Lost Kingdom: The Quest for Empire and the Making of the Russian Nation

by Serhii Plokhy

Overview

From a preeminent scholar of Eastern Europe and the prizewinning author of Chernobyl, the essential history of Russian imperialism.

In 2014, Russia annexed the Crimea and attempted to seize a portion of Ukraine -- only the latest iteration of a centuries-long effort to expand Russian boundaries and create a pan-Russian nation. In Lost Kingdom, award-winning historian Serhii Plokhy argues that we can only understand the confluence of Russian imperialism and nationalism today by delving into the nation's history. Spanning over 500 years, from the end of the Mongol rule to the present day, Plokhy shows how leaders from Ivan the Terrible to Joseph Stalin to Vladimir Putin exploited existing forms of identity, warfare, and territorial expansion to achieve imperial supremacy.

An authoritative and masterful account of Russian nationalism, Lost Kingdom chronicles the story behind Russia's belligerent empire-building quest.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780465098491
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	10/10/2017
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	176,604
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.70(d)

About the Author

Serhii Plokhy is the Mykhailo Hrushevsky Professor of Ukrainian History and director of the Ukrainian Research Institute at Harvard University. The New York Times bestselling author of  The Gates of Europe and Nuclear Folly, Plokhy is an award-winning author of numerous books. He lives in Burlington, Massachusetts.

Table of Contents

Introduction vii

List of Maps xiii

I Inventing Russia

1 The Birth of the Tsardom 3

2 The Third Rome 19

3 The Imperial Nation 37

II The Reunification of Rus'

4 The Enlightened Empress 55

5 The Polish Challenge 71

6 The Battle for the Borderlands 85

III The Tripartite Nation

7 The Advent of Ukraine 105

8 Great, Little, and White 121

9 Killing the Language 137

IV The Revolution of Nations

10 The People's Song 157

11 The Fall of the Monarchy 175

12 The Russian Revolution 191

V The Unbreakable Union

13 Lenin's Victory 211

14 National Communism 227

15 The Return of Russia 245

16 The Great Patriotic War 259

17 The Soviet People 277

VI The New Russia

18 Red Flag Down 299

19 The Russian World 317

20 The Russian War 333

Epilogue 347

Acknowledgments 353

Notes 355

Bibliography 369

Index 379

Editorial Reviews

★ 08/21/2017
Plokhy (The Man with the Poison Gun), director of Harvard’s Ukrainian Research Institute, eloquently relates the historical ebbs and flows of Russian nationalism and imperialism. Condensing more than six centuries into 20 well-focused chapters, Plokhy shows how Russia has invented and reinvented itself, beginning with Ivan III, who in the 15th century claimed the title of ruler of “all Rus’ ” upon defeating the Mongol khans. Myth played a major role in establishing the early czars by linking them to the “Scandinavian Rurikid dynasty,” which successfully ruled Kyivan Rus’—territory that roughly includes present-day Western Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine—from 980 to 1240. Plokhy suggests that Russia’s preoccupation with this legacy became a persistent national headache, requiring many refabrications over several centuries and leading to many territorial conflicts. He describes how imperial leaders used these conflicts, as well as language and religion, to dominate other Slavic and non-Slavic peoples and lands. His coverage of the Russian revolution and the Soviet era includes a fascinating chapter on Stalin and the Kyivan myth, and he surveys the post-Soviet resurgence of nationalism. Plokhy’s thorough historical analysis places President Vladimir Putin’s 21st-century foreign policy in a firm historical context. Maps. Agent: Jill Kneerim, Kneerim & Williams Literary. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

"[A] sweeping study... Mr. Plokhy seeks to explain the centrality of the so-called western provinces to Russian identity. This is not merely an intellectual exercise but one closely linked to contemporary geostrategic debates. As Mr. Plokhy writes: 'The question of where Russia begins and ends, and who constitutes the Russian people, has preoccupied Russian thinkers for centuries.' ... his study...show[s] why this question is of such importance."—Wall Street Journal

“Lucid and well-paced.”—Times Higher Education

"The kind of magisterial history that only a seasoned historian with full command of his field can write... [a] masterful text."—Russian Review

“[F]ascinating and constantly stimulating.”—Slavic Review

“Engaging… Plokhy paints a rich and colorful picture of the historical events that influenced debates about Russia’s conception of its geopolitical position.”—Michigan War Studies Review

"Plokhy eloquently relates the historical ebbs and flows of Russian nationalism and imperialism... [his] thorough historical analysis places President Vladimir Putin's 21st-century foreign policy in a firm historical context."—Publishers Weekly, starred review

"A timely work of impeccable research that elucidates the Russian impulse toward regaining lost lands under a powerful myth of origins.... Plokhy continues to show that he is the master of this terrain."—Kirkus Reviews

