There is nothing new about the Russian conservatism Putin stands for,
acclaimed writer Lesley Chamberlain argues. Rather, as Ministry of
Darkness reveals, the roots of Russian conservatism can be traced back
to the 19th century when Count Uvarov's notorious cry of 'Orthodoxy,
Autocracy, Nationality!' rang through the streets of Russia.
Sergei Uvarov was no straightforward conservative; indeed, this man was
at once both the pioneering educational reformer who founded the Arzamas
Writers' Club to which Pushkin belonged, and the Minister who tyrannised
and censored Russia's literary scene. How, then, do we reconcile such
extreme contradictions in one person? Through Chamberlain's intimate
examination of Uvarov's life and skilled analysis of Russian
conservatism, readers learn how the many paradoxes that dominated
Uvarov's personal and political life are those which, writ large, have
forged the identity of conservative modern Russia and its relationship
with the West.
This fascinating book sheds new light on an often overlooked historical
actor and offers a timely assessment of the 19th-century 'Russian
predicament'. In doing so, Chamberlain teases out the reasons why the
country continues to baffle Western observers and policymakers, making
this essential reading both students of Russian history and those who
want to further understand Russia as it is today.
