Articles

In his article, historian Said Zalyaev traces the emergence and subsequent transformations of the meaning of the term "civil war" from Antiquity to the 21st century. At the same time, using examples from England, France, the USA, and Russia, he examines how "civil war" relates to "revolution."

In his article, historian Said Zalyaev examines how during the Modern Era in Western Europe, the meaning of the concept of "state" transformed from a statement of a ruler's effectiveness to the definition of an abstract political entity with territory and population. Additionally, the author traces the history of the Russian-language concept of "gosudarstvo" and compares it with Western European counterparts.

In the popular consciousness, the central conflict of the Russian Civil War is the confrontation between the "Reds" and the "Whites." However, in the summer of 1918, at the forefront of the anti-Bolshevik resistance in eastern Russia were the Socialists—the SRs, who formed the Komuch. Read about its history in the article by historian Said Zalyaev.

In the 1860s, a curious political experiment was undertaken in Mexico: a representative of the Habsburg dynasty, with the support of France, ascended the throne of the restored Mexican Empire to reconcile the rival factions of conservatives and liberals. How this became possible and what it led to — read in the article by Arseniy Troparovsky.

Since the 1960s, a confrontation has been unfolding within the Catholic Church between modernists, who support the updated Mass, and traditionalists, who adhere to the old Tridentine Mass. With the ascension of the new pontiff Leo XIV to the papal throne, these disputes have only intensified.

In the second half of the 20th century, the Catholic Church faced a serious crisis related to the confrontation between modernists and traditionalists. The most radical minority of the latter broke away from the Holy See, creating autonomous communities of sedevacantists—Catholics who do not recognize the current Popes and consider the papal throne temporarily vacant.

The modern reader is likely to perceive the term "dictatorship" as synonymous with the words "despotism" and "tyranny," recalling the notorious regimes of the 20th century. However, for the Romans, this term was associated with entirely different things. To learn about how the Romans perceived dictatorship, how it functioned, and how it changed over time, read the article by historian Nikita Tsybikov.

Using the example of Ulm Cathedral in southern Germany, Danil Golovin explains the features of the Gothic architectural style, which dominated Europe during the High and Late Middle Ages.

In 1917, the political lexicon became an integral part of social conflict. It turned out that different groups interpreted the same terms differently: "democracy," "people," "bourgeoisie." How the language of the revolutionary era gradually turned into the alphabet of hatred for the impending civil war is discussed in the article by historian Konstantin Tarasov.

Gladiator fights are one of the most well-known attributes of ancient Roman civilization. In his material, historian Danil Golovin explains how the pagan emperors of Rome used gladiators to strengthen their own legitimacy, and how their Christian successors banned these bloody spectacles.