War and enlightenment in Russia : military culture in the age of Catherine II / Eugene Miakinkov.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Miakinkov, Eugene, 1984- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Catherine II, Empress of Russia, 1729-1796.

Catherine.

Military art and science--Russia--History--18th century.

Military art and science.

Russia.

Russia--History--Catherine II, 1762-1796.

Russia--History, Military--18th century.

Genre:

Military history.

History.

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xiii, 312 pages) : illustrations

Place of Publication:

Toronto, Ontario ; Buffalo ; London : University of Toronto Press, [2020]

Summary:

"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."-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Between Patronage and Education: The Enlightenmentand the Military Proto-Intelligentsia in Catherine's Russia

Favourites and Professionals: Merit, Seniority, and Advancement in Catherine's Military

"We must distinguish the military establishment from other callings": Writers and Ideas of the Russian Military Enlightenment

"Always remember that he is not a peasant, but a soldier": The Enlightenment and the Shaping of Russian Soldiers

"Fantastic forms of folly": Individualism and the Performance of Military Culture

"The gutters of the town were dyed with blood": The Siegeof Izmail, the Russian Military Culture, and the Limits of the Enlightenment at War

"His Majesty recommends to gentlemen-officers to dress betterand not to stutter": Paul I and the Military Enlightenment.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-4875-1820-X

1-4875-1819-6

OCLC:

1137373747