Russia - The Wild East [1 Omnibus]

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20110422

A major new history series begins this week which traces the development of Russia over a period of 1,000 years. The first five weeks take the listener from the beginning of the Russian state in 862 A.D. up to the cataclysmic revolution of 1917. Martin Sixsmith, who writes and presents the series, was the BBC's Moscow Correspondent in 1991. The series begins with a vivid recording of his report on the events that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

As he says: 'I remember with absolute clarity my conviction that the dissolution of the Communist Party after seventy years in power, meant the monster of autocracy was dead in Russia, that centuries of repression would be thrown off and replaced with freedom and democracy. But I was wrong.

The country is stable and relatively prosperous now, but democracy and freedom again take second place to the demands of the state: the spectre of autocracy is again haunting Russia. Back in 1991, in the grip of Moscow's euphoria, I'd forgotten the lesson of history - that in Russia things change ... only to remain the same. Attempts at reform, followed by a return to autocracy, had happened so often in Russia's past that it was very unlikely things would be different this time.

In this first programme, Martin travels to the northern city of Novgorod. It was there that, ancient history has it, the warring Slav tribes invited Rurik to come and bring order. He was the first iron fist, and he gave Rus-sia its name. But, as Martin Sixsmith points out, already by the late ninth century, two key leitmotifs of Russian history are beginning to emerge - the tendency towards autocracy, and the urge for aggression and expansion. Today Russia spans eleven time zones and is home to a hundred nationalities and a hundred and fifty languages.

Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking

Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown

A Ladbroke production for BBC Radio 4.

In a major new series Martin Sixsmith traces 1,000 years of Russian history.

A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith

Expansion And Autocratic Rule

20110429

The major new history of Russia series began last week in the 9th century with a collection of warring tribes. It looked at the events that laid the foundations of the Russian nation, the adoption of Christianity and the lasting influence of the Mongol invasion. This week Martin Sixsmith discovers the emerging forces that will make her the largest and longest-lived territorial empire in modern history.

He begins with Ivan the Terrible who centralises power in the Tsar, enslaving peasants and nobles alike. Martin Sixsmith paints a vivid portrait of one of Russia's most familiar Tsars, and uses Eisenstein's film Ivan The Terrible to explore the tenets of absolute autocracy that have characterised Russian rule ever since. This 'iron fist' which created a major obstacle to reform, and separated Russia ever further from Western Europe. He cites Ivan's correspondence with Elizabeth I, who by the 1550s was Russia's sole foreign ally. 'Ivan's letters', he says, 'sound almost like love letters.

Ivan the Terrible is remembered as a wild-eyed, slightly deranged figure. But his legacy also had its positive side. Under his leadership, Russia expanded for the first time beyond the lands occupied by orthodox, ethnic Russians. It conquered the Tartar khanate of Kazan, laying the foundations for the greatest contiguous empire on earth.

Astoundingly, Russia would grow by 50 square miles a day for the next three centuries, until by 1914 it occupied eight and a half million square miles - a multiethnic, multilingual state spanning more than one seventh of the globe. Today, even after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia still spans eleven time zones and is home to a hundred nationalities and a hundred and fifty languages.

Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking

Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown

A Ladbroke Production for BBC Radio 4.

Martin Sixsmith paints a portrait of Ivan the Terrible, the Tsar with absolute power.

A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith

The Dangerous Gap Between Ruler And Ruled

20110506

Peter the Great died on the 8th of February 1725. He was 52 years old, had reigned for forty of those years and transformed Russia from a struggling, landlocked state to a major and still expanding empire. But he died without appointing an heir.

At the start of week 3 of BBC Radio 4's major new History series, Russia - The Wild East, Martin Sixsmith traces the power struggles after the death of Peter, until another Great leader emerges. While Peter the Great had laid the foundations of Russia as a European power, it was under Catherine the Great that Russia became Europe's most feared superpower.

One of the reputations that Catherine acquired was of a woman with a healthy interest in sex, but this shouldn't overshadow her reforming zeal. She modernised the legal system, took ideas from the great Enlightenment thinkers Diderot and Voltaire, and learnt by heart long passages from Montesquieu's iconic manifesto of constitutionalism, on the separation of powers, civil liberties and the rule of law.

'It seemed to many,' Martin Sixsmith suggests, 'that Russia was preparing to boldly go where few others would dare to tread - having been the most backward of the European powers, she now appeared to be leading the way to the enlightened future.'

But an ingrained fear of vulnerability lay beneath this show of strength, and Catherine followed an aggressive programme of expansion especially to the south. It provided a buffer against enemies on her borders, but sowed the seeds of ethnic tensions that still exist today, and a careful observer would have realised even at this stage that Catherine was setting very clear limits to the extent and nature of the changes she was prepared to allow.

Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking

Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown

A Ladbroke Production for BBC Radio 4.

Martin Sixsmith assesses Catherine the Great's reputation abroad and legacy at home.

A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith

20110513

Over 700 years successive Tsars had extended the grip of Russia on new territory. The Empire needed a huge peasant class to work the land, and out of this need came the underdog of Russian society - 17 million serfs, or, as they were also called, souls. The plight of the serf pricked the conscience of the Russian intelligentsia, and for writers they were a fact of life that in the 19th century became a cause.

