Naumenko O.N., Abdrimov R., Makhmudov U.B. (Urgench). Shamanic Initiation Idols from Museum Collections as a Historical Source

OLGA NIKOLAEVNA NAUMENKO

Professor of the Department of History of UII, Doctor of Historical Sciences,

Professor

Urgench Innovation University (UII),

220100, Gurlan street, 2, Urgench, Khorezm region, Uzbekistan

e-mail: info@uriu.uz

RAZZOKBERDI ABDIRIMOV

Associate Professor of the Department of History History of UII,

Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor

Urgench Innovation University (UII),

220100, Gurlan street, 2, Urgench, Khorezm region, Uzbekistan

e-mail: info@uriu.uz

UMRBEK BAXTIYAROVICH MAKHMUDOV

Head of the Department of History and Philosophy of UII,

Ph.D (history), Associate Professor

Urgench Innovation University,

220100, Gurlan street, 2, Urgench, Khorezm region, Uzbekistan

e-mail: info@uriu.uz

Abstract. The article analyzes the source-study potential of ritual sculpture of the late 19th and early 21st centuries, intended for the initiation of shamans of Eastern Siberia and the Far East, and stored in the funds of the Russian Ethnographic Museum and private collections: a total of 12 wooden figurines. The study revealed that this type of sculpture is rare in Russian museums, as it is used only once as an initiation object, becoming a “spirit assistant” of the shaman, and it is the latter role that is described in the exhibits. The studied group of ritual sculptures reflects the processes typical of the political and socio-economic history of the regions where they were created, including the length of time they were part of the Russian Empire, the degree of activity of the Russian Orthodox Church there, and the cultural and religious influence of China, Japan, and Korea. The number of these types of figurines increases towards the Far East. The article reveals a relationship between the number of preserved initiation sculptures in certain regions and the activity of Orthodox priests in those regions; the authors also support the hypothesis that special idols for initiating shamans may have existed in Western Siberia. The article concludes that initiation shamanic sculptures have sufficient source-based potential for historians, but their correct interpretation requires knowledge of the creation and ritual use of these figurines, as well as consideration of the religious and political processes that have occurred over the centuries in the areas where shamanism has been practiced.

Keywords: ritual figures, Zoroastrianism, shamanism, initiation idols, wooden sculpture, terracotta figurines, Central Asia, the Far East

Gu Mingyuan (Vladivostok). The Beginning of Russian Research of Historical Monuments in Northeast China

GU MINGYUAN

Postgraduate student of the Department of History and Archeology of the Far Eastern Federal University,

690000, Vladivostok, Russky Island, Ayaks settlement, 10

e–mail: 2227874681@qq.com

Abstract. The article is devoted to the first Russian studies of antiquities in northeastern China (Hailongjiang Province of China) (late 19th century and early 20th century). The scientific achievements of the following scientists were especially valuable: Palladium (Kafarov, 1817-1878), Peter Alekseevich Kropotkin (1842-1921), Alexander Vasilyevich Spitsyn (1876-1941), Ilya Amvlikhovich Dobrolovsky (1877-1920), Alexei Mikhailovich Baranov (1865-1927), Stefan (Stepan) Vasilyevich Afanasyev (1871 – 1939), Elpidifor Innokentievich Titoav (1896 – 1938), Mikhail Arkadyevich Polumordvinov (1867 – after 1930), Alexander Vasilyevich Grebenshchikov (1880 – 1941) and many others. In the beginning, the study of Chinese antiquities was episodic, but with the founding of the Society of Russian Orientalists in Harbin (1908), they began to be systematic, paying great attention to archaeological sites and ethnography. The first results were published in the journal “Bulletin of Asia”. Russians Russian and Chinese publications are used in the article, as well as the field materials of the author (PMA), who tried to visit some of the monuments mentioned in the publications of Russian scientists. Some biographical information was found in the State Archives of the Khabarovsk Territory (GAHK) and the State Archives of the Primorsky Territory (GAPK), as well as in emigrant publications in Russian. Keywords: northeast of China, emigrant researchers, study of Chinese antiquities, ORO, archaeology of China

Keywords: Northeast China, expatriate researchers, Chinese antiquities research, ORO, Chinese archaeology

Alieva L.V., Garchu N. (Pskov). Publications in the regional press as a tool for forming a community of “our own” during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905 (based on the example of the Pskovskie Gubernskie Vedomosti)

LIUDMILA VLADIMIROVNA ALIEVA

Associate Professor, Department of Russian and World History, Pskov State University, PhD in History, Associate Professor

Pskov State University,

2 Lenin Square, Pskov, 180000

e-mail: alieva@pskgu.ru

NADEZHDA GARCHU

Master’s Student, Faculty of History, Institute of Humanities and Language Communications, Pskov State University

Pskov State University,

2 Lenin Square, Pskov, 180000

e-mail: garchu.lo@mail.ru

Abstract. This article examines the role of a regional periodical in fostering a sense of national identity and cohesion among residents of Pskov Province during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–1905. The focus is on the Pskovskie Gubernskie Vedomosti newspaper, which served as an important instrument for consolidating public opinion. The study is based on a historical analysis of the newspaper’s materials. Pskovskie Gubernskie Vedomosti and similar regional publications played a significant role in fostering a sense of “our own” during the Russo-Japanese War. By glorifying the defenders of the Fatherland, emphasizing the unity of the people and the government, appealing to historical values, and contrasting “us” with “them,” the newspaper contributed to the consolidation of society around the empire’s military efforts. However, the effectiveness of this work was limited by actual military failures, social contradictions, and a growing crisis of trust in the government. The experience of the Russo-Japanese War demonstrated both the potential and limitations of using the press as a tool for shaping collective identity in military conflict. Nevertheless, it was during this period that mechanisms for informational mobilization of the population were developed, which would later be used in World War I and other conflicts of the 20th century. The regional press proved its ability to be an effective channel for disseminating state ideology and shaping public consciousness at the local level.

Keywords: Pskov Provincial Gazette, Russo-Japanese War, historical imagology, social community, 1904-1905

Batyaev R.A. (Moscow). Newspapers of Political Parties and Social Movements as a Tool for Shaping Memory Politics in the “Centrist” and “Right-wing” Press of the 1990s

ROMAN ARKADYEVICH BATYAEV

1st year Postgraduate student

Department of History of Social Movements and Political Parties

Moscow State University

Leninskiye Gory 1, Moscow, Russia, 119234

e-mail: roman@batyaev.ru

Abstract. This article analyzes the activities of print media, primarily newspapers, published by political parties and social movements between 1992 and 1999. It focuses on how these publications used historical interpretations to explain contemporary events and legitimize their own political positions. The press is viewed as a key instrument of memory politics—a targeted and systematic effort aimed at shaping a specific image of the past that can influence collective consciousness and political behavior. The study analyzes historical sources, periodicals, and campaign materials, systematizing and classifying the collected data. The author poses a number of research questions: Which parties and movements most frequently draw on historical narratives? Which eras, events, and personalities do they most actively address? Differences between publications of the “left” and “right,” opposition and pro-government forces, and centrist and liberal-conservative newspapers are examined separately. The study also draws attention to the specifics of the presentation of historical material in various media, which allows for a deeper understanding of the mechanisms of political memory formation and its influence on electoral behavior.

Keywords: memory politics, historical politics, symbolic politics, newspapers, 1990s

Konstantinova E.A. (St. Petersburg). Zeng Guofan’s (1811–1872) contribution as a suppression of the Taiping Rebellion in China (1850–1864)

EKATERINA ALEXANDROVNA KONSTANTINOVA

Lecturer, Department of history of the Far East countries, Candidate of Philosophy Sciences

St. Petersburg State University (SPGU),

199034, Universitetskaya Embankment, 7-9, St. Petersburg

e-mail: e.konstantinova@spbu.ru

Abstract. According to Chinese scholars cited in the article, Zeng Guofan made a significant contribution to the suppression of the Taiping Rebellion in China. He found points of convergence with Western concepts and formed his own philosophical system by applying ideas from Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. Thanks to the values of this system, he managed to create a powerful army. With its help, he succeeded not only in suppressing the civil war in China, but also in laying the groundwork for the country’s emergence onto the world stage as a modern, progressive state. Zeng Guofan was a powerful official: he held positions of responsibility and enjoyed the patronage of the empress herself. It was she who instructed him to take on the role of suppressing the Taiping uprising. Contrary to tradition (as he was observing mourning for his mother) and prevailing prejudices (as he was not a Manchu), he was not afraid to accept this role. Furthermore, he was able to create and strengthen a new army. Being an innovator, Zeng Guofan understood the need to form a disciplined and precise army with its own rules, order, and values. His troops became the main force that suppressed the Taiping Rebellion and at the same time embodied the Confucian ideas of its commander. Zeng Guofan became an important figure in modern Chinese history by managing to adapt to the current situation. He embraced the achievements of modern Western culture for the development of his own country without losing its identity and authenticity, and effectively ended a fifteen-year civil war. The following research methods were used in the work: historical analysis and the comparative method.

