Day, James Ivor;
(2023)
Konstantin Leont’ev: Conservatism, Byzantinism and Pan-Orthodoxy.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
Preview |
Text
James Day Thesis.pdf - Other Download (1MB) | Preview |
Abstract
This thesis considers Konstantin Leont’ev against the background of the growth of interest in Byzantium in nineteenth-century Russia, and seeks to explain the political significance of Leont’ev’s use of the term ‘Byzantinism’. Chapter One deals with the context of the Eastern Question. Chapter Two addresses the study of Byzantine art and architecture in nineteenth-century Russia, and Chapter Three considers the use of Byzantium as a reference point in debates about church-state relations. In Chapter Four the career of Antonin (Kapustin), an Orthodox monk who served as the Russian embassy chaplain in Athens and Constantinople, illustrates the connections between Russia’s diplomatic involvement in the Orthodox East, the rediscovery of Byzantine art and architecture, and the debate over the future of the Russian Orthodox Church. The focus of the thesis then turns to Konstantin Leont’ev. Chapter Five briefly considers Leont’ev’s early thought, and then addresses his experiences as a consul in the Ottoman Empire, emphasising his relationships with local notables, diaspora peoples from the Russian Empire, and consuls from other great powers. Chapter Six considers how Leont’ev’s experiences in the East, as a diplomat and then as a pilgrim on Mount Athos, helped to develop his concept of Byzantinism. Chapter Seven addresses Leont’ev’s intellectual development after his return to Russia. Chapter Eight considers his place in the Russian conservative tradition, in light of the ways in which the concepts of conservatism and liberalism assumed a different meaning in Russia than in the West. The conclusion addresses the ways in which the rise of interest in Byzantium formed the context of the development of Leont’ev’s political thought, and how the concept of Byzantinism reflected both his explicit anti-liberalism, and his significance as one of the few nineteenth-century Russian conservatives who rejected nationalism as a manifestation of liberalism.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | Konstantin Leont’ev: Conservatism, Byzantinism and Pan-Orthodoxy |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2023. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > SSEES |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10164074 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