As pressure for change mounted, this programme traces the role serfdom has played in the history of Russia. As early as Kievan times in the 11th and 12th centuries, slaves were a valuable commodity. In many ways serfdom had been a relatively benign arrangement between landowner and peasant - and despite the many stories of brutality, the music that emerged is surprisingly joyful. 'The inherited willingness to pull together in the face of shared problems helped the nation expand into an empire and defend itself against its enemies,' argues Martin Sixsmith. 'But it also hindered the development of private property, political freedoms and the law-governed institutions that Western Europe was beginning to take for granted.

In the 19th century serfdom had developed into the worst form of slavery and by the 1850's abolition was under serious discussion in Russia and America. An emerging Russian intelligentsia expressed their own guilt over the horrors of serfdom. But unpicking centuries of class division would have to wait for the 20th century before it erupted.

Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking

Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown

A Ladbroke Production for BBC Radio 4.

As pressure for change mounts, Martin Sixsmith traces the role of serfdom in Russia.

A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith

The Road To Revolution

20110520

In the final week of the first part of BBC Radio 4's major new series on the History of Russia, the momentum is all towards revolution.

After centuries of unbending autocratic government Nicholas II creates an embryonic parliament - an astounding leap forward. Unrest abates and the economy recovers. Martin Sixsmith reflects, 'For a brief moment the vision of the Russian empire as a sort of British constitutional monarchy looked enticingly possible. Had it been offered earlier and more willingly - it might just have worked.

Instead it is seen as too little too late.

Sixsmith stands where the revolutionaries stood and paints this picture: 'On the 18th of October 1905, a young Jewish intellectual with a small goatee beard, a thick head of black hair and intense dark eyes rose to address an unruly assembly of striking workers here in the Technological Institute in Saint Petersburg.' That man was Lev Bronstein, better known by the pseudonym Leon Trotsky. He and Lenin were agitating for the whole Tsarist system to be swept away.

After the assassination of his uncle, Tsar Nicholas retreats from public view for eight years, but remains under the influence of his wife and her faith in the maverick and dissolute holy man, Grigory Rasputin. When the Prime Minister is assassinated at Kiev Opera House, imperial Russia's last attempt at political liberalism comes to an irrevocable end.

Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking

Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown

A Ladbroke Production for BBC Radio 4.

Martin Sixsmith signals the first appearance of Trotsky. The Revolution gathers pace.

