The Patriotic War
The centenary celebrations in 1912
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Russia’s centenary celebrations for the Patriotic War of 1812 were organized by the government, military, and church at the general exclusion of the public. By concealing the crisis-ridden present in favour of commemorating a glorious past, Russia’s tsarist regime sought to unify the nation around the throne. The official events and projects for the 100th anniversary of the war were relatively effective because the regime drew on the traditional narrative that Russia, as a leading spiritual and moral power and bastion of true Christianity, would always be in a position to fend off attacks by seemingly superior Western opponents.
(Osteuropa 1/2013, pp. 103–118)