God, Tsar, and People : : The Political Culture of Early Modern Russia / / Daniel B. Rowland.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Cornell University Press Complete eBook-Package 2020
• VerfasserIn: Rowland, Daniel B.,
• TeilnehmendeR: Martin, Russell E.
• MitwirkendeR: Martin, Russell E.,
• Place / Publishing House: Ithaca, NY : : Cornell University Press, , [2020]; ©2020
• Year of Publication: 2020
• Language: English
• Series: NIU Series in Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (420 p.) :; 47 b&w halftones, 14 b&w line drawings, 1 chart

God, Tsar, and People brings together in one volume essays written over a period of fifty years, using a wide variety of evidence-texts, icons, architecture, and ritual-to reveal how early modern Russians (1450-1700) imagined their rapidly changing political world.This volume presents a more nuanced picture of Russian political thought during the two centuries before Peter the Great came to power than is typically available. The state was expanding at a dizzying rate, and atop Russia's traditional political structure sat a ruler who supposedly reflected God's will. The problem facing Russians was that actual rulers seldom-or never-exhibited the required perfection. Daniel Rowland argues that this contradictory set of ideas was far less autocratic in both theory and practice than modern stereotypes would have us believe. In comparing and contrasting Russian history with that of Western European states, Rowland is also questioning the notion that Russia has always been, and always viewed itself as, an authoritarian country. God, Tsar, and People explores how the Russian state in this period kept its vast lands and diverse subjects united in a common view of a Christian polity, defending its long frontier against powerful enemies from the East and from the West.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- A Brief Note on Transliteration and Our Editorial Policy -- Foreword: Pathbreaking and Paradigm-Shifting -- The Textual: Breaking the Code -- Adding the Visual: Investigating Art and Architecture -- Summing Up: What Our Work Means -- Index