Russia - People & Empire: People and Empire, 1552-1917, Enlarged Edition - Softcover

Hosking, Geoffrey

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0674781198 ISBN 13: 9780674781191

Publisher: Harvard University Press, 1998

Synopsis

People and Empire, 1552-1917, Enlarged Edition

About this title

Review:

The publication of this book... invites us to do nothing less than rethink Russian history. In a sweeping yet meticulously argued reinterpretation of the past five centuries, Hosking shows the ways in which the Russian state's policy of empire-building has impeded the creation of a Russian nation, leaving today's Russians uncertain about what being Russian actually means. It thus goes a significant step beyond the commonplace according to which Russia's current troubles stem from the lack of a democratic tradition: democracy requires a sense of self, Hosking maintains, and Russia cannot fully embrace democracy without developing a viable ethnic and civil identity.

ƯA¨ "tour de force" from a foremost practitioner of Russian history...Hosking offers an innovative reinterpretation of Russian imperial history.

ƯA¨ brilliant dual study of Russia's people and empire under the Tsars...an elegantly written, humane and rigorous work of empirical history, with considerable relevance to the problems of what, in light of the author's arguments, we should optimistically call another emergent nation. -- Michael Burleigh "Independent on Sunday"

ƯAn¨ impressive book...There are more resonances for today's Russia in these pages than in all the archive-spilling that has characterized so much post-Soviet publishing...It is unlikely that a clearer, more stimulating account of the Russians' extraordinary period of imperial history will be written. -- Philip Marsden "The Spectator"

The well-regarded Hosking...has applied his nearly encyclopedic knowledge of Russia's past to the question of how and why the Russians never developed a sense of nation. He argues that the Russian monarchy and aristocracy were always more interested in building an expansive empire than in promoting the belief in nationhood...Hosking has brought a powerful intellect and great erudition to this work, which is a sophisticated blend of narrative and analysis.

[A] tour de force from a foremost practitioner of Russian history...Hosking offers an innovative reinterpretation of Russian imperial history.

Hosking's book is a > tour de force of historical argument vividly written, courageously argumentative, unafraid to take a stand on the 'accursed question' of Russian identity and destiny.

Russia: People and Empire is the most interesting and authoritative account of Russian imperial history in English. It is a masterful synthesis, intelligent and lucid, passionately argumentative but always fair, which everyone should read who wants to understand the origins of Russia's predicament today.

A valuable reinterpretation of Russian history in the light of the dissolution of the Soviet empire...[Hosking's] theme is that the building of the empire obstructed the flowering of the nation and is more fundamental in explaining what happened than either autocracy or the backwardness of the country...[A] thoughtful, often penetrating review of a complex and important perspective.

[A] "tour de force" from a foremost practitioner of Russian history...Hosking offers an innovative reinterpretation of Russian imperial history.

From the Back Cover:

“[A] brilliant dual study of Russia’s people and empire under the Tsars ... an elegantly written, humane and rigorous work of empirical history.”
MICHAEL BURLEIGH, 'Independent on Sunday'

“Geoffrey Hosking’s 'History of the Soviet Union' remains the standard text on the subject. With this more ambitious book, he can put in a claim to the previous 350 years as well. It is unlikely that a clearer, more stimulating account of the Russians’ extraordinary period of imperial history will be written.”
PHILIP MARSDEN, 'Spectator'

“[Geoffrey Hosking’s] excellent new book is a fine starting point for anyone who wishes to grasp the uneasy relationship between empire, state and nation in Russian history. This is a serious and thoughtful book on a difficult subject, but it is so well written and so clear in its explanations of Russia’s past that it can safely be recommended to readers who know nothing about Tsarist history.”
DOMINIC LIEVEN, 'Sunday Telegraph'

“[Hosking’s] knowledge of religion is his greatest strength, and he puts it at the centre of his argument. I have never read a better explanation of why Orthodoxy failed to integrate the Russian nation ... 'Russia: People and Empire' is the most interesting and authoritative account of Russian imperial history in English. It is a masterful synthesis, intelligent and lucid, passionately argumentative, but always fair, which should be read by everyone who wants to understand the origins of Russia’s predicament today.”
ORLANDO FIGES, 'The Times'

“Hosking’s book is a 'tour de force' of historical argument, vividly written, courageously argumentative, unafraid to take on “accursed questions” of Russian identity and destiny.”
MICHAEL IGNATIEFF, 'Observer'

About this edition

• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0674781198
• ISBN 13: 9780674781191
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 570