This is an analytical account of a colorful period in Russian history, which is accessible to undergraduates of European and Russian history, as well as to the nonspecialist reader. Central to a discussion that emphasizes Russia's place in Europe are the much misunderstood personalities of some remarkable rulers, such as Peter the Great, Catherine the Great and Alexander I. Their reigns are set in the context of wider developments in social, economic, cultural and intellectual history that help to account for Russia's emergence as a great power.

This is an analytical account of a colorful period in Russian history, which is accessible to undergraduates of European and Russian history, as well as to the nonspecialist reader. Central to a discussion that emphasizes Russia's place in Europe are the much misunderstood personalities of some remarkable rulers, such as Peter the Great, Catherine the Great and Alexander I. Their reigns are set in the context of wider developments in social, economic, cultural and intellectual history that help to account for Russia's emergence as a great power.

Neither a comprehensive 'life and times' nor a conventional biography, this is an engaging and accessible exploration of rulership and monarchial authority in eighteenth century Russia. Its purpose is to see how Catherine II of Russia conceived of her power and how it was represented to her subjects. Simon Dixon asks essential questions about Catherin'es life and reign, and offers new and stimulating arguments about the Englightenment, the power of the monarch in early modern Europe, and the much-debated role of the "great individual" in history.

Lindsey Hughes (1949-2007) made her reputation as one of the foremost historians of the age of Peter the Great by revealing the more freakish aspects of the tsar's complex mind and reconstructing the various physical environments in which he lived. Contributors to Personality and Place in Russian Culture were encouraged to develop any of the approaches featured in Hughes's work: pointillist and panoramic, playful and morbid, quotidian and bizarre. The result is a rich and original collection, ranging from the sixteenth century to the present day, in which a group of leading international...