Keywords: Zeng Gofan, Taiping Rebellion, Hunan army, Confucianism, China

Shirokih A.V. (St. Petersburg). The Legal Aspect of Russian-Ottoman Relations Concerning the Holy Land (17th – 20th Centuries)

ANASTASIYA VITALYEVNA SHIROKIH

Department of International Humanitarian Relations, Faculty of International Relations, Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU),

191124, Smolnogo street., 1/3, 8th entrance, St. Petersburg

e-mail: 3806390@gmail.com

Abstract. Since 1517, the Holy Land was incorporated into the Ottoman state. Within the Ottoman Empire, all Christian property fell under the jurisdiction of the state authorities. The Sultan and his administration held the exclusive right to dispose of Christian holy sites, including the rights to architectural transformation, alteration of functional purpose, or confiscation for state needs. In turn, the Sultan’s final will was often determined by the current relations of the Ottoman Empire with various European powers. Consequently, this issue began to transcend the domestic policy of the Ottoman state itself and assumed an international character, involving multiple actors, including the Russian Empire, which had been connected to the Holy Land since 988. Due to the Orthodox faith and the thousands of Russian subjects undertaking pilgrimages to the Palestinian shrines, the Russian Empire could not remain aloof from the events unfolding in the East. As a result, over the course of four centuries, the Russian Empire concluded treaties and agreements that regulated and defined its rights and policies regarding the Holy Land. This article examines the key aspects of this issue, providing an overview of articles and international agreements concerning the Russian Orthodox presence in the Holy Land. This analysis makes it possible to trace the dynamics of changing conditions and interacting actors. The relevance of this research is underpinned by contemporary initiatives of the Russian state aimed at reclaiming the lost property rights of the Russian Empire in the Holy Land. Within this context, historical sources and academic works dedicated to Russia’s activities in the region and its struggle for pilgrims’ rights are of paramount importance.

Keywords: Holy Land, international treaty, Palestine, Orthodoxy, Jerusalem, Russian property, pilgrimage, agreement

Bezrukov D.A. (St. Petersburg). The Evolution of the Image of Soviet Leadership in the Chinese Press from 1978 to 1985 (based on materials from the newspaper Renmin Ribao)

DANILA ALEKSANDROVICH BEZRUKOV

Postgraduate Student

Department of Theory of Social Development of Asian and African Countries

Saint Petersburg State University

199034, Universitetskaya emb., 11, St. Petersburg

e-mail: bezrukov_dan@mail.ru

Abstract. The article examines the evolution of the image of the top Soviet leadership in the Chinese press from 1978 to 1985. The choice of these time frames is explained by the critical importance of this period for the Soviet-Chinese relations, since it was then that a change in the vector in the interaction of the two states began — from confrontation to normalization. The gradual rapprochement between the USSR and the PRC led to a significant transformation in official Chinese rhetoric, which was most noticeably reflected in the attitude towards the Soviet leadership and its policies. A distinctive feature of this period was also the fact that three General Secretaries succeeded one another in the Soviet Union within a short period of time. This instability served as another crucial factor in the process of bilateral normalization. The main conduit of official Chinese rhetoric was the media, whose activities were, in fact, subordinated to the interests of the ruling party. Accordingly, the source base for this research consists of materials from the Renmin Ribao newspaper, the official print organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. The aim of the article is to identify and analyze the specific features that characterized the evolution of official PRC rhetoric towards the top Soviet leadership during this period.

Keywords: normalization of Soviet-Chinese relations, Leonid Brezhnev, Yuri Andropov, Konstantin Chernenko, Deng Xiaoping, Chinese media, Renmin Ribao

Averyanov M.A., Gekht A.B. (St. Petersburg). Politico-military Agreements as a Mechanism for Consolidating French Strategic Presence in Post-colonial Africa

MAKSIM ALEKSEEVICH AVERYANOV

Master’s degree, Assistant Professor, Department of History and Regional Studies, M. A. Bonch-Bruevich St. Petersburg State University of Telecommunications, 22, Bolshevikov Av., Building 1, Saint Petersburg, 193232, Russian Federation,
e-mail: Averyanov00@yandex.ru

ANTON BORISOVICH GEKHT

Prof. of M. A. Bonch-Bruevich St. Petersburg State University of Telecommunications, 22, Bolshevikov Av., Building 1, Saint Petersburg 193232, Russian Federation,
e-mail: a.geht@yandex.ru

Abstract. This article examines the mechanisms by which France was able to maintain its military and political influence on the African continent after the collapse of the colonial system. Using the examples of Côte d’Ivoire, Algeria, and a number of military operations in the second half of the 20th – early 21st centuries, it shows how formal military cooperation agreements and hidden forms of interaction allowed official Paris to support loyal regimes in various ways and control access to strategic resources of countries that had formally gained independence. It analyzes both the legal foundations of these relations and the practice of open intervention in the internal affairs of sovereign states, including military (often with declared peacekeeping tasks) operations Manta, Serval, and Sangaris, demonstrating the very tough nature of France’s neocolonial policy in Africa. Taking into account both the content of the domestic Foreign Policy Concept of 2023, the text of which ‘for the first time places emphasis on the fight against neocolonial practices’, as well as the general nature of the Russian Federation’s foreign policy towards African countries, the issues of this work seem to be very relevant for the Russian research space.

Keywords: France, military agreements, strategic control, Francafrique, military interventions, informal channels of influence, neo-colonialism

Kultygin I.N. (Moscow). The Ottoman Empire in the Texts of American Missionaries of the 19th Century: Worldview, Perception, Image, Transformation

IVAN NICOLAEVICH KULTYGIN

Postgraduate student

Moscow City University (MCU)

129226, Moscow, 2nd Selskohozyastveniy proezd street, 4, build. 1

e-mail: kultyginin822@mgpu.ru

Abstract. The study attempts to characterize the dynamics of the image of the Ottoman Empire created by missionaries in the 19th century, to understand its foundation, which was formed from the practice of their work in the regions of the empire, as well as from the specific ideological framework regarding the Middle Eastern empire, based on which future American missionaries were preparing to participate in missions.

The purpose of this article is to analyze the image of the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century created by American missionaries, its origin and transformation.

To achieve the research goal, both the classical historical and genetic method is used, which is necessary, for example, to record the transformation of an image in a historical context, as well as content analysis, as well as narrative analysis of texts by American missionaries and theologians, which are necessary, among other things, to identify the characteristic features of the image of the Ottoman Empire in them and trace its evolution.

As a result of the analysis, it was found that the perception of the Ottoman Empire by missionaries throughout the 19th century was generally negative, and the image of it created by American evangelicals was similar. The degree of negativity was largely determined both by the missionaries’ original worldview and by events inside the Ottoman Empire that influenced American evangelicals. Based on this pattern, three chronological stages of transformation of the image of the Ottoman state in the texts of the missionaries are proposed. The author also draws attention to the relationship between the modern image of the Middle East in the United States and the image created by American missionaries in the 19th century.

Keywords: 19 century, USA, missionaries, Middle East, Ottoman Empire, image, ideology, worldview

Pankratova A.A., Zotova A.V. (St. Petersburg). The Impact of the Introduction of Cyrillic in the Kazakh SSR on the Development of Interethnic Relations

ANASTASIIA VALERIEVNA ZOTOVA

Professor of the Department of International Relations in the Post-Soviet Space, Doctor of Historical Sciences

St. Petersburg State University (SPbU),

199034, Universitetskaya Embankment, 7–9, St. Petersburg

e-mail:

ANASTASIIA ANDREEVNA PANKRATOVA

Master’s Student of International Relations

St. Petersburg State University (SPbU),

199034, Universitetskaya Embankment, 7–9, St. Petersburg

e-mail:

Abstract. The publication analyzes the process of introducing the Cyrillic script in the Kazakh SSR in 1940 and its impact on interethnic relations and cultural identity. The historical background of the reform, including the Latinization of the 1920s–1930s, and the role of the centralized language policy of the USSR in unifying writing systems, integrating the Kazakh language into the all-Union educational and cultural space, and strengthening the role of Russian as a means of interethnic communication are examined. The funding allocated for events related to the transition to the Cyrillic alphabet is assessed, in particular, for the translation of classics of Marxism-Leninism, textbooks for universities, and poetry into the Kazakh language, taking into account the new alphabet, the purchase of a new font for publishers, and the organization of “gatherings” of teachers to discuss new tasks related to the problem under study. An important focus of work was the general improvement of literacy among the population. A large number of schools and libraries were built, and educational programs were organized in numerous vocational courses, secondary schools, and higher education institutions. Events were held in reading rooms, libraries, adult schools, cultural centers, clubs, and district cultural centers. It is noted that the opportunity to become intelligentsia has arisen for representatives of local nationalities, who were exempted from paying tuition fees in some educational institutions where such fees were provided, despite the fact that fees were charged even in besieged Leningrad. The article also compares various opinions of researchers on the dual effect of Cyrillization. On the one hand, it contributed to the growth of literacy, the formation of a bilingual society, the unification of the education system, and facilitated interethnic communication; on the other hand, it increased dependence on the Russian language, created an ethnolinguistic rift between the urban and rural populations, and disrupted ties with the Turkic-speaking world outside the Soviet Union. The study presents an analysis of the long-term consequences of the reform for modern Kazakhstan, including the retention of Cyrillic as a tool for interethnic communication and Russian influence on the cultural sphere. The material is supported by archival sources, regulatory documents, and contemporary research.

