ACCESSION OF KAZAN KHANATE TO RUSSIA IN THE ASSESSMENTS OF AMERICAN HISTORIANS OF THE MIDDLE 20th CENTURY

Abstract

The article analyzes the views of American historians of the middle 20th century on the problem of accession of Kazan Khanate to Russia. Studies on the history of Russian foreign policy have become relevant in the West with the beginning of the «cold war», the purpose of these studies was the need to identify the historical origins of «expansionist» foreign policy of the USSR and Russia. Searching the roots of “Russian expansionism”, Western science of the middle 20th century came to the conclusion about the non-European character of the Russian statehood, about Byzantine and Mongolian origins of the Russian state ideology, which substantiated its claim to world domination. Harvard University historians specializing in the history of Russia and the countries of Eastern Europe, in their works developed the concept of dual nature of the Russian state foreign policy ideology in the middle 16th century. On the one hand, this ideology was based on the Mongolian political tradition inherited from the Golden Horde. On the other hand, Russian ideology was influenced by the Byzantine political tradition. In the works of E. Keenan and Ya. Pelenski’s accession of Kazan Khanate to Russia was presented as the first embodiment in practice of Moscow rulers’ claims to dominate in the political space of Eastern Europe. At the same time, Kazan’s accession was a powerful impetus for the formation of the Russian state ideology, which was based on historical, dynastic, national and religious justifications for the claims to Kazan Khanate. Raised in the works of American historians, questions about Russian political culture and ideology of the 16th century, their reflection in the sources and interpretation of ideas by modern researchers maintain their scientific relevance today.