"In Lost Kingdom, Serhii Plokhy does for Russia what only great historians can do — make the connections between the distant past and vital present feel relevant and alive. He brings Russia's centuries of struggle with nationalism and imperialism into the near focus of Vladimir Putin's ongoing invasion of Ukraine and annexation of Crimea. Lost Kingdom carefully and colorfully relates how the fires of history and myth burned from before the first tsars to Peter the Great, through the Bolsheviks, World War II, and the fall of the Soviet Union. With Russia everywhere in the news today, and every pundit pretending to be an expert, Lost Kingdom is essential reading for those wishing to understand Russia beyond the headlines."
—Garry Kasparov, author of Winter Is Coming: Why Vladimir Putin and the Enemies of the Free World Must Be Stopped

"Lost Kingdom is an erudite exploration of the contradictions of Russian nationalism, whose history shows it to be both inclusive and exclusive, universalistic and identitarian, often in quick succession or even simultaneously. A master historian on top of his game, Serhii Plokhy lays out the challenges this past presents for transforming Russia into a better country for its people and its neighbors."
—Odd Arne Westad, author of The Cold War: A World History

“Learned, engaging, and timely, Lost Kingdom recounts in fascinating detail the story of the Russian nation across several tumultuous centuries, from its earliest days up to the regime of Vladimir Putin. Internationally acclaimed historian Serhii Plokhy knows his subject like few others, and he writes with aplomb and a keen eye for the ironies, contingencies, and tragedies of this history. A book that should be read by everyone seeking to understand Russia today.”
 —Douglas Smith, author of Rasputin: Faith, Power, and the Twilight of the Romanovs

“That said, to Plokhy’s enormous credit, he shows us these spirited contestations with ab-solute mastery. Though written with grace for a wide audience and spanning five centuries in just 350 pages, this is a subtle, precise, and deeply learned book.”—Willard Sunderland, Journal of Modern History

From the Publisher

09/15/2017
In his latest work, Plokhy (history, Harvard Univ.; The Last Empire: The Final Days of the Soviet Union) offers readers a better understanding of modern Russia by reviewing the country from its early years to the present. The author provides an in-depth look at different eras in Soviet history, from Mongolian rule in the 1400s to the pivotal revolution in the 20th century. Along the way, he connects the motives and behaviors of past rulers Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin to those of current president Vladimir Putin. The narrative connects Russia's rich past to today's political and social climate and uses this history to provide context for the nation's relationships with Crimea and Ukraine. Notably, the author offers insight into the motivations of the present administration and shape of the region. Plokhy explains how other countries have moved on from the desire to create and maintain empires while Russia continues to focus on re-creating its romanticized past. VERDICT Recommended for anyone who enjoys world history, particularly relating to Russia or Eurasia.—Sonnet Ireland, St. Tammany Parish P.L., Mandeville, LA

Library Journal

2017-07-17
A timely work of impeccable research that elucidates the Russian impulse toward regaining lost lands under a powerful myth of origins.With Russia having recently moved aggressively into Ukraine and Crimea, the history of Russian nationalism is worth revisiting. In this deeply detailed history, Plokhy (Director, Ukrainian Research Institute, Harvard Univ.; The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine, 2015, etc.) recognizes 15th-century ruler Ivan III as the self-declared scion to "all Rus" lands, retaken after challenging the Mongol khans. Ivan also made the first connection as heir to Byzantium by marrying the niece of the last Byzantine emperor. Ivan declared his sovereignty over the lands of Mongol Rus, which included not only Moscow, but extended to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. As the Orthodox Church consolidated its holdings, Ukraine and Belarus were incorporated into the Commonwealth, instigating the terminology "Great" and "Little" Rus, while " ‘White Rus' (Belarus) was added to the tsar's title in 1655." These reflected the political upheavals in the region and gave the Muscovy elite the first sense of themselves as a true nation. Peter the Great's victory at Poltava in 1709, as well as subsequent victories, helped him to control "the national discourse, with its emphasis on the fatherland, the nation, and the common good." Indeed, in 1721, he received the appellations "All-Russian Emperor" and "Father of the Fatherland." Plokhy pursues the flimsy cohesion of this "tripartite nation" over the subsequent centuries, as Ukraine's sense of selfhood and distinct language emerged primarily in the mid-19th century, challenging the official Russian version of nation and state. During the Revolution of 1917, Vladimir Lenin, unlike Stalin, rejected the "great-power chauvinism" of a Russian Federation of states. Lenin was in favor of allowing Ukraine to branch off as a distinct entity, while Stalin's subsequent "indigenization policy" was soon reversed as it collided with political repression. A dense history that may lose readers not versed in Russian history, but for students and scholars, Plokhy continues to show that he is the master of this terrain.

Kirkus Reviews