“Вводя нравы и обычаи Европейские в Европейском народе”: К проблеме адаптации западных идей и практик в Российской империи ред. по А. В. Доронин (review)

410 Рецензии/Reviews Irena VLADIMIRSKY “Вводя нравы и обычаи Евро- пейские в Европейском народе”: К проблеме адаптации западных идей и практик в Российской им- перии / Отв. cост. А. В. Доронин. Москва: “РОССПЭН”, 2008. 255 с. ISBN: 978-5-8243-0996-6. In Moscow, in 2006, the German Historical Institute organized a conference on the transfer and adaptation of Western ideas in Russian eighteenth-century society. The conference participants focused their papers on cross-cultural interaction between the Russian empire and German lands. This book represents a collection of the conference participants’ papers touching upon different aspects of Russian–German contacts in the eighteenth century. Russia became familiar with the ideas of Western enlightenment from the beginning of the “long eighteenth century,” the historical period that began with the reforms of Peter the Great and concluded with the reign of Alexander I. The Russian nobility had begun to open itself toward Western ideas by the end of the seventeenth century, but only the reforms of Peter the Great brought their practical realization and changed all spheres of life in Russian society. While the analysis of Russian– German intellectual contacts and cultural influences has had its ups and downs during the twentieth century , a whole generation of Russian historians has studied the history of the Russian Enlightenment without mentioning the German influence on Russian intellectual life, the history of the RussianAcademy of Sciences and its first universities. One of the outstanding features of this book is its rich bibliography of primary and secondary sources within each paper and its use of numerous archival documents from the Manuscript Department of the Russian National Library, the Russian StateArchive of AncientActs (RGADA), and various private collections. The articles by Сlaus Scharf and Alexander Kamenskii deal with the interpretation of Enlightenment ideas by the Russian ruling elite. Claus Scharf analyzes the development of a “new Russia” concept during the Petrine era. It is worth mentioning that the Russian ruling elite was more interested in practical knowledge and less in the implementation of theories. In understanding the Russian ruling elite, the transfer of theoretical ideas posed a substantial danger to the stability of political power. In Russia every potential political danger and even physical conquest were always associated with the West. On the one hand, Peter the Great himself tried to create this new Russia that was not influenced by the traditional Russian nobility and the 411 Ab Imperio, 3/2010 Orthodox Church, but on the other hand, he was not ready to establish his own political power on Western political ideas. Catherine the Great, while corresponding with Voltaire, was more interested in making a personal impression than in bringing about a practical reorganization of Russian society in line with the ideas that she got from Voltaire and Diderot. During her rule, the social concept of the “common good” was established, which was supposed to become a kind of behavioral norm among the Russian ruling elite and all levels of the administrative apparatus . Nobody dared to properly define the components of this concept : in Russia, the absolute ruler was the object of imitation in habits of thinking, behavior, and decision making. In his essay, Alexander Kamenskii emphasizes the connection between Pugachev’s peasant rebellion (1774–1775) and the need to implement administrative reforms. Catherine ’s reform committees struggled with the dilemma of the enormous geographical space of the Russian empire and the difficulties of administrative management. The number of new cities populated with representatives of the imperial administration and their families increased; this strengthened the stability of power on the borders of Russia and affected the pace of urbanization. The newly established cities began to cultivate the Russian third estate, which was traditionally considered the basis of social stability and cornerstone of civil society. Thus, the balance of administrative power between the center and periphery was reestablished on the foundation of considerable autonomy granted to the peripheral regions. Igor Kurukin centers on the first (and unsuccessful) attempt of the Russian nobility to put limits on absolute power and create a kind of parliamentary monarchy. The absence of a law of succession and of male heirs after the death of Peter the Great in 1724 created favorable grounds for establishing a secret advisory council that would advise and promote laws for common prosperity . The “1730 movement” of the Russian nobility, as Kurukin states, did not represent...