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Book Cover for: War and Enlightenment in Russia: Military Culture in the Age of Catherine II, Eugene Miakinkov

War and Enlightenment in Russia: Military Culture in the Age of Catherine II

Eugene Miakinkov

War and Enlightenment in Russia explores how members of the military during the reign of Catherine II reconciled Enlightenment ideas about the equality and moral worth of all humans with the Russian reality based on serfdom, a world governed by autocracy, absolute respect for authority, and subordination to seniority.


While there is a sizable literature about the impact of the Enlightenment on government, economy, manners, and literature in Russia, no analytical framework that outlines its impact on the military exists. Eugene Miakinkov's research addresses this gap and challenges the assumption that the military was an unadaptable and vertical institution. Using archival sources, military manuals, essays, memoirs, and letters, the author demonstrates how the Russian militaires philosophes operationalized the Enlightenment by turning thought into reality.

Book Details

  • Publisher: University of Toronto Press
  • Publish Date: Jun 16th, 2020
  • Pages: 336
  • Language: English
  • Edition: undefined - undefined
  • Dimensions: 9.30in - 6.30in - 1.10in - 1.40lb
  • EAN: 9781487503543
  • Categories: Russia - GeneralEastern Europe - GeneralMilitary - General

About the Author

Miakinkov, Eugene: - Eugene Miakinkov is a lecturer in the Department of Political and Cultural Studies at Swansea University.

Praise for this book

" War and Enlightenment challenges the dictum about Russian backwardness. Miakinkov helps explain why and how the Russian army won repeatedly in the late eighteenth century. More broadly, the book enhances our appreciation of the cosmopolitan and variegated nature of the Enlightenment."

--Lucien Frary, Rider University, The Journal of Military History

"Serious students of Russian history, the Military Enlightenment, and the influence of Enlightenment thought will find Eugene Miakinkov's new book deserving of their careful reflection. It is a highly instructive contribution to the English-language literature on the army that stymied Frederick the Great and helped defeat Napoleon Bonaparte."

--James McIntyre, Moraine Valley Community College, Michigan War Studies Review
"Provides a much-needed revision to our understanding of the eighteenth-century Russian military."--Tyler Mazda, Ohio State University, H-Net Reviews: H-War

" War and Enlightenment in Russia expands the field of Russian cultural and intellectual history investigating a significant amount of unpublished documents. Eugene Miakinkov creates a multifaceted portrayal of the Russian military, from the training and promotion of lower-ranking officers to the performance of leadership responsibilities."

--Brian Davies, Department of History, University of Texas at San Antonio

" War and Enlightenment in Russia is based on an impressive range of primary sources and will appeal to a wide scholarly readership on European history. It will be of interest not only to Russian history specialists but also to historians of the armed forces, of the nobility, and of the culture of eighteenth-century Europe."

--Janet Hartley, Department of International History, London School of Economics and Political Science

" War and Enlightenment in Russia expands the field of Russian cultural and intellectual history investigating a significant amount of unpublished documents from St. Petersburg's National Library, the State Archive of Ancient Documents, and the State Military Archive. Eugene Miakinkov creates a multifaceted portrayal of the Russian military, from the training and promotion of lower-ranking officers to the performance of leadership responsibilities."

--Colum Leckey, Department of History, Piedmont Virginia Community College