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Europäisch oder Eurasisch? Kontroversen um die russische Identität. Essays
When Peter the I at the beginning of the XVIII century "cut a window to Europe" and overthrew the God-chosen Third Rome from its pedestal, Russia abandoned its special path and became an integral part of the European ecumene, a full member of the European "concert of powers". The main drama of the future Russia was thus predetermined. The Byzantine legacy and Peter's plan were now doomed to conflict and co-existence. Neither Peter nor his successors succeeded in turning Russia into a "normal" European country. But the path to the pre-Petrine antiquity was finally closed. Despite the gradual merging of the two parts of the continent that had been split before Peter, neither Russia nor the West was silent on the special nature of Russian civilization, on its non-European essence. The collection of articles is devoted to some aspects of this dispute.