This comprehensive overview of the political role of the Russian military (from Peter the Great's time in 1689 to the present) reveals why Russia has not experienced a successful military coup in over two centuries. Including materials from archives and interviews, the book covers the Imperial, Soviet, and post-Soviet periods through detailed analysis of some of the most important events in Russian political history.

Building a strong Russian state was the central goal of Vladimir Putin's presidency. This book argues that Putin's strategy for rebuilding the state was fundamentally flawed. Taylor demonstrates that a disregard for the way state officials behave toward citizens state quality had a negative impact on what the state could do state capacity. Focusing on those organizations that control state coercion, what Russians call the power ministries, Taylor shows that many of the weaknesses of the Russian state that existed under Boris Yeltsin persisted under Putin. Drawing on extensive field research...