Peter the Great: The Image of the Russian Tsar in East Asia

Abstract

The peer-reviewed collective monograph “The Image of Peter the Great in the Countries of East Asia” was prepared by scholars from St. Petersburg State University and the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of Sciences. This book examines the features of the perception of the image of the first Russian Emperor Peter the Great (1672–1725) in China, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam. The main content of ideas about this Russian Tsar in these countries is revealed, the sources and ways of disseminating these ideas are considered. The study covers the chronological framework from the reign of Peter the Great to the 21st century. Archival texts of the 18th century, works of the 18th – 19th centuries, articles by publicists of the 19th – 