Keywords: Cyrillic script, interethnic relations, language policy, Soviet identity, Latinization, Kazakhstan, USSR

Shestov I.S. (Samara). The Role of Secular and Spiritual Authorities in the Processes of Spreading Christianity in the Territory of Ancient Rus’ in the 10th – 11th Centuries

ILYA SERGEEVICH SHESTOV

3rd year postgraduate student, Samara State University of Economics, Department of Philosophy and History, 141 Sovetskaya Armiya str., Samara, 443090, Russian Federation,

e-mail: ilia.shestov@gmail.com

Abstract. This article examines and analyzes the adoption of Christianity in Ancient Rus’ during its earliest period—the 10th-11th centuries. The author identifies the key players in the spread of Christian values in Rus’—princely power and church institutions—examining in detail their roles, methods, and approaches to spreading the new faith in specific cities and regions of the Ancient Rus’ state. The author also examines the specific features and context of the source material for this period. In the course of this examination, the author concludes that, initially, the princely power and its representatives were the most active and interested in missionary work. They were well acquainted with local conditions and specifics, were highly motivated, and possessed administrative, financial, and military resources. Meanwhile, the Ancient Rus’ Church was still largely in the process of establishing itself as an independent institution and, until a certain point, experienced a significant shortage of trained and motivated missionaries and church hierarchs. As a result, it was the elites, and specifically members of the princely family, who were among the baptizers of specific territories, the builders of churches, the founders of monasteries, and the first ancient Russian saints. However, in matters of everyday and consistent work with believers—clarifying controversial points of doctrine and combating paganism at the level of ritual and everyday life—the position of the church authorities became increasingly significant, especially when, from the mid-11th century, a fairly large and active Russian clergy emerged, primarily from monastic schools, spreading the ideas of Christian life among the people.

Keywords: Ancient Rus, princely power, church, missionary work, baptism, Christianity, paganism, medieval mentality

Bataev M.N. (Samara). Some Features and Characteristics of the Squad Worldview of Ancient Rus in the Pre-Mongol Period

MIKHAIL NIKOLAEVICH BATAEV

3rd year postgraduate student, Samara State University of Economics,

Department of Philosophy and History,

141 Sovetskaya Armiya str., Samara, 443090, Russian Federation,

e-mail: mikhail45@rambler.ru

Abstract. This article explores the spiritual culture, self-awareness, and self-perception of a group of warriors of Ancient Rus’ that was crucial to the entire period of early Russian history. In this work, the author sought to utilize and fully incorporate information presented in both written and material sources (primarily, materials from warrior burials and the “cult of weapons”), as well as current achievements and interpretations presented in modern historical literature. The materials analyzed by the author allow us to speak of the warrior of the first centuries of Ancient Rus’ history as an active, proactive, professional, and selfless warrior, devoted above all to his warrior group as the most significant, cohesive, and often the only group within which he could be considered “one of us,” and to his prince as a leader capable of leading the warrior group to wealth and glory. The author examines in detail the transformations in the warriors’ self-awareness associated with the “choice of faith” situation, when Christianity replaces paganism, essentially changing the fundamental constants of a warrior’s life—new goals in life and activity emerge, motivation shifts, new objectives are formed, and often, so are the methods for achieving them. Even such conservative spiritual concepts as the afterlife and associated funeral rituals are also transformed, and this occurs over a relatively short period of time. From a “barbaric” worldview, it gradually transforms into a Christian one, and the wolf warrior gradually gives way to a holy warrior, affirming a new faith and ideals, fighting against universal evil.

Keywords: Ancient Rus’, princes, squad, medieval mentality, squad self-awareness, cult of weapons, squad code of conduct, paganism, Christianity

Litvinov P.P. (Yelets). Kazakh Khanates within Russia: historical and legal aspect

PETER PETROVICH LITVINOV

Doctor of Historical Sciences, independent researcher

399770, Stepan Razin str., Yelets

e-mail: petr.litvinov.46@mail.ru

AuthorID: 368769

Abstract. The Author of clause considers historical-legal aspect of voluntary ocurrence Kazakh khanates – Juzes in structure of Russian empire. It marks, that its reasons have developed during the previous period. A greater role for ocurrence has played djungarian the invasion of 1720th which have become history of Kazakhs, as «Great disaster», ruined nomads and doomed them on famine and extinction. Kazakhs could find rescue in these conditions only at Russia, which itself suffered from djungarian attacks. For this purpose they should become Russian submitted. Khan Younger Juze Abulhair has addressed to the Russian empress Anna Ioannovne with the request for voluntary ocurrence in structure of its state. Tsarina has found it possible and has directed to khan embassy led by Tevkelev, having supplied with its corresponding instruction on voluntary ocurrence of Kazakhs to structure of Russian empire and to their reception in its citizenship. Diplomatic operation has ended successfully, and soon in the Russian citizenship nomads of the Average juze have been accepted also. The imperial authority has kept khan authority, and also the administrative device inherent in it. At the same time, it has put electoral process under the control which kept the main foundations of nomadic democracy and did not belittle traditional suffrages of nomads which before were trampled clan by a top. Henceforth by khans those people who are equitable to interests of imperial authority could be selected only and deserved its trust. The author comes to conclusion that the Russian officials did not interfere with elective process and adhered to legislative establishments in this occasion, contained many ceremonial procedures and promoted consolidation of authority khan authority in new historical conditions. With its liquidation traditional and legislative selective procedures have been buried in all.

Keywords: Kazakhstan, Russia, djungaries, Abulhair, ocurrence, imperial authority, elections, legislative selective procedures

Vladimirov O.O. (Kazan). Demographic Processes of the Tatars of the Mountainous Region in 1716–1858 (Using the Example of the Village of Tanai-Turaevo)

OLEG OLEGOVICH VLADIMIROV

Sh. Marjani Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the

Republic of Tatarstan

420100, Russian Federation, Kazan, Baturina st., 7

e-mail: Olegvladimirov@list.ru

Abstract. This article is devoted to the analysis of the demographic processes of the Tatar settlements of the Mountain Side (the territory of Sviyazhsky and the Tetyushsky district that separated from it in 1781) using the example of the village of Tanai-Turaevo. The source base for this research was the materials of fund 350 “Landrat books and revision tales” of the Russian State Archive of Ancient Acts, fund 3 “Kazan Provincial Treasury Chamber” of the State Archive of the Republic of Tatarstan, and fund I-295 of the National Archive of the Republic of Bashkortostan “Orenburg Mohammedan Spiritual Assembly”. These archival materials describe various demographic processes in the village of Tanai-Turaevo in the period from 1716 to 1858. This article also provides the results of an analysis of marriage and family relations between residents of this village and residents of other settlements (based on a revision of 1763) and how the factor of polygamy among representatives of certain clans affected local demography. An analysis of the dynamics of the local population of both sexes (including the baptized part of the population) and its age structure is also provided. All relocations and escapes of local residents are noted, and the consequences of the cholera of 1847 are also noted. Among other things, the article describes the largest families, as well as data on male souls sent as recruits.

Keywords: Sviyazhsky district, Tetyushsky district, Mountain side, Tanay – Turaevo, yasak peasants

Lavrina A.P. (St. Petersburg). Correspondence of the Rector of St. Petersburg University P.A. Pletnev with the Trustee of the St. Petersburg Educational District M.N. Musin-Pushkin 1840–1850s

ANNA PAVLOVNA LAVRINA

2th postgraduate student,

Saint Petersburg Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Saint Petersburg Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 197110

Saint-Petersburg,7 Petrozavodskaya Street

e-mail: parus_7373@mail.ru

Abstract. This research examines communication between the rector of the capital’s university and the trustee of the Saint Petersburg educational district during the 1840s–1850s. The main characteristics of the positions of the rector and the trustee are examined, as well as the personnel appointment mechanisms within the public education system of the period under consideration. The specific features of bureaucratic service during the reign of Emperor Nicholas I are demonstrated through the activities of M.N. Musin-Pushkin (trustee of the Kazan educational district in 1827–1845 and the Saint Petersburg educational district in 1846–1856) and P.A. Pletnev (rector of Saint Petersburg University in 1840–1861). An examination of the career progression and administrative activities of these two educational administrators reveals numerous overlapping characteristics.

Based on archival sources from personal funds and documents of the funds of the Ministry of Public Education, the stylistics of business communication, the frequency of contacts and their impact on the development of the pre-reform university are analyzed. The formal duties of the university rector and informal management practices at the capital university have been identified. It is possible to determine how the education administrators implemented specific measures for university management and what management mechanisms and practices they employed. Pletnev’s relationship with the trustee covered issues of organizing the educational process, supervision and control over students, as well as over the teaching staff corporation, resolving intra-university conflicts, and reporting to higher authorities on the state of the university.

