Russia is famous for its vodka, and its culture of extreme intoxication. But just as vodka is central to the lives of many Russians, it is also central to understanding Russian history and politics. In Vodka Politics, Mark Lawrence Schrad argues that debilitating societal alcoholism is not hard-wired into Russians' genetic code, but rather their autocratic political system, which has long wielded vodka as a tool of statecraft. Through a series of historical investigations stretching from Ivan the Terrible through Vladimir Putin, Vodka Politics presents the secret history of the Russian state itself-a history that is drenched in liquor. Scrutinizing (rather than dismissing) the role of alcohol in Russian politics yields a more nuanced understanding of Russian history itself: from palace intrigues under the tsars to the drunken antics of Soviet and post-Soviet leadership, vodka is there in abundance. Beyond vivid anecdotes, Schrad scours original documents and archival evidence to answer provocative historical questions. How have Russia's rulers used alcohol to solidify their autocratic rule? What role did alcohol play in tsarist coups? Was Nicholas II's ill-fated prohibition a catalyst for the Bolshevik Revolution? Could the Soviet Union have become a world power without liquor? How did vodka politics contribute to the collapse of both communism and public health in the 1990s? How can the Kremlin overcome vodka's hurdles to produce greater social well-being, prosperity, and democracy into the future? Viewing Russian history through the bottom of the vodka bottle helps us to understand why the "liquor question" remains important to Russian high politics even today-almost a century after the issue had been put to bed in most every other modern state. Indeed, recognizing and confronting vodka's devastating political legacies may be the greatest political challenge for this generation of Russia's leadership, as well as the next.

Excerpt from Education and Autocracy in Russia: From the Origins to the Bolsheviki In view of present social and political conditions, pointing to the beginning of the growth of a closer relationship between the old world and the new. it becomes more imperative than ever that mutual understanding and knowledge be the basis of the new relationship. The history of Russian education, from an interpretative point of view, has scarcely been begun, even in Russia, though the materials for it have been collected. It is intended that this first survey shall be followed by other investigations giving, for the various periods, a more detailed account than has been possible in this broader analysis. I am glad to express my appreciation for the aid and encouragement which have been given me. Professors Monroe, Kilpatrick and Kandel of Teachers' College have been particularly kind, while to Professor Prince of the Russian Department of Columbia University I owe my first introduction, some five years ago. to the language and the affairs of Russia. I am also under obligation to my many Russian friends who, however much they have differed in political and social creeds have, one and all, exemplified a spirit of service in giving many hours of their time to a foreigner who had no other claim than a sincere and friendly interest in their land and language. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

A devastating challenge to the idea of communism as a 'great leveller', this extraordinarily original, rigorous, and ambitious book debunks Marxism-inspired accounts of its equalitarian consequences. It is the first study systematically to link the genesis of the 'bourgeoisie-cum-middle class' – Imperial, Soviet, and post-communist – to Tzarist estate institutions which distinguished between nobility, clergy, the urban merchants and meshchane, and peasants. It demonstrates how the pre-communist bourgeoisie, particularly the merchant and urban commercial strata but also the high human capital aristocracy and clergy, survived and adapted in Soviet Russia. Under both Tzarism and communism, the estate system engendered an educated, autonomous bourgeoisie and professional class, along with an oppositional public sphere, and persistent social cleavages that continue to plague democratic consensus. This book also shows how the middle class, conventionally bracketed under one generic umbrella, is often two-pronged in nature – one originating among the educated estates of feudal orders, and the other fabricated as part of state-induced modernization.

Revised and updated for the 2008 OCR AS specification.

The first book to trace the evolution of Russian politics from the Bolsheviks to Putin When the Soviet Union collapsed, many hoped that Russia's centuries-long history of autocratic rule might finally end. Yet today’s Russia appears to be retreating from democracy, not progressing toward it. Ruling Russia is the only book of its kind to trace the history of modern Russian politics from the Bolshevik Revolution to the presidency of Vladimir Putin. It examines the complex evolution of communist and post-Soviet leadership in light of the latest research in political science, explaining why the democratization of Russia has all but failed. William Zimmerman argues that in the 1930s the USSR was totalitarian but gradually evolved into a normal authoritarian system, while the post-Soviet Russian Federation evolved from a competitive authoritarian to a normal authoritarian system in the first decade of the twenty-first century. He traces how the selectorate—those empowered to choose the decision makers—has changed across different regimes since the end of tsarist rule. The selectorate was limited in the period after the revolution, and contracted still further during Joseph Stalin’s dictatorship, only to expand somewhat after his death. Zimmerman also assesses Russia’s political prospects in future elections. He predicts that while a return to totalitarianism in the coming decade is unlikely, so too is democracy. Rich in historical detail, Ruling Russia is the first book to cover the entire period of the regime changes from the Bolsheviks to Putin, and is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand why Russia still struggles to implement lasting democratic reforms.

First Published in 1992. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

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Unlike contemporary Soviet and Western accounts which emphasize the involvement of educated women in the revolutionary movement, Christine Johanson investigates the relationship between developments in women's education and domestic politics of the post-Crimean War era. The author shows how the particular nature of autocratic rule under Alexander II facilitated the establishment of university-level courses for women, and demonstrates that Russian women who cooperated with the government in order to increase their educational opportunities far outnumbered the female revolutionists who sought to overthrow it. And, while acknowledging that Russian radicalism gave enormous encouragement to women's pursuit of university study, this book shows that it was the support of progressive statesmen and academics which allowed the creation of higher educational facilities for women. The attitudes, aspirations, and frustrations of women who enrolled in these educational facilities are also examined. Considerable attention is given to the training and practice of female physicians and to the testing of their skills and commitment to social service in tradition-bound peasant villages and the field hospitals of the Russo-Turkish war. The concluding chapter explored the conservative reaction following the assassination of Alexander II and the subsequent closure of women's advanced educational facilities.