Diaries of the heir and Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich (1899-1903): possibilities of the computer analysis

Abstract

The author studied the texts of Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich’s diaries, which provide important information both about the Successor’s daily life and practices, and about his participation in state and public affairs. The relevance of the study is confirmed by the fact that content analysis of Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich’s diary entries is not found in the literature and is conducted for the first time. In this paper, a quantitative content-analysis of diary texts is made, and on the basis of information about visited places indicated in the records, a spatial analysis of Grand Duke’s travel routes was carried out. The frequency of occurrence of words and word forms made it possible to identify four main thematic categories found in the diaries: the sphere of everyday life, family and other personalities (of the Russian Imperial Family with socio-political figures of the Russian and European times under study), the Grand Duke’s work duties and outings, and temporal and geographical references. The information recorded in the geodatabase was visualized with the help of four maps with chronological division from 1899 to 1902, which made it possible to trace the path of Michael Alexandrovich and to reveal some features of his travels in the period under study. The conclusions are that it is possible to identify a number of recurring themes and stable word combinations denoting the regular routines and actions of Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich. The diaries contain information about many aspects of the life of the Grand Duke and his inner circle in 1899–1903, including the cultural context of the Russian Empire. Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich described historical events that took place in the Imperial Family, Russia or some European Royal families “from the inside”, being a direct participant in them.