Keywords: P.A. Pletnev, Rector of St. Petersburg University, M.N. Musin-Pushkin, the trustee of the St.- Petersburg educational district, Correspondence, Ministry of Public Education

Damenia I.H. (St. Petersburg). Russia and Abkhazia in the XIX – Early XX Century: Management Problems

IRINA HUHUTOVNA DAMENIA

Candidate of Historical Sciences, General Director of LLC “Publishing House “Law Center”, corresponding member of the

Petrovsky Academy of Sciences,

191124, Tverskaya str., 20, 99, St. Petersburg.

5. mail: damenia@rambler.ru

ORCID iD 0009-0005-7712-5682

Abstract. The article traces the activities of the Russian state in Abkhazia, taking into account its national, state, cultural, social, and economic development. It analyzes the essence of the Russian autocracy’s policy on the national question throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries. Based on research and analysis of the activities of the Russian government in Abkhazia, the article identifies the specific features of its governance policy. Despite the fact that the Russian autocracy’s policy towards Abkhazia was aimed at integrating it into the imperial socio-political system, the content of this policy underwent significant changes. In the first half of the 19th century, the government implemented a differentiated approach, determining the legal status of the Abkhazian Principality based on the existing traditions of social development and the principle of class consolidation. In the second half of the 19th century, the focus was on the general unification of the administrative model within the framework of the state-territorial structure. Administrative reforms were carried out in Abkhazia, and a partial peasant reform was introduced. An important key area of the Russian administration’s policy in Abkhazia was the development of education, the formation and expansion of a network of educational institutions. The provision of a de facto autonomous status to the Abkhazian Principality in the early 19th century, along with the global sociocultural shifts that occurred under the influence of the development of capitalism in the late 19th century, intensified the process of formation and rapid development of the national identity of the population.At the beginning of the 20th century, the results of the transformations in Abkhazia became apparent, characterized by an increase in the number of schools, the spread of literacy among the Abkhazian population, the development of its own periodical press, as well as the emergence of Abkhazian studies in Russian science and the formation of its own local Abkhazian intelligentsia.

Keywords. The Russian state, the national question, the Abkhazian Principality, politics, administration, the peasant reform, the Lykhna uprising, administrative reform, and school policy

Bakanov A.V. (Makhachkala). Tourism Development in the Caucasus, 19th – Early 20th Centuries (part 1)

ALEXANDER V. BAKANOV

Candidate of Historical Sciences, Independent researcher

367030, Russia, Makhachkala,

e-mail: mr.bakanov85@mail.ru

Abstract. The development of the tourism industry in Russia has a rich tradition and can be traced back to the 19th century. During this period, the first properly organized resorts began to be established in the Russian Empire, with the Caucasus region being one of the areas of their development. As early as the first half of the century, three fully-fledged resort and sanatorium zones of considerable size were established within this region. At that time, they were primarily intended for the recreation of imperial troops, i.e., those military units of the Russian army that were then stationed in the Caucasus.

Nevertheless, as the study shows, the development of tourism, and consequently resort and sanatorium infrastructure, in the Caucasus in the first half of the 19th century was relatively slow and difficult. This was largely due to the military conditions and the rather complex dynamics of the region’s integration into the Russian Federation. Moreover, at this time, the Russian Empire was only just beginning to settle its newly annexed territories, so the primary infrastructure developed there was not tourism, but rather critical infrastructure. Initially, tourism infrastructure in the Caucasus developed only incrementally, but by the 1850s, it had reached a relatively high level of development. And, most importantly, in certain areas of the region, it became possible to vacation safely. This was particularly true in the Ciscaucasus and Transcaucasus.

Keywords: Russian Empire, Caucasus, tourism, resorts, Caucasian Mineral Waters, Borjomi, Abastuman, Black Sea, Caspian Sea

Khromtsova T.V. (St. Petersburg). The Reform of Maritime Education in 1902 in Russia and the Activities of Educational Institutions of the Arkhangelsk Province that Trained Boatmasters for the Merchant Fleet

TATYANA VALERIEVNA KHROMTSOVA

Researcher, St. Petersburg Branch of the Archives

of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Russia, 196084, St. Petersburg, Kyiv St., Building 5, Bldg. 9, Bldg. 1

e-mail: khromtsovat@mail.ru

Abstract. The article is devoted to the formation of the system of training captains and navigators for the Russian merchant marine at the turn of the XIX – XX century. The development of the merchant fleet was closely linked to the replacement of sailing ships with steamships, the increase in their carrying capacity, and the expansion of the geography of navigation. The maritime educational institutions that had been operating in the country since the 1870s no longer met the demands of the times. This was confirmed by an audit of navigation schools conducted in 1898. The idea of reforming maritime education in order to open a network of modern educational institutions in the country that would correspond to the spirit of the times was brewing in government circles. The advantageous geographical position of the Arkhangelsk province and its long-standing traditions of merchant shipping allowed the government to establish an educational institution in the region, where the training of sailors was carried out at a high level. The article devotes considerable attention to the results of an inspection of educational institutions, which reflected the existing problems of the maritime industry and provided the “key” to their solution during the development of the reform of maritime education in 1902. The process of implementing government initiatives was studied using the example of the Arkhangelsk Trade and Maritime School, whose experience was used both in developing the reform and subsequently in organizing the activities of maritime schools throughout the country. The publication also examines the legislative framework for the reform and analyzes the regulatory and legal acts that establish the framework for its implementation.

Keywords: history of maritime education, reform of maritime education in 1902, Arkhangelsk Trade and Maritime School, skipper courses, maritime class, merchant navy, skipper, navigator

Pshegorsky A.S. (Voronezh), Suchalkin E.A. (Moscow). On the Peculiarities of the Symbolism of the Black Hundreds during the First Russian Revolution (using the Russian Monarchist Party as an example).

ANTON SERGEEVICH PSHEGORSKY

Associate Professor of the Department of Philosophy, Sociology and History of Voronezh State Technical University, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Voronezh, ulitsa 20-letiya Oktyabrya, d. 84

e-mail: apsheg@gmail.com

EVGENII ANATOLIEVICH SUCHALKIN

Associate Professor of the Department of History of Moscow City University, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Moscow, Vtoroy Selskohoziajstvenny proezd 4,

e-mail: john.suchalkin@mail.ru

Abstract. This article examines the symbolic politics of the Black Hundreds movement during the First Russian Revolution. It analyzes illustrative, systematic, and characteristic instances of the Black Hundreds’ leaders use of symbols in their struggle against the influence of other parties on the people. The authors primarily focus on such instances as exemplified by V. A. Gringmut, the leader of the Russian Monarchist Party, as one of the leading monarchists of the period, who contributed significantly to the development of the Black Hundreds movement and the unification of disparate right-wing groups. The authors note the general proactivity of the right in using symbols, which is linked to the fact that the world order proclaimed by Black Hundreds ideology was no longer accepted unconditionally, was not entirely rational, and was subject to destructive attack from the revolutionary movement. The analysis also notes the fundamental reliance of the Black Hundreds’ symbolic politics on religion, with an active appeal to Orthodox symbols. Through the latter, an attempt was made to restore the monarchy’s shaky connection with the people, calling for a “national” upsurge and a militia against revolutionary unrest. The paper proposes to assess this reliance on religion and Orthodoxy as a “national” foundation as a consequence, on the one hand, of the failed secularization of the political activity of the Black Hundreds’ leaders, and, on the other, as a result of the underdevelopment of national consciousness and civil society in Russia.

Keywords: Black Hundreds, symbols, Russian Monarchist Party, first Russian revolution, Orthodoxy

Ochirov B.N. (Elista). Kalmyk Social Capital and Family (Household) Capital of the Bolshederbetovsky Ulus of the Stavropol Province at the Beginning of the 20th Century: a Comparative Analysis of Income and Expenses

BAATR VIKTOROVICH OCHIROV

senior lecturer at the Department of Russian History,

Documentation and archival science

Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of Higher Education “Kalmyk State University

named after B.B. Gorodovikov”

358001, Russian Federation, Elista, st. Pushkina, 11

e-mail: ochirov.baatr@yandex.ru

Abstract. This article presents a comparative analysis of the income and expenditure structure of the Kalmyk public capital of the Bolshederbetovsky Ulus (district) in Stavropol province and patrimonial (household) capitals at the beginning of the 20th century. The research is based on a report on the state of the Ulus for 1904, which contains detailed information on these capitals. The study is based on the principles of historicism and a comprehensive analysis of the historical source. Primary attention is paid to the structure of financial flows: the sources of capital formation and the key areas of expenditure. It has been established that the main source of income for both the Ulus and patrimonial capitals was rent for quitrent items. The most significant expenditure items were the maintenance of the administrative apparatus and fiscal payments. Along with these, albeit in smaller amounts, funding for social needs was carried out – medicine, education, and afforestation. The conducted analysis revealed that, despite the dominance of administrative expenses, the funding of socially useful areas was institutionalized. The presence of targeted expenditure items for medicine and education created the institutional preconditions for their potential increase in the budgets of both the general ulus and family capitals.

