“Make Known”: Historical Memory, Politics of Memory and Historical Monuments of the Russian Empire
https://doi.org/10.25205/1818-7919-2023-22-8-70-80
Abstract
Historical memory is a necessary element of the nation-building process. It has various forms of realization, including visual ones. The article discusses one of the forms of visualization of historical memory through specific historical places – officially confirmed historical monuments. The author proves the thesis that the list of national historical monuments depended on the history politics implemented by the authorities and considers the evolution of this politics from 1826 (the first decree of Emperor Nicholas I on compiling in Russia a list of historical monuments, this was done by the Ministry of the Interior) until 1917. Initially, the authorities sought to recreate the picture of the historical past by fixing the surviving monuments. However historical politics was changing in the late 19th – early 20th centuries. The purpose of the empire was to present Russian history as the apotheosis of the Romanov dynasty, especially its last representatives (Alexander II, Alexander III, Nicholas II). Therefore, according to their description of 1901–1903, most historical monuments were modern monuments to the last emperors and members of the imperial family. They were not historical monuments in the true sense of the term. It was an ideological, a propaganda campaign. The author draws attention to its inefficiency; these monuments could not improve the image of the Romanovs in the eyes of society. The author draws attention to the similarity of the principles of visualization of history through historical monuments in the Russian Empire and the USSR. In both cases, an ideological basis shaped the history politics, which was less about preserving historical memory and more about ideology and channeling specific ideas through selected monuments. Moreover, in both cases, it was a cause of inefficiency of history politics.
Supporting agencies: The research was carried out with financial support of Russian Science Foundation within the framework of a scientific project no. 21-48-04402
About the Author
A. I. Filyushkin
St. Petersburg State University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Alexander I. Filyushkin, Doctor of Sciences (History), Associate Professor,
Scopus Author ID 55336577600,
WoS Researcher ID F-9139-2013,
Saint Petersburg.
References
1. Allen D. New Directions in the Study of Nation-Building: Views through the Lens of Path Dependence. International Studies Review, 2010, vol. 12, no. 3, p. 413–429.
2. Belinsky V. G. Sochineniya Derzhavina [Derzhavin’s Writings]. In: Belinsky V. G. Polnoe sobranie sochinenii [The Complete Works]. In 13 vols. Moscow, 1955, vol. 6, pp. 582–658. (in Russ.)
3. Dianina K. The Return of History: Museum, Heritage, and National Identity in Imperial Russia. Journal of Eurasian Studies, 2010, vol. 1, no. 2, p. 111–118.
4. Eidson J. Which Past for Whom? Local Memory in a German Community during the Era of Nation Building. Ethos, 2000, vol. 28, no. 4, p. 575–607.
5. Feindt G., Krawatzek F., Mehler D. Entangled Memory: Toward a Third Wave in Memory Studies. History and Theory, 2014, vol. 53, no. 1, p. 24–44.
6. Filyushkin A. (ed.) Mobilizovannoe Srednevekov’e: v 2 t. T. II: Srednevekovaya istoriya na sluzhbe natsional’noi i gosudarstvennoi ideologii v Rossii [Mobilized Middle Ages: in 2 vols. Vol. II: Medieval History in the Service of National and State Ideology in Russia]. St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg State University, 2022, 523 p. (in Russ.)
7. Formozov A. A. Kogda i kak skladyvalis’ sovremennye predstavleniya o pamyatnikakh russkoi istorii [When and How Did Modern Ideas about the Monuments of Russian History Take Shape?]. Voprosy istorii [Questions of History], 1976, no. 10, p. 203–209. (in Russ.)
8. Formozov A. A. Stranitsy istorii russkoi arkheologii [Pages of the History of Russian Archaeology]. Moscow, Nauka Publ., 1986, 240 p. (in Russ.)
9. Gervits M. Historicism, Nationalism and Museum Architecture in Russia from the 19th to the Turn of the 20th Century. Visual Resources, 2011, vol. 27, no. 1, p. 32–47.
10. Glagolev A. G. Kratkoe obozrenie drevnikh russkikh zdanii i drugikh otechestvennykh pamyatnikov, sostavlyaemoe pri Ministerstve vnutrennikh del A. Glagolevym [A Brief Overview of Ancient Russian Buildings and Other Domestic Monuments, Compiled by A. Glagolev at the Ministry of Internal Affairs]. St. Petersburg, Tipografiya MVD, 1838, pt. 1, copybook 1: O russkikh krepostyakh [About Russian Fortresses], 52 p. (in Russ.)
