HIST 343 - Medieval Russia

Credit Hours: 4
This class will survey the early history of the state that becomes Russia, from the formation of the first East Slavic state (Kievan Rus’) to the accession of Peter the Great and the founding of the Russian empire. Specific topics will include the adoption of Christianity by the East Slavs and religious dissent; East Slav relations with steppe nomads and the impact of Mongol rule; state building and civil war; autocracy versus republicanism and the continuities and discontinuities between the medieval East Slavic states (Kievan Rus’, Mongol Rus’, Novgorod, and Muscovy). The course will focus on three overarching themes: the structure and coercive power of the state; relations between social classes and the state and political ideology and identity.