Keywords: Bolshederbetovsky ulus, Stavropol province, Kalmyks, public capital, public and family capital.

Kolikhova K.I. (Moscow). Supporting the Adversary: The “Controlled Opponent” Strategy in Diplomacy (The Case of A. Ioffe at the Riga Peace Conference 1920–1921)

KARINA IGOREVNA KOLIKHOVA

Applicant for a Degree Candidate of Historical Sciences

Department of History of the South and West Slavs, Faculty of History,

Lomonosov Moscow State University,

119234, Lomonosovsky Prospekt 27, Bldg. 4, Moscow

e-mail: karina.kolikhova99@yandex.ru

Abstract. The article examines the diplomatic strategy of the head of the Russian-Ukrainian peace delegation A. Joffe at the Riga Peace Conference of 1920–1921, aimed at strengthening the position of the Polish representative J. Dąbski as a “controlled opponent”. The relevance of the study is due to the interest in the origins of modern practices of indirect influence in international politics. The aim of the paper is to show how the methods used by Joffe allowed the Soviet delegation to use the political disagreements in the Polish leadership in a favourable way and to increase the effectiveness of peace negotiations. The sources used include memoirs, official diplomatic documents and archival materials reflecting the course and specifics of the negotiation process. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of Joffe’s tactics, who sought to keep the least rigid and most predictable opponent at the head of the Polish delegation. The author concludes that Joffe’s diplomacy was based on maintaining informal contacts, coordination with the central authorities and competent work with the information field. This strategy strengthened the position of the Soviet delegation, reduced the legitimacy of a number of Warsaw’s initiatives and stabilized the negotiation process. Joffe’s example demonstrates how indirect influence and soft power strategies, which later became integral elements of diplomatic practice, were used as early as the first quarter of the 20th century.

Keywords: Riga Peace Conference 1920–1921, Soviet–Polish relations, diplomacy, soft power, Adolph Joffe, Jan Dąbski

Karapetyan L.A. (Krasnodar). From the Experience of Election Campaigns to the Soviets of the Gelendzhik District of the Krasnodar Territory (1922–1939)

LEVA ALEKSANDROVICH KARAPETYAN

Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor, Professor Departments of History, Cultural Studies and Museum Studies Krasnodar State Institute of Culture

350072, Russia, Krasnodar, st. 40th anniversary of the Victory, 33

e-mail: leva.karapetyan.53@mail.ru

Abstract. Using documents, primarily archival materials, this article examines election campaigns for the Soviets of the agrarian region. The Bolsheviks considered Soviets, a fundamentally new type of state authority created by the working people, a truly democratic form of government and the development of popular initiative. Unlike bourgeois parliamentarism, the Soviets rejected the principle of separation of powers, which was replaced by the principle of democratic centralism. During the dictatorship of the proletariat, the Marxist-Leninist concept of democracy was based on its class nature. Its essence was reduced to the social unity of the overwhelming majority of the population, which excluded antagonistic class contradictions. The election campaigns of the first and second halves of the 1920s differed from each other, as well as from those of the 1930s. The election campaigns of 1925-1927 were the freest in the region. Their result was the predominance of poor and middle peasants and demobilized Red Army soldiers in the Soviets. The Communists also strengthened their position. Electoral legislation was aligned with the Communist Party line. The influence of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) on the electoral process varied during these years. It was particularly harsh in the first half of the 1920s and in the 1930s.

Keywords: Gelendzhik District, Soviets, electoral legislation, election campaigns, election results

Kokorkhoeva D.S. (Nazran). Аnalytical Support of the Policy of the CPSU(b) in the Autonomous Regions of the North Caucasus in 1928–1932 (Based on the Materials of the journal “Revolution and Highlander”)

DUGURKHAN SULTANGIREEVNA KOKORKHOEVA

Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor, Ingush State University, Professor of the Department of History, 76 Parchieva St., Nazran, Russia,

e-mail: dugurhan@mail.ru

Abstract. The relevance of the topic of the article is manifested in the fact that the processes of analytical support for the national policy of the VKP(b) in the autonomous regions of the North Caucasus during the period of collectivization remain little known. One of the institutions of such provision was the magazine “Revolution and Highlander”, published in Rostov-on-Don. The purpose of the article is to find out the directions of analytical support of the policy of the VKP(b) in the autonomous regions of the North Caucasus in the journal “Revolution and Highlander” (1928–1932). The research methodology includes the use of systemic and structural-functional approaches, discourse analysis, and the theory of political decision-making. The sources of the article are unpublished documents from the Center for Documentation of the Modern History of the Rostov Region and the State Archive of the Rostov Region, as well as issues of the magazine “Revolution and Highlander”. As a result of the research, changes in the prevailing functions of the magazine were revealed – from the preparation of political decisions of regional authorities to agitation and propaganda. Initially, the journal was the organ of the North Caucasian Regional National Council under the Regional Executive Committee, the regional committee of the New Turkic Alphabet and the North Caucasian Regional Mountain Research Institute, whereas since 1931 it has become the organ of the regional committee of the VKP(b) and the regional Executive Committee of Soviets. The goal-setting of the journal’s articles is changing from justifying “korenization” to advocating the integration of the autonomous regions of the North Caucasus into a centralized state.

Keywords: analytical support, policy, the VKP(b), the North Caucasus, autonomies, the magazine “Revolution and Highlander”, 1928–1932

Ganiev T.K., Akhtyamov D.I. (Ulyanovsk). The Village of the Ulyanovsk Region in 1928-1930: Machine Supply and Development of State Farms

TIMUR KUDRATULOEVICH GANIEV

Ulyanovsk State Pedagogical University named after I. N. Ulyanov, candidate of the Department of History, 432071, Russian Federation, Ulyanovsk, Lenin Square, 4,

e-mail: rasit56@mail.ru

DINAR ILDAROVICH AKHTYAMOV

Ulyanovsk State Pedagogical University named after I. N. Ulyanov, candidate of the Department of History, 432071, Russian Federation, Ulyanovsk, Lenin Square, 4,

e-mail: rasit56@mail.ru

Abstract. The authors attempted to analyze the process of creation and functioning of state farms and machine tractor stations (MTS) in the USSR in the 1928-1930s using the example of the Ulyanovsk Region of the Middle Volga region (krai). The structures of state farms and MTS, as well as their economic efficiency, are considered. By December 1927, when the XVth Congress of the CPSU(b) put forward the slogan of uniting and transforming small and individual peasant farms into large collective farms, a stable system of agricultural cooperation had already developed in the region. However, in practice, the construction of collective farms was fraught with a number of difficulties: insufficient level of explanatory work with local administrations, distrust of peasants and their unwillingness to join collective farms. Special attention is paid to the problems faced by state farms and MTS during their formation: a shortage of qualified personnel, technical malfunctions, and resistance from the peasant population. The article is based on documents from the Soviet period on the Ulyanovsk region of the State Archive of Modern History of the Ulyanovsk Region (GANI UO) and the State Archive of the Ulyanovsk Region (GAO), which are being introduced into scientific circulation. The methodological basis of the article was based on a set of general scientific, special historical principles and methods of scientific research. The use of descriptive-narrative, problem-chronological, comparative-historical, historical-systematic methods and statistical analysis gave us the opportunity to study more deeply the features of the processes during the formation of collective farms, as well as for the mechanization of agricultural production, the creation of machine tractor stations (MTS) in the Ulyanovsk region. The authors analyze the impact of state farms and MTS on the socio-economic development of rural areas, assessing both the positive and negative consequences of their implementation.

Keywords: agriculture, state farms, machine and tractor stations, collectivization, machine supply

Yahutl Yu.A., Kasyanov V.V. (Krasnodar). The Adygea Autonomous Region during the Socialist Modernization of the 1930 s: Implementation and its Consequences

YURI ASLANBIEVICH YAHUTL

Doctor of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor,

Kuban State University, Department of Russian History

149, Stavropol Street, Krasnodar, 350040, Russia

e-mail: a075ca@eandex.ru

VALERY V. KASYANOV

Doctor of Historical Sciences, Doctor of Sociological Sciences, Professor, Dean of

the Faculty of Journalism, Head of the Department of History of Russia, Faculty of

History, Sociology and International Relations, Kuban State University, Stavropol,

149, Krasnodar, 350040, Russia

e-mail: culture@kubsu.ru

Abstract. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, the multinational Soviet Union entered a period of fundamental economic and social transformations. The changes had a significant impact on the level of development of the country as a whole, as well as the national republics, autonomies and districts that were part of the USSR. This was a consequence of the Great Russian Revolution of 1917 and the implemented national policy of the Bolsheviks. Having received the status of autonomy in 1922, Adygea remained a region with predominant agricultural production for the next decade. The beginning of socialist modernization allowed the autonomy to transform into an agrarian-industrial region. Despite the continued difficulties in implementing social projects, it was possible to significantly increase the educational level of the population, primarily by providing coverage to school–age children. In the 1930s, the Adyghe intelligentsia formed a new formation. The basis for the successful development of the autonomy was the local industry, which originated as a result of the administrative reforms carried out and the purposeful economic policy of the union government. While acknowledging the difficulties in implementing reforms, including ideological constraints, it is worth noting the qualitative changes in the life of Adyghe society that became possible during the first five-year plans.