11. Harvey D. Heritage Pasts and Heritage Presents: Temporality, Meaning and the Scope of Heritage Studies. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 2001, vol. 7, no. 4, p. 319–338.
12. Kiryanov I. A. Klassifikatsiya, printsipy otbora i vyyavleniya pamyatnikov trudovoi slavy sovetskogo naroda [Classification, Principles of Selection and Identification of Monuments of Labor Glory of the Soviet People]. In: Pamyatniki trudovoi slavy sovetskogo naroda [Monuments of Labor Glory of the Soviet People]. Gorky, 1979, p. 5–7. (in Russ.)
13. Kulemzin A. M. Okhrana pamyatnikov v Rossii [Monuments Protection in Russia]. Tomsk, Izdanie MU “Tomsk istoricheskii”, 1999, 159 p. (in Russ.)
14. Kuzio T. History, Memory and Nation Building in the Post-Soviet Colonial Space. Nationalities Papers, 2002, vol. 30, no. 2, p. 241–264.
15. Leontyeva O. B. Kak reforma stala Velikoi: otmena krepostnogo prava kak “mesto pamyati” v istoricheskoi kul’ture imperatorskoi Rossii [How the Reform Became Great: The Abolition of Serfdom as a “Place of Memory” in the Historical Culture of Imperial Russia]. Dialog so vremenem [Dialogue with Time], 2016, vol. 56, p. 229–245. (in Russ)
16. Metzger F. Devotion and Memory – Discourses and Practices. Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte, 2018, bd. 31, h. 2, p. 329–347.
17. Mikhailovsky E. V. Restavratsiya pamyatnikov arkhitektury [Restoration of Architectural Monuments]. In: Vosstanovlenie pamyatnikov kul’tury: problemy restavratsii [Restoration of Cultural Monuments: Problems of Restoration]. Moscow, 1981, p. 20–37. (in Russ.)
18. Novikov N. I. Obshchie zamechaniya o puteshestviyakh [General Remarks about Travels]. In: Pokoyashchiisya trudolyubets [Resting Hard Worker]. St. Petersburg, 1784, pt. 2, pp. 125–134. (in Russ.)
19. Pravilova E. A Public Empire: Property and the Quest for the Common Good in Imperial Russia. Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2014, 435 p.
20. Rabotkevich A. V. Gosudarstvennaya politika v oblasti okhrany pamyatnikov istorii i kul’tury v Rossii v XVIII – nachale XX veka [Government Policy on Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments in Russia in the 18th – Early 20th Century]. Thesis. Cand. Cult. Moscow, 1999, 295 p. (in Russ.)
21. Radstone S., Schwarz B. (eds.). Memory: Histories, Theories, Debates. New York, New York Fordham Univ. Press, 2011, 561 p.
22. Razgon A. M. Okhrana istoricheskikh pamyatnikov v dorevolyutsionnoi Rossii (1861–1917) [Protection of Historical Monuments in Pre-Revolutionary Russia (1861–1917)]. In: Trudy NII muzeevedeniya [Proceedings of the Institute of Museology], 1957, vol. 1. Istoriya muzeinogo dela v SSSR [History of Museology in USSR], p. 73–128. (in Russ.)
23. Razgon A. M. Okhrana istoricheskikh pamyatnikov v dorevolyutsionnoi Rossii (XVIII v. – pervaya polovina XIX v.) [Protection of Historical Monuments in Pre-Revolutionary Russia (18th Century – 1 st Half of the 20th Century)]. Trudy NII Kul’tury [Proceedings of the Institute of Culture], 1971, vol. 7. Ocherki po istorii muzeinogo dela v Rossii [Essays on the History of Museology in Russia], p. 292–365. (in Russ.)
24. Rothermund D. (ed.). Memories of Post-Imperial Nations: The Aftermath of Decolonization, 1945–2013. Heidelberg, Universität Heidelberg, 2015, 212 p.
25. Van Sledright B. Narratives of Nation-State, Historical Knowledge, and School History Education. Review of Research in Education, 2008, vol. 32, p. 109–146.
26. Wawrzyniak J., Pakier M. Memory Studies in Eastern Europe: Key Issues and Future Perspectives. Polish Sociological Review, 2013, no. 183, p. 257–279.
Review
For citations:
Filyushkin A.I. “Make Known”: Historical Memory, Politics of Memory and Historical Monuments of the Russian Empire. Vestnik NSU. Series: History and Philology. 2023;22(8):70-80. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.25205/1818-7919-2023-22-8-70-80
Views:
249
Email this article 