Covering two centuries of Russian history, Forging a Unitary State is a comprehensive account of the creation of what is commonly known as the "Russian Empire," from Poland to Siberia. In this book, John P. LeDonne demonstrates that the so-called empire was, for the most part, a unitary state, defined by an obsessive emphasis on centralization and uniformity. The standardization of local administration, the judicial system, tax regime, and commercial policy were carried out slowly but systematically over eight generations, in the hope of integrating people on the periphery into the Russian political and social hierarchy.
The ultimate goal of Russian policy was to create a "Fortress Empire" consisting of a huge Russian unitary state flanked by a few peripheral territories, such as Finland, Transcaucasia, and Central Asia. Additional peripheral states, such as Sweden, Turkey, and Persia, would guarantee the security of this "Fortress Empire," and the management of Eurasian territory. LeDonne's provocative argument is supported by a careful comparative study of Russian expansion along its western, southern, and eastern borders, drawing on vital but under-studied administrative evidence. Forging a Unitary State is an essential resource for those interested in the long history of Russian expansionism.
Table of Contents:
List of Maps
List of Tables
Acknowledgments
Note on the Text
Introduction
Part I. The Western Theatre: The Struggle for Northwestern Eurasia
1. Laying the Foundations, 1650–1775
The Geopolitical Setting
Hesitant Integration
Trade, Religion, and Law
2. Full Integration, 1775–1815
Territorial and Administrative Integration
Religion and Economy
The Baltic Provinces
3. Unitary State or Empire? 1815–1855
Civil Administration and the Army
Society, Law, and Trade
On the Road to Disintegration
Conclusion to Part I: The Western Theatre
Part II. The Southern Theatre Reaches the Sea
4. Laying the Foundations, 1650–1725
The Geopolitical Setting
The Cossacks
Society, Religion, and Trade
5. Toward Full Integration, 1725–1796
Civil and Military Administration
Ecclesiastical and Legal Integration
The Ethnographic Map
6. Unitary State or Empire? 1796–1855
Regional Integration
Fiscal and Commercial Integration
The First Cracks
Conclusion to Part II: The Southern Theatre
Part III. The Eastern Theatre: The Advance toward the Mountains
Introduction to Part III: The Eastern Theatre
7. Laying the Foundations, 1650–1730
The Geopolitical Setting
The Expanding Russian Core
Agents of Integration
8. The Progress of Integration, 1731–1782
The Military Structure
Land, Peoples, Religions
Fiscal and Commercial Integration
9. Unitary State or Empire? 1782–1830
The Administrative Infrastructure
Judicial Integration
Economic Integration
Conclusion to Part III: The Eastern Theatre
Conclusion
About the Author :
John P. LeDonne is a senior research associate at the Davis Center, Harvard University.
Review :
"LeDonne's method is strictly historical, based on the careful reading of vast literatures, with a good dose of old-fashioned physical and human geography. At times this reads almost like the imagery travels of Jules Verne or the real-life accounts of young Petr Kropotkin."
- Georgi Derluguian, NYU Abu Dhabi (Canadian-American Slavic Studies) "A short review cannot do justice to the wealth of detail provided in each section."
- Alfred J. Rieber, The Central European University (American Historical Review) "LeDonne is one of the most distinguished historians of eighteenth-century Russia working in English; this culminating magnum opus displays many of the trademark features of his earlier work, including close attention to changing institutional structures, a focus on the interplay between domestic and foreign-policy concerns, and an awareness of the peculiarities of each region."
- Gregory Afinogenov, Georgetown University (Journal of Modern History)