Keywords. Adygea, politics, five-year plan, industry, agriculture, economy

Krasnokutsky V.S., Kuznetsova Y.I. (Железноводск). Features of military-sport training in pedagogical schools on the eve of the Great Patriotic War (using the Mineralnye Vody Pedagogical School as an example)

VLADIMIR SERGEYEVICH KRASNOKUTSKY

PhD in History, Associate Professor of the Department of

Historical and Philological Disciplines,

Branch of Stavropol State Pedagogical Institute in Zheleznovodsk,

Russia, Zheleznovodsk, Inozemtsevo Settlement, 357430

e-mail: kurasnokutsky.v@mail.ru

YULIA IGOREVNA KUZNETSOVA

Senior Lecturer of the Department of Historical and

Philological Disciplines, Branch of Stavropol State

Pedagogical Institute in Zheleznovodsk,

Russia, Zheleznovodsk, Inozemtsevo Settlement, 357430

e-mail: pedagogkmv@yandex.ru

Abstract. The article examines the features of military defense and physical training of students in pedagogical schools on the eve of the Great Patriotic War. The origins of the provision on the training of defenders of the Fatherland in schools and pedagogical colleges have been identified. The main goal of training a conscript at the level of secondary special pedagogical education – an instructor, of a platoon commander is given. The article analyzes the practice of the system of military defense and mass sports activities on the example of the Mineralovodsk Pedagogical School of the Stavropol Territory. Quantitative data from the educational planning of compulsory military and physical education classes are presented. The article analyzes the improvement of the material and technical base for teaching military-applied sports, physical education classes and mass sports work. The role of the military leader in organizing not only military sports, mass sports work, but also in political awareness of the international situation of the entire educational institution is revealed. Attention is being focused on new types of sports competitions, such as track and field cross-country, paramilitary games, hiking and mountaineering trips to the mountains of the Pre-Caucasus and the Caucasus, and summer military training camps. Special attention is paid to participation in the formation of a citizen and a patriot, physically strong not only as a teacher, but also as a super task, a conscript, defender of the Motherland with the involvement of voluntary sports societies “Burevestnik”, “Osviakhim”, “DOSAAF” and others. The fundamental importance in strengthening the physical health of a college student in preparation for passing the TRP standards is investigated. The study establishes causal relationships between the introduction of military and physical training classes into the practice of primary school teacher training, as well as the widespread development of military sports work outside of school hours on the eve of the Great Patriotic War.

Keywords: education, defender, military, physical education, mass participation, volunteerism, society, leader

Piankevich V.L. (St. Petersburg). Sleds – the Means of Transport in Besieged Leningrad

VLADIMIR LEONIDOVICH PIANKEVICH

Doctor of historical sciences,

professor at the St. Petersburg State University

199034, Russian Federation,

St. Petersburg, Universitetskaia nab. 7–9.

e-mail: v.pyankevich@spbu.ru

The study was supported by the grant of the Russian Science Foundation No. 24-28-00817, https://rscf.ru/project/24-28-00817/

Abstract. The article is devoted to the study of the role of children’s factory-made and homemade sleds as a means of transportation in the everyday life of residents of besieged Leningrad. In conditions where it was practically impossible to rely on public transport, sleds became an important means of survival and solving immediate problems for most of the blockade survivors. People used them to carry firewood and water that they had obtained with great difficulty. The sleds were needed to save books and art objects from private collections in bombed-out buildings from destruction. The surviving residents of such houses and the fire victims transported their belongings on sleds to a new place of residence. Extremely exhausted and weakened patients were transported to clinics, hospitals, and inpatient facilities on children’s sleds. The appearance of sleds with dead bodies on the streets, transported to cemeteries, morgues, and collection points, was a sign of the mass extinction of Leningrad. he sleds helped Leningraders during the cleansing of the city in the spring of 1942. It was on sleds that those attempting to flee the encircled city on foot carried their belongings, and during the mass evacuation period, those unable to walk, small children, suitcases, bundles, and bags carried to Finland Station, and then to their cars on the shores of Lake Ladoga. The article uses regulatory documents, narrative and visual evidence from the siege period, as well as interviews and memoirs of later city residents as sources.

Keywords: The Great Patriotic War, siege of Leningrad, sleds, transport, social history of the war, history of everyday life

Chernukha R.M. (Moscow). Problems of Staffing Military Educational Institutions of the NKVD Troops of the USSR in the First Period of the Great Patriotic War

ROSTISLAV MIKHAILOVICH CHERNUKHA

Candidate of Philosophy, Associate Professor,

senior researcher at the Scientific Research Center

(fundamental military-historical problems)

Military University of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

125047, Moscow, Bolshaya Sadovaya St., 14

e-mail: chernukha_rm@mail.ru

Abstract. This article examines the issues of recruiting cadets and students for NKVD military academies during the first period of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1942). Using previously unpublished documents from the Russian State Military Archive and the State Archives of the Russian Federation, the article reveals the wartime mobilization plan for recruiting NKVD military academies and the requirements for candidates entering military academies and advanced command training courses. The article also identifies positive and negative factors in recruiting NKVD military academies. A positive practice is recruitment “by appointment to”, based on selecting candidates from among the most experienced soldiers and junior command personnel. This approach facilitated the rapid training of mid-level command personnel for the NKVD. Among the negative factors, the most notable are the candidates’ low level of education, which created significant difficulties in training, especially specialist commanders. Other factors include the untimely dispatch of candidates to training schools, poor paperwork, and a lack of footwear and uniforms. Regarding the staffing of command refresher courses, the problem of retraining command personnel without the appropriate military education is particularly prominent.

Keywords: The Great Patriotic War, military educational institutions of the NKVD troops, mobilization plan, command staff, recruitment, cadets, students

Vorob’ev D.A. (Kirovsk), Trofimov I.A. (St. Petersburg). The Ivanovsky Pyatachok in December 1942 – January 1943: a Distracting Foothold in Operation Iskra

DMITRIY ALEXANDROVICH VOROB’EV

junior-reascher

museum-reserve “Breakthrough of the Siege of Leningrad”

187342, Russian Federation, Leningrad region, Kirovsk, Ladoga bridge, 2.

e-mail: dmitrij_vorobev_96@mail.ru

IGOR ANDREEVICH TROFIMOV

teacher of history and social studies

GBOU “Secondary general education school № 229 Admiralteysky district of St. Petersburg”

190068, Russia, St. Petersburg, Boytsova lane, 3.

e-mail: andantaz@yandex.ru

Abstract. The article is a comprehensive study of the fighting on the Ivanovsky Pyatachok bridgehead in the period December 1942 – January 1943. Based on an analysis of previously unpublished archival materials from the Central Military District of the Russian Federation and NARA, the authors recreate a detailed picture of military operations that have so far remained in the shadow of the larger-scale events of the Battle of Leningrad. The paper identifies and analyzes four key reasons for the historiographical gap: the purely defensive nature of the 55th Army’s tasks, its secondary role in Operation Iskra, the dominance of the Stalingrad direction in historical memory, and the concentration of the Leningrad Front’s resources on the main breakout areas. Special attention is paid to the analysis of reconnaissance and assault operations, artillery duels and the defense systems of the parties. It has been proven that, despite the limited tactical scale, the battles on the bridgehead were of great operational and strategic importance. During the critical period of preparation and the breakthrough of the siege of Leningrad, the bridgehead consistently served as an effective “distraction factor” that held down significant forces of the 5th Mountain Division and the 4th SS Police Division. Thus, even after the successful start of Operation Iskra, the bridgehead continued to have a significant impact on the alignment of enemy forces and the overall operational situation in this sector of the front.

