Authors

History

Gladiatorial Games and Roman Emperors

Gladiatorial games are one of the most famous attributes of ancient Roman civilization. In his material, historian Danil Golovin explains how the pagan emperors of Rome initially used gladiators to strengthen their own legitimacy, and how their Christian successors banned these bloody spectacles. After reading the article, we invite you to take a test and find out what kind of gladiator you would become!

History

What kind of gladiator are you?

Gladiators have become one of the symbols of Ancient Rome. Answer eight questions and find out which type of arena warrior suits you best!

Philosophy

Sedevacantism

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.

Philosophy

TLM versus NO

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

History

Dictatorship in Ancient Rome

The modern reader is likely to perceive the term "dictatorship" as synonymous with "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 worked, and how it changed over time, read the article by historian Nikita Tsybikov.

Political science

State: History of the Concept

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

Political science

Civil War: The History of the Concept

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, examples from England, France, the USA, and Russia are used to examine how "civil war" relates to "revolution."

History

Volunteer and Revolutionary: An Attempt to Save the Russian Army in 1917

In 1917, the Russian army found itself in a deep crisis. In the context of the ongoing war, unconventional methods were needed to revive the military spirit. Thus, the concept of a volunteer revolutionary army emerged, which was intended to inspire the mobilized and eventually replace them with volunteers. To find out how this experiment ended, read the article by historian Konstantin Tarasov.

History

The Alphabet of Hatred: How the Political Language of the Revolution Influenced the Start of the Civil War

In 1917, the political vocabulary 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 upcoming civil war is discussed in the article by historian Konstantin Tarasov.

History

Imagology: Towards the History of the Discipline

Imagology is a young academic discipline that studies how images of "other" ethnic and national communities are created, function, and are interpreted. Read about how imagology originated and the differences between Western and Russian approaches to this discipline in the article by historian Olga Berezina.

History

Sviyazhsk: Russian Atlantis on the Volga

Travel blog from Sviyazhsk – an ancient Russian town on an island in the middle of the Volga, which allows you to immerse yourself in several eras of Russian history from the 16th to the 20th century.

History

Parties of the Weimar Republic

The history of the Weimar Republic is inextricably linked with the history of political parties. Like the republic itself, these parties did not appear out of nowhere and did not disappear into nothingness. The roots of most of them lay in the Kaiserreich, and after a 12-year Nazi hiatus, most were reestablished or served as the foundation for the creation of new parties that defined the political life of both German states in the second half of the 20th century.

Philosophy

What kind of counter-enlightener are you?

The ideas of the Enlightenment have always sparked heated debates, and many, while accepting certain elements of the era's worldview, decisively rejected others. Where is your limit of Enlightenment? Take the test and find out who you resemble more: the reactionary de Maistre, the conservative Burke, the religious philosopher Hamann, or the romantic nationalist Herder.

Philosophy

Your Inner Enlightener

If you lived in the Age of Enlightenment, you would surely debate freedom of speech, equality, and morality by candlelight in a Parisian salon. But whose ideas would you defend to the end? Take the test and find out who is hidden within you: the rebel Voltaire, the dreamer Rousseau, the jurist Montesquieu, or the strict judge of reason Kant.