Peter the Great

New Studies in European History

by Paul Bushkovitch

In Peter the Great, Yale historian and Russian scholar Paul Bushkovitch offers a brilliant, but concise, biography of this enigmatic leader.

Genres: History, Russia, Biography, Russian History

224 pages, Hardcover

First published September 26, 1997

Reviews

[Kasey Dietrich · Rating 5 out of 5]

The title is pretty inaccurate, because this is less of a history of Peter the Great, as it's more like a general history of Russia and how it later was influenced by Europe and adopted European practices and culture. I was impressed when this author tackled two of the most complicated legacies in Russian history, Dimitrii as well as Ivan the Terrible. The author never had to get into either of these people's lives if he just was set on writing the story of Peter the Great, and yet in both cases he goes straight into the thick of it. It was pretty awesome. I foolishly thought that since this book is short that it would be easily digestible in one read, but I was wrong. I should take really thorough notes about what this book discusses since it's so rich and so dense and describes so many history rabbit holes, like it briefly mentions the way Russia was formed, how succession worked differently in Russia, and Russian Christian Orthodoxy. Wow!

[Scot · Rating 4 out of 5]

A useful quick review of the ascent, innovations, and legacy of Peter the Great, and in the first chapter, a review of shifts in Russian historiography as well. I appreciated the understanding of the role of religion in the society prior to influences from the West, and the analysis of shifts in that area, as well as in political institutions, during Peter's reign.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I nice concise book which, along with lecture, illustrates the significance of Peter I reign.