Keywords: Battle for Leningrad, Leningrad Front, 55th Army, Ivanovo Patch, 43rd Infantry Division, Operation Iskra, 5th Mountain Rifle Division, 4th SS Police Division

Chikaeva K.S., Hezh S.E., Yashina L.B., Kremyansky V.F. (Krasnodar). A Contemporary Understanding of the Role of the Soviet Union in Ensuring the Decisions of the Nuremberg Trials

KARINA SURENOVNA CHIKAYEVA

Doctor of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor, Professor, Department of History and Political Science of KubSAU,

Kuban State Agrarian University named after I. T. Trubilin,

350044, Kalinina St., 13, Krasnodar

e-mail: chikaevakarina@mail.ru

SOFYA EDUARDOVNA KHEZH

Third-year student, Faculty of Law of KubSAU,

Kuban State Agrarian University named after I. T. Trubilin,

350044, Kalinina St., 13, Krasnodar

e-mail: khezh.sofya@mail.ru

LYUDMILA BORISOVNA YASHINA

Assistant Professor, Department of History and Political Science of KubSAU,

Kuban State Agrarian University named after I. T. Trubilin,

350044, Kalinina St., 13, Krasnodar

e-mail: khezh.sofya@mail.ru

VLADISLAV FRANTISHEKOVICH KREMYANSKY

Candidate of Technical Sciences,

Associate Professor, Department of Livestock Mechanization and Life Safety of KubSAU,

Kuban State Agrarian University named after I. T. Trubilin,

350044, Kalinina St., 13, Krasnodar

e-mail: 9184631691@mail.ru

Abstract. This publication, based on new research, analyzes the role of the Soviet justice system in enforcing the decisions of the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg (November 20, 1945 – October 1, 1946). It is argued that the idea of holding open trials of war criminals was consistently advocated by the Soviet leadership in negotiations with the Allies since 1942. The relevance of this topic is determined by the emergence in the international information space of falsifications of the USSR’s role in the defeat of the Hitler coalition and the deliberate suppression of Nazi atrocities committed in the territories they occupied, which requires the protection of historical memory regarding tragic historical events and the results of the Nuremberg Tribunal. It is noted that the difficulties in the work of the International Military Tribunal were caused by different procedural legal systems – continental (in force in the Soviet Union and France) and Anglo-Saxon. This article examines the Soviet justice system’s position on seeking coordinated solutions with the Allied delegations in the preparation and conduct of the People’s Court. It explores the conceptual importance of preserving the historical memory of the Soviet justice system’s role in ensuring the Nuremberg Trials’ decisions through reliable, scientific information as a resource for fostering civic identity and patriotism amidst international tensions. The material presented can be used in teaching the course “The Great Patriotic War: No Statute of Limitations,” as well as in educational activities and patriotic education of youth.

Keywords: Soviet Union, anti-Hitler coalition, Nuremberg Trials, fascist war crimes, crimes against humanity, crimes against peace, Nazi war criminals

Nikolaev D.A. (Yakutsk). History of the Creation and Development of the Design Bureau of the Lena United River Shipping Company in the Late 1950s – 1980s

DMITRY ALEKSEEVICH NIKOLAEV

Research Assistant

Institute for Humanitarian Research

and Problems of Indigenous Peoples of the North

Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

677027, Russia, Republic of Sakha (Yakutia),

Yakutsk, Petrovskogo St., 1,

e-mail: Nikolaev.Dmitry1993@yandex.ru

Abstract. The Lena United River Shipping Company (LORP) Design Bureau, established in the late 1950s, had a profound impact on the development of river and coastal shipping in Yakutia in the second half of the 20th century. The unique design of the vessels created by LORP consisted of their shallow draft and high cargo capacity. During flood periods, they could access smaller rivers, such as the Tyung and Lungha, previously inaccessible to vessels of their size. The design bureau’s activities led to the widespread development of universal river-sea motor ships and tankers, designed for both river and coastal shipping. Their main advantage was the ability to access the Laptev Sea and the East Siberian Sea from the port of Osetrovo in Ust-Kut, the upper reaches of the Lena River, and to navigate directly through the shallow sandbars (sandbanks between the river and the sea) of the northern rivers of the Yana, Indigirka, Kolyma, Olenka, and Anabar, without transshipment, and, by navigating deeper into them, deliver northern supplies. The emergence of the design bureau facilitated rapid technological progress in Yakutia’s river transport.

Keywords: motor ship, design bureau, shipping company, fleet, coastal shipping, project, vessel, tanker, shipyard, lighter

Boyko N.S., Filatov A.V. Savelyev A.V. (Ulyanovsk). Implementation of the Reform on the Reorganization of Machine and Tractor Stations (MTS) in 1957–1958

NATALIA SEMENOVNA BOYKO

Doctor of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor, Ulyanovsk State

Pedagogical University named after I.N. Ulyanov,

4 Lenin Square, Ulyanovsk, 432071, Russian Federation,

e-mail: nboyko2005@mail.ru

ARTYOM VLADIMIROVICH FILATOV

, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor, Ulyanovsk State

Pedagogical University named after I.N. Ulyanov,

432071, Russian Federation, Ulyanovsk, Lenin Square, 4,

e-mail: rasit56@mail.ru

ALEXEY VASILYEVICH SAVELYEV

Applicant, Department of History, Ulyanovsk State Pedagogical

University named after I.N. Ulyanov,

432071, Russian Federation, Ulyanovsk, Lenin Square, 4,

e-mail: rasit56@mail.ru

Abstract. Machine and tractor stations, created in the 1920s during the formation of collective farms of various types, played a significant role both economically and politically. The article attempts to study the trend in the implementation of party-state policy after the end of the operation of machine and tractor stations throughout the country and, in particular, in the Ulyanovsk region. The trend of decision-making and actions to reorganize machine and tractor stations is analyzed. The initially planned three-year transfer of all agricultural machinery to collective farms and the operation of tractor stations was carried out locally in a short period of time, during the year. Ultimately, all this affected the economic situation of collective farms and artels, and some of the transferred agricultural machinery needed to be repaired, and, in addition, problems such as the availability of machine personnel arose. The presented material is supported by a set of citations and statistical data with links to primary sources. The main sources were archival documents and materials from the Russian State Archive of Economics (RGAE). F. 4372. (State Planning Committee of the Council of Ministers of the USSR (Gosplan of the USSR); State Archive of the Russian Federation (GARF). F. A310. (Ministry of Agriculture); Russian State Archive of Modern History (RGANI). F. 2. (Khrushchev’s “thaw” in the documents of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the CPSU) and from the regional State Archive of the modern history of the Ulyanovsk region (GANI UO), the main focus was on cases from Fund 8, the Ulyanovsk Regional Committee of the CPSU and the affairs of rural district committees of the CPSU. The results of the research can be used in scientific, practical and local history work, as well as in the development of lessons on the history of the native land in higher and secondary educational institutions of the Ulyanovsk region.

Keywords: Machine and tractor stations (MTS), Ulyanovsk region, collective farm, artel, tractor, reorganization, Central Committee of the CPSU

Trukhin M.A. (Barnaul). Involving the Public in the Fight Against Speculation in the Altai Territory in 1965–1982

MAXIM ANATOLYEVICH TRUKHIN

Director of the Altai Institute of Economics

Saint Petersburg University of Technology Management and Economics Candidate of Legal Sciences, Associate Professor

656011, Russia, Barnaul, Lenin Ave., 106e

e-mail: trukhin1975@bk.ru

Abstract. From the very beginning of the Soviet socialist state, the need for a ruthless fight against various forms of speculation, caused by the existing shortages of goods and services in the country and the ban on any entrepreneurial activity, arose. During the Soviet period, law enforcement agencies actively collaborated with the local population, engaging various public organizations in the Altai Krai to conduct raids and roundups, establish order in markets and bazaars, and obtain information about those engaged in illegal activities. Emphasis was placed on engaging representatives of volunteer public guards, members of committees, groups, and public control posts, Komsomol task forces, freelance employees of the OBKhSS, Young Friends of the Police organizations, and Pioneer and veterans organizations. Attempts were made in the region to expand the intelligence network (comprising employees in retail outlets, warehouses, and storage facilities, as well as individuals involved in illegal trade activities). The information obtained from them was used to uncover thefts and arrest individuals involved in speculative operations in the region. Preventive work was conducted among the population regarding the inadmissibility of committing economic crimes and the imposition of unspecified penalties for such actions by law enforcement agencies.

Keywords: Militia, speculators, struggle, population, public organizations, Altai Krai

Kotov N.S. (Voronezh). The Role of the Voronezh Voluntary Society for Assistance to the Fleet in Organizing the Training of Personnel for the Soviet Navy

NIKITA SERGEEVICH KOTOV

PhD student, Voronezh State Technical University,

394006, 20th Anniversary of October Street, 84, Voronezh,

e-mail: n1kitakotow98@yandex.ru

Abstract. The presented study, based on documents from the State Archive of Socio-Political History of the Voronezh Region, provides an analysis of the work of the Voronezh branch of the Society for Assistance to the Fleet in training naval reserves in the post-war period. The interests of the state in the field of training military reserves required expanding the training opportunities for future military personnel. One of the options for forming military-trained reserves was the system of voluntary defense societies. The basis for training naval personnel was laid by the previous defense society – OSOAVIAKhIM. In the primary organizations of the Society, groups of 10-15 people were created for in-depth training in various military specialties. It was this experience in training and retraining military reserves that was used by DOSFLOT. The author emphasizes that the Society’s experience in this area is positive, as during its work it managed to fulfill or exceed the tasks set before it. The author also draws attention to the disadvantages that arose during the implementation of this task: training of mandatory contingents was assigned in the absence of qualified personnel and the necessary funds for its implementation; the spending of funds was carried out irrationally; weak connections between educational centers and primary organizations; poorly composed curriculum, etc.

