For nineteenth century Russians, France was the model civilization. The model polity too. James Billington ( Fire in the Minds of Men: Origins of the Revolutionary Faith ) points out that the early revolutionary upheavals in Russia were inspired by a Western revolutionary nationalism that was ultimately of French origin. The connections with France were personal and pervasive:
“The original Union of Salvation was formed in 1816 among Russian officers traveling back and forth to France at precisely the time Rey founded his model Union. Once against, the Russians developed similar plans for working through Masonic lodges with a secret, three-stage hierarchy . . . . The special commission that investigated the Decembrists during the first half of 1826 after their doomed uprising suggested that their regional organization was modeled on the five regional ventes of the French Carbonari. Moreover, the Italians were so well informed of the plans of the Russian movement and so optimistic about its potential that they continued to expect a second and conclusive uprising by the Decembrists in the spring of 1826.”
It’s one of the ironies of Russian history that much of its anti-Western “Russia for Russians” took its inspiration from the West.
Peter Leithart
Peter J. Leithart is President of Theopolis Institute. He is the author of numerous books on theology, literature, and culture, including Theopolitan, Defending Constantine, and Baptized Body.
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