Patriotism of the nobility during the Patriotic War of 1812

Abstract

Examples of military patriotism on the battlefields are considered in detail in the literature, and much less attention is paid to the study of the patriotism of the civilian population. The object of research is literary and archival sources describing the life of nobles during the War of 1812. The subject of study and classification is the manifestation of patriotism of representatives of the nobility in the period under review. The paper provides a comprehensive assessment of various sources devoted to the manifestation of patriotic feelings of the nobility. A critical analysis and comparison of historical documents and their assessments made by scientists has been carried out. The peculiarities of the manifestation of patriotism of representatives of the noble class, taking into account age and gender groups: men, women, children, are shown. The ways of manifestation of secular and religious patriotism are considered. The models of patriotic behavior characteristic of nobles are singled out and described, which is the novelty of this study. The main strategies of behavior are: 1) participation in hostilities as part of military units organized from their serfs; 2) donations to the front in cash and in kind; 3) support for male defenders of the Motherland; 4) indirect participation in patriotic events; 5) personal participation, consisting in interaction with the wounded, orphans and other groups of the population, suffered during the war. The implementation of various patriotic behavioral strategies is shown by the example of specific historical figures: Nadezhda Durova, Margarita Tuchkova, the Konovnitsyn family, the Rayevsky family.