A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith

Episodes

Episode	Title	First Broadcast	Comments
01		20110422	A major new history series begins this week which traces the development of Russia over a period of 1,000 years. The first five weeks take the listener from the beginning of the Russian state in 862 A.D. up to the cataclysmic revolution of 1917. Martin Sixsmith, who writes and presents the series, was the BBC's Moscow Correspondent in 1991. The series begins with a vivid recording of his report on the events that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union. As he says: 'I remember with absolute clarity my conviction that the dissolution of the Communist Party after seventy years in power, meant the monster of autocracy was dead in Russia, that centuries of repression would be thrown off and replaced with freedom and democracy. But I was wrong. The country is stable and relatively prosperous now, but democracy and freedom again take second place to the demands of the state: the spectre of autocracy is again haunting Russia. Back in 1991, in the grip of Moscow's euphoria, I'd forgotten the lesson of history - that in Russia things change ... only to remain the same. Attempts at reform, followed by a return to autocracy, had happened so often in Russia's past that it was very unlikely things would be different this time. In this first programme, Martin travels to the northern city of Novgorod. It was there that, ancient history has it, the warring Slav tribes invited Rurik to come and bring order. He was the first iron fist, and he gave Rus-sia its name. But, as Martin Sixsmith points out, already by the late ninth century, two key leitmotifs of Russian history are beginning to emerge - the tendency towards autocracy, and the urge for aggression and expansion. Today Russia spans eleven time zones and is home to a hundred nationalities and a hundred and fifty languages. Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown A Ladbroke production for BBC Radio 4. In a major new series Martin Sixsmith traces 1,000 years of Russian history. A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith
02	Expansion And Autocratic Rule	20110429	The major new history of Russia series began last week in the 9th century with a collection of warring tribes. It looked at the events that laid the foundations of the Russian nation, the adoption of Christianity and the lasting influence of the Mongol invasion. This week Martin Sixsmith discovers the emerging forces that will make her the largest and longest-lived territorial empire in modern history. He begins with Ivan the Terrible who centralises power in the Tsar, enslaving peasants and nobles alike. Martin Sixsmith paints a vivid portrait of one of Russia's most familiar Tsars, and uses Eisenstein's film Ivan The Terrible to explore the tenets of absolute autocracy that have characterised Russian rule ever since. This 'iron fist' which created a major obstacle to reform, and separated Russia ever further from Western Europe. He cites Ivan's correspondence with Elizabeth I, who by the 1550s was Russia's sole foreign ally. 'Ivan's letters', he says, 'sound almost like love letters. Ivan the Terrible is remembered as a wild-eyed, slightly deranged figure. But his legacy also had its positive side. Under his leadership, Russia expanded for the first time beyond the lands occupied by orthodox, ethnic Russians. It conquered the Tartar khanate of Kazan, laying the foundations for the greatest contiguous empire on earth. Astoundingly, Russia would grow by 50 square miles a day for the next three centuries, until by 1914 it occupied eight and a half million square miles - a multiethnic, multilingual state spanning more than one seventh of the globe. Today, even after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia still spans eleven time zones and is home to a hundred nationalities and a hundred and fifty languages. Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown A Ladbroke Production for BBC Radio 4. Martin Sixsmith paints a portrait of Ivan the Terrible, the Tsar with absolute power. A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith
03	The Dangerous Gap Between Ruler And Ruled	20110506	Peter the Great died on the 8th of February 1725. He was 52 years old, had reigned for forty of those years and transformed Russia from a struggling, landlocked state to a major and still expanding empire. But he died without appointing an heir. At the start of week 3 of BBC Radio 4's major new History series, Russia - The Wild East, Martin Sixsmith traces the power struggles after the death of Peter, until another Great leader emerges. While Peter the Great had laid the foundations of Russia as a European power, it was under Catherine the Great that Russia became Europe's most feared superpower. One of the reputations that Catherine acquired was of a woman with a healthy interest in sex, but this shouldn't overshadow her reforming zeal. She modernised the legal system, took ideas from the great Enlightenment thinkers Diderot and Voltaire, and learnt by heart long passages from Montesquieu's iconic manifesto of constitutionalism, on the separation of powers, civil liberties and the rule of law. 'It seemed to many,' Martin Sixsmith suggests, 'that Russia was preparing to boldly go where few others would dare to tread - having been the most backward of the European powers, she now appeared to be leading the way to the enlightened future.' But an ingrained fear of vulnerability lay beneath this show of strength, and Catherine followed an aggressive programme of expansion especially to the south. It provided a buffer against enemies on her borders, but sowed the seeds of ethnic tensions that still exist today, and a careful observer would have realised even at this stage that Catherine was setting very clear limits to the extent and nature of the changes she was prepared to allow. Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown A Ladbroke Production for BBC Radio 4. Martin Sixsmith assesses Catherine the Great's reputation abroad and legacy at home. A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith
04		20110513	Over 700 years successive Tsars had extended the grip of Russia on new territory. The Empire needed a huge peasant class to work the land, and out of this need came the underdog of Russian society - 17 million serfs, or, as they were also called, souls. The plight of the serf pricked the conscience of the Russian intelligentsia, and for writers they were a fact of life that in the 19th century became a cause. As pressure for change mounted, this programme traces the role serfdom has played in the history of Russia. As early as Kievan times in the 11th and 12th centuries, slaves were a valuable commodity. In many ways serfdom had been a relatively benign arrangement between landowner and peasant - and despite the many stories of brutality, the music that emerged is surprisingly joyful. 'The inherited willingness to pull together in the face of shared problems helped the nation expand into an empire and defend itself against its enemies,' argues Martin Sixsmith. 'But it also hindered the development of private property, political freedoms and the law-governed institutions that Western Europe was beginning to take for granted. In the 19th century serfdom had developed into the worst form of slavery and by the 1850's abolition was under serious discussion in Russia and America. An emerging Russian intelligentsia expressed their own guilt over the horrors of serfdom. But unpicking centuries of class division would have to wait for the 20th century before it erupted. Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown A Ladbroke Production for BBC Radio 4. As pressure for change mounts, Martin Sixsmith traces the role of serfdom in Russia. A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith
05	The Road To Revolution	20110520	In the final week of the first part of BBC Radio 4's major new series on the History of Russia, the momentum is all towards revolution. After centuries of unbending autocratic government Nicholas II creates an embryonic parliament - an astounding leap forward. Unrest abates and the economy recovers. Martin Sixsmith reflects, 'For a brief moment the vision of the Russian empire as a sort of British constitutional monarchy looked enticingly possible. Had it been offered earlier and more willingly - it might just have worked. Instead it is seen as too little too late. Sixsmith stands where the revolutionaries stood and paints this picture: 'On the 18th of October 1905, a young Jewish intellectual with a small goatee beard, a thick head of black hair and intense dark eyes rose to address an unruly assembly of striking workers here in the Technological Institute in Saint Petersburg.' That man was Lev Bronstein, better known by the pseudonym Leon Trotsky. He and Lenin were agitating for the whole Tsarist system to be swept away. After the assassination of his uncle, Tsar Nicholas retreats from public view for eight years, but remains under the influence of his wife and her faith in the maverick and dissolute holy man, Grigory Rasputin. When the Prime Minister is assassinated at Kiev Opera House, imperial Russia's last attempt at political liberalism comes to an irrevocable end. Historical Consultant: Professor Geoffrey Hosking Producers: Adam Fowler & Anna Scott-Brown A Ladbroke Production for BBC Radio 4. Martin Sixsmith signals the first appearance of Trotsky. The Revolution gathers pace. A history of Russia, written and presented by Martin Sixsmith