educational process limited the autonomy of universities and their graduates.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):180-194
180-194
Reviews
195-198
198-209
209-218
Russian and imperial in the second half of the 19th – early 20th century: conflict or unity?
Resumo
This article analyzes new research by M.V. Leskinen, dedicated to the reception of Russianness in culture, social practices, and representations of supreme power in Russia in the second half of the 19th and early 20th centuries. The author argues with M.V. Leskinen regarding the semantic content and interpretations of such receptions, particularly those related to representations of autocracy and the projections of these representations onto public opinion, which was under the influence of increasing social instability.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):219-223
219-223
Reflections of the East and the West in the golden age of caricature
Resumo
In his review of the monograph by A.G. Golikov and I.S. Rybachenok, «Pencil and Pen – Tools of Political Caricature» (Moscow: Pero, 2024, 338 pages), the author emphasizes that this work offers valuable educational potential, providing those studying the history of the press, magazine satire, foreign policy and diplomacy, as well as the problems of visually semantizing the images of «us», «other» and «foreign» with a reliable analytical toolkit. Key historical events, viewed by the authors through the prism of satire, allow not only to reconstruct the political context of the time but also to identify certain patterns in their perception by contemporaries, including journalists. It is noted that the work has educational potential, since attention to caricature helps to acquire intellectual and emotional sensitivity to the visual source as a whole, improving the understanding of the satirical drawing as a carrier of several layers of historical perception.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):224-226
224-226
The historian is at the mercy of history
Resumo
The review analyzes the publication of the "Hungarian diary" by the famous Soviet historian A.L. Sidorov, who was in Budapest in 1956 and witnessed the uprising firsthand. The publication was undertaken by renowned historians V.S. Gruzdinskaya and A.S. Styklin. The conclusion is made about the great value of the published source and the high level of its publication.
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):227-229
227-229
Pro memoria
Vladimir Andreevich Kuchkin (1933–2025)
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):230-232
230-232
Mikhail Viktorovich Khodyakov (1964–2025)
Rossiiskaia istoriia. 2025;(6):233-235
233-235