Keywords: Society for Voluntary Assistance to the Fleet, Voronezh Region, post-war period, defense and mass work, Armed Forces

Volgin E.I., Beryozkina O.S. (Moscow). The Formation of a New Social Structure in Post-Soviet Russia During the Initial Years of Market Reforms (1992–1995)

EVGENY IGOREVICH VOLGIN

Associate Professor, Department of History of Social Movements and Political Parties, Faculty of History,

Lomonosov Moscow State University

Candidate of Political Sciences, Associate Professor

Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU), Faculty of History,

119234, 27-4 Lomonosovsky Prospect, Moscow, Russia

e-mail: odpp@mail.ru

BEREZKINA OKSANA STEPANOVNA

Associate Professor, Department of History of Social Movements and Political Parties, Faculty of History,

Lomonosov Moscow State University

Candidate of Political Sciences, Associate Professor

Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU), Faculty of History,

119234, 27-4 Lomonosovsky Prospect, Moscow, Russia

e-mail: odpp@mail.ru

Abstract. This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the transformation of the social structure in the Russian Federation during the period of radical market reforms from 1992 to 1995. Drawing on a wide range of sources, including official statistics, government programs, and academic research, the authors trace the process of dismantling the Soviet social model and the formation of a new, highly polarized system of stratification.

The study focuses on societal stratification, which led to the emergence of a narrow stratum of the super-rich (“new Russians” and oligarchs) at one pole, and the mass impoverishment of a significant part of the population, along with the phenomenon of the “new poor,” at the other. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of such key groups as the emerging middle class, “shuttle traders” (chelnoki), and public sector workers. The causes and consequences of such phenomena as “shock therapy”, hyperinflation, systemic wage arrears, and the criminalization of the economy are examined.

The authors conclude that the reforms resulted in a profound social revolution, the consequences of which—persistent wealth inequality and the deformation of social capital – continue to significantly influence contemporary Russian society.

Keywords: social stratification, post-Soviet Russia, market reforms, “shock therapy,” social inequality, “new poor,” privatization, criminalization of the economy

Ksenofontov D.D. (Moscow). The Phenomenon of the Success of the Electoral Bloc “Unity” (“Bear”) in the Elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation in 1999

DENIS DMITRIEVICH KSENOFONTOV

Postgraduate student of the Faculty of History of Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov in the direction: Russian history;

119234, Lomonosovsky Prospekt, 27, building 4, Moscow, Faculty of History of Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov;

e-mail: ksenofontov.d@list.ru

Abstract. The article is devoted to the analysis of the success of the success of the electoral block “Unity” (“Bear”) in the elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation in 1999. Despite the existing array of studies on party construction and the general history of the Bloc, the author focuses on an insufficiently studied aspect-the role of a media strategy and information political technologies in achieving an unity of unexpected electoral result. The aim of the work is to identify a set of key factors in the success of “unity”, with an emphasis on the formation of its positive image and discrediting the chief opponent – the “Fatherland – All Russia” block (OVR). The methodology is based on historical-comprehensive and historical-genetic methods, as well as the theory of political image, the concept of the application of information and political technologies. The source base was compiled by the materials of monitoring of print media and television programs for the period of the election campaign. The study demonstrates that the success of “unity” was due not to software or ideological advantages, but by the integrated use of administrative, media and political technological resources. The key factors were: a thorough selection and promotion of the “first three” candidates (S. Shoigu, A. Karelin, A. Gurov) who personified salvation, strength and order; open support from the side of the rapidly gaining popularity of the government of V.V. Putin, whose authority was transferred to the block; and massive support from the leading Russian television channels (ORT, RTR), which formed a positive image of “unity” and at the same time carried out a campaign to discredit the leaders of the OVR. The conclusion is concluded that the “unity” managed to intercept the electorate among the “OVR” thanks to a powerful media support, which created a convincing image of the new “party in power”, which can lead the country out of the crisis, in the conditions of a favorable socio-political situation at the end of 1999.

Keywords: the electoral block “Unity” (“Bear”), the electoral block “Fatherland-all of Russia” (“OVR”), elections-1999, image, information and political technologies, V.V. Putin

Lezik E.V., Lagoyko A.G., Prishchepa A.S. (St. Petersburg). Digitalization of Russia’s Historical Space: Practices of Preserving the Memory of the Great Patriotic War

ELENA VITALIEVNA LEZIK

director of the State Memorial Museum of the Defense and Blockade of Leningrad,

191028, Solaynoy lane, 9, St. Peterburg,

e-mail: gmmobl@mail.ru

ANASTASIA GENNADIEVNA LAGOYKO

senior lecture, Peter the Great Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University,

195251, Politehnicheskaya street, 29, liter. B, St. Peterburg

e-mail: lagojko_ag@spbstu.ru

ALEXANDER SERGEEVICH PRISHCHEPA

Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor, Peter the Great St Petersburg Polytechnic University,

195251, Politehnicheskaya street, 29, liter. B, St. Peterburg,

researcher, The Institute of History of the Defence and the Blockade of Leningrad of the State Memorial Museum of the Defense and Blockade of Leningrad,

191028, Solaynoy lane, 9, St. Peterburg,

e-mail: a.prischepa@list.ru

Abstract. The article examines the development of digital history in Russia through the example of national practices of preserving the memory of the Great Patriotic War. The research is based on an interdisciplinary approach that combines historical studies, archival and museum practices, and methods of digital humanities. The aim of the study is to identify the features of formation and functioning of Russian digital memorial projects in the context of the transformation of historical knowledge in the digital era. The study employs content analysis of digital resources to determine their structure, thematic composition, and level of accessibility for users. Statistical analysis was applied to assess the attendance rates and the dynamics of interaction with online archival collections, while the examination of regional projects was conducted using the case study method. Particular attention is paid to the critical assessment of the reliability of digital data, including cases of duplication, technical digitization errors, and incomplete information, which corresponds to modern standards of historical source verification. Based on the materials of federal projects, regional programs, and museum digital initiatives, it is shown that the Russian model of digital memory combines state strategies with local forms of civic participation. The legal and institutional frameworks are considered as key factors in shaping the infrastructure of digital memory. Special attention is given to the activities of the State Memorial Museum of the Defense and Siege of Leningrad, which has become one of the leading centers of digital transformation within the historical and memorial space. The authors conclude that the Russian experience is characterized by scale and systemic organization, allowing Russia to be regarded as one of the leaders in the digital preservation of historical and cultural heritage.

Keywords: digital history, historical memory, digitalization, State Memorial Museum of the Defense and Siege of Leningrad, Great Patriotic War

Kozhukhar A.Yu. (Moscow). The Activities of Vasily Ivanovich Agapkin as a Musician and Conductor (1894–1964)

ALEXEY YURIEVICH KOZHUKHAR

Assistant to the Head of the Academic Order “For Merits

in Culture and Art” of the Song and Dance Ensemble

of the National Guard of the Russian Federation

107031, Moscow, Bolshaya Lubyanka St., 13/16

e-mail: alexeiriabtzev@yandex.ru

Abstract. This article is dedicated to the creative journey of Colonel V.I. Agapkin, a Russian and Soviet military conductor and composer, the author of the famous Russian march “Farewell to the Slavonic,” during the period from 1894 to 1964. His creative talent manifested itself in the fact that, having graduated from a music school, he managed to achieve results that are not typical for graduates of higher music education institutions: he wrote over three dozen musical compositions, recorded almost three dozen records, trained several military conductors and a large number of musicians, and transformed the orchestra of the Central School of the OGPU from a school band into the Model Orchestra of the Higher School of the KGB of the USSR. Thanks to Agapkin’s talent and hard work, his orchestra gained a strong foothold among military bands performing at central venues in Moscow and secured a long-term residency at the Hermitage Garden. The relevance of this article is due to the lack of accurate data in historical sources.

Keywords: musician, military conductor, composer and bandmaster V.I. Agapkin, biography, service in the OGPU- NKVD- MGB- KGB of the USSR

Medushevsky N.A. (Moscow). Ludwig Adzaklo as a Representative of the African Intelligentsia at the End of the 19th – Beginning of the 20th Centuries: A Biographical Analysis (Part 1)

NIKOLAY ANDREEVICH MEDUSHEVSKY

Doctor of Political Science, Professor

Russian State Humanitarian University

125047, Moscow, Miusskaya sq., 6.

Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia

117198, Moscow, Miklukho-Maklaya st., 6.

e-mail: Lucky5659@yandex.ru

Abstract. This article presents the first part of a biographical study of Ludwig Adzaklo, an African public figure from the early twentieth century. It focuses on the period of his life until 1904, including his education at the Bremen Mission, which was active during that time in German Togoland. Examining this stage of Adzaklo’s life uncovers not only the beginnings of his personal career but also the institutional context that enabled its development. This context includes the organizational activities of the Bremen Mission in the Christianization of the local population, as well as the education and training of local personnel who were essential for extending regional influence. The case of Ludwig Adzaklo is particularly illustrative due to his remarkable academic accomplishments and subsequent integration into the mission system, which led to his involvement in the strategic project of translating the Old Testament into Ewe language and ultimately culminated in his appointment as director of the Bremen Mission Seminary in Togoland in 1917. This study also highlights the Bremen Mission’s institutional model, especially its focus on educating and nurturing the indigenous population in their native language, supported by the formalization of this language and the development of its grammar.

Keywords: Ludwig Adzaklo, German Togoland, Bremen mission, Ewe, protestant mission, African intellectuals