Contents

THE SACRED AND THE MUNDANE IN CELEBRATING CHRISTMAS

Тhe Сhristmas Нoliday in the noble environment of the post-reform period

Original article

Daria G. Kosova

Belgorod State National Research University
85, Pobedy st., Belgorod, 308015, Russia
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Abstract. The article is devoted to the consideration of traditions and rules of behavior among the nobility during the Christmas holidays in the post-reform period, indicating the features and changes in the way the holiday was celebrated. The study is based on various historical sources and archival data from this time, as well as on the analysis of the literature and cultural trends of the period. The sociocultural context and customs of the nobility are analyzed, especially the impact of social and political reforms on Christmas traditions. Changes in protocol for festive events, including social balls, Christmas dinners and festivities, are examined, as well as etiquette and rules of behavior in various social situations.

Keywords: noble etiquette, Christmas entertainment, behavior, nobles in the post-reform period.

DOI: 10.18413/2312-3044-2023-10-4-416-429

Anti-Religious Agitation in Tula Province in 1922-1923: "Komsomol Christmas"

Original article

Nikolay N. Evseev, priest

Tula State University
92 Lenin av., Tula, 300012, Russia
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Tatyana I. Evseeva

State institution "State Archive of the Tula region"
44а Lenin av., Tula, 300041, Russia
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Abstract. The purpose of this article is to study the anti-religious company against the Russian Orthodox Church and other traditional religious organizations in the RSFSR and the USSR (on the example of Tula province) in 1922-1923. The issue of holding mass anti-religious events is reflected, the plans of their organization, used methodological recommendations, methods and techniques of anti-religious propaganda are investigated. The conclusion is made about the low effectiveness of carnivals, street processions and mockery of religious tradition. It is pointed out that the central authorities changed their approaches to anti-religious policy, shifting its focus from mockery to propaganda of a natural scientific materialistic worldview.

Keywords: anti-religious policy, Komsomol, communism, atheism, province, “Komsomol Christmas”.

Acknowledgements: The authors express their deep gratitude to the head of the Department of Theology of TulSU, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Rector of the Tula Theological Seminary, Priest L.L. Makhno, the staff of GU GATO and the Department of Research and methodological work of GU GATO, parents.

DOI: 10.18413/2312-3044-2023-10-4-430-439

The First Celebration of «Komsomol Christmas» by Soviet Atheists in 1923. Reasons for Holding, Sacred Meaning, and Significance of the Precedent in the Matter of Anti-Religious Propaganda

Original article

Andrey A. Dorosh

Voronezh State Technical University
84, 20-th Anniversary of October st., Voronezh, 394006, Russia
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Abstract. The article examines the large-scale anti-religious action “Komsomol Christmas”, organized by the Central Committee of the RKSM with the active participation of Soviet atheists in 1923. An analysis of little-known literature and periodicals related to the time period under study is carried out, and some scientific works of researchers related to the problem studied in this article are also used. The author focuses on the most characteristic features of the celebration of “Komsomol Christmas” in 1923. The reasons for holding it, the sacred meaning and the impact of the event on further anti-religious activities in the Soviet state are analyzed.

Keywords: RSFSR, Central Committee of the RKSM, anti-religious activities, atheists, atheism, "Union of Militant Atheists", newspaper "Atheist", "Komsomol Christmas", "Godless Christmas", Soviet power, Orthodox Church, Komsomol.

DOI: 10.18413/2312-3044-2023-10-4-440-458

"Grandmother's Holy Day": Christmas in Provincial Russia of the 1950s – 1960s

Original article

Aleksandr V. Apanasenok

Institute of Scientific Information for Social Sciences of the Russian Acad-emy of Sciences
51/52, Nakhimovsky Prospekt, Moscow, 117418, Russia
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Abstract. The work is devoted to the history of the Orthodox Christmas celebration in the Russian province of the post-war decades. Relying on the materials of the Council for the Affairs of the Russian Orthodox Church as well as oral history data, the author examines the extent of Soviet citizens involvement in Christmas liturgical practices. Article also investigates the social composition of people who are not indifferent to the holiday, analyzes the features of the celebration of Christmas "at home". The study shows the important role of elderly women – "grandmothers" in relaying family Christmas traditions.

Keywords: USSR, Christmas holiday, Orthodoxy, confessional traditions, Soviet life, New Year.

DOI: 10.18413/2312-3044-2023-10-4-459-473

HISTORICAL MEMORY AND OBLIVION

Perpetuation of the Memory of Russian Military History Events in Russian Monuments of the 18th-19th Centuries: A Comparative Analysis

Original article

Larisa. I. Strebkova

State Museum-Reserve “Kulikovo Field”
47 Lenin av., Tula, 300041, Russia
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Abstract. This article discusses various forms of implementation of the concept of perpetuating the places of outstanding battles of Russian history in the 18th-19th centuries, in particular, the history of the creation of monuments the field of the Battle of Poltava and the Kulikovo field. The research raises the question about the origins of the Russian monumental tradition and its evolution in the XVIII century and early XX century. The general tendencies of perpetuating the battlefield are revealed – the transition from the European concept of monument and the disabled house to the concept of the temple-monument. The stages of formation of the "place of memory" in the XVIII-XIX centuries and factors contributing to the actualization of the outstanding military events of the past are considered.

Keywords: historical memory, commemoration, Battle of Kulikovo, Battle of Poltava, monuments, fields of military glory.

DOI: 10.18413/2312-3044-2023-10-4-474-490

EMPIRE AND PERIPHERY

"African Adventures of Crispi": Russian Public's Perception of Italian Policies Towards Ethiopia and Assessment of the Treaty of Wichale

Original article

Ivan T. Shatokhin, Mikhail O. Shashkov

Belgorod State National Research University
85, Pobedy st., Belgorod, 308015, Russia
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Abstract. The article examines the Russian public's perception of Italian policy in Ethiopia, specifically the activities of the Italian government and the evaluation of the Treaty of Wichale in 1889. The analysis is based on the materials from numerous journal and newspaper periodicals of varying political leanings – conservative and liberal – for comparative reasons. The novelty of the work lies in the fact that before the authors did not address this problem, and the few publications that would be devoted to the perception of certain important events and phenomena of Italian politics in Russian society cover the period of the first half of the XX century. The author provides several conclusions. Firstly, the perception of Italian politics by Russian society was associated with a particular stereotype. This stereotype implied that the Italian state was subordinate to Germany, and the Crispi government acted against the interests of the people. Secondly, the policy that Italy pursued in Ethiopia was evaluated negatively, being deemed an unwarranted "adventure". Thirdly, the Treaty of Wichale's signing, ratification, and denunciation went largely unnoticed, accompanied by a gradual decline of interest amongst Russian society. These provisions were presented both in the liberal and conservative press, suggesting that such a perception of Italian politics was characteristic of the Russian public, rather than specific political groups.

Keywords: Italy, Treaty of Wichale 1889, Russia, Ethiopia, Italo-Ethiopian War of 1895-1896, periodical press, perception of politics, Francesco Crispi.

DOI: 10.18413/2312-3044-2023-10-4-491-509

TRANSITIONAL EPOCHS

Labor and Recreation Conditions of the Soviet Rural Worker During the Period of Agrarian Transformations in the 1950s and 1960s of the Twentieth Century

Original article

Tat'jana V. Mihajljuk

Ryazan State University named for S.A.Yesenin
46 Svobody st., Ryazan, 390000, Russia
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Abstract. The article examines the influence of the agrarian policy of the Soviet state of the period under study on the development of the system of social and labor relations in the Soviet village, as well as on the level of material and socio-legal status of rural workers. Based on archival documents and materials from the central and local periodicals, the author conducts a study of the problem of labor and recreation conditions of rural workers./span>

Keywords: agricultural policy, collective farm, state farm, Soviet village, Khrushchev N.S., Soviet Union, rural worker.

Acknowledgements: I would like to express my gratitude to my scientific supervisor Anna Dmitrievna Popova, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Institute of History, Philosophy and Political Sciences of S.A. Yesenin Russian State University, Olga Dmitrievna Popova, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor of the Institute of History, Philosophy and Political Sciences of S.A. Yesenin Russian State University for valuable advice when planning research and recommendations on the design of the article.

DOI: 10.18413/2312-3044-2023-10-4-510-522