Though the Decembrist rising against the Tsar was quickly put down, writes Michael Whittock, the officers and land-owners who led it created an heroic revolutionary tradition that influenced Russians of every class.
Lenin’s return to Russia by German agency in April 1917, writes David Woodward, was one of the turning points in 20th-century history.
As wealthy Russians continue to take up residence in London’s smartest districts, Helen Szamuely reflects on the contributions to Anglo-Russian relations of those diplomats who paved the way from the 18th century onwards.
Ernest A. Gray analyses the Navy’s role on land and sea in the Crimean Campaign.
Christopher Weaver describes how one of the creators of modern Soviet Russia met a hideous death in Mexico.
From her post as governess to a prosperous middle-class Russian family, writes Stephen Usherwood, a gifted young Englishwoman watched the gradual development of the Revolution.
The first sod of the longest railway on earth was turned by the last of the Tsars in 1891; Hilda Hookham describes an epic process of construction, with the line finally completed in 1904.
Metternich and Benckendorff, who played leading roles on the European scene, first met under very different circumstances; P.S. Squire describes how they were both attached to a charming French actress.
Before the triumph of Bolshevism, and even afterwards, many revolutionary leaders struggled to take charge of Russian destinies. David Footman describes how Savinkov was one of the extraordinary personalities who tried, and failed.
George Woodcock introduces the great rival of Marx and the founder of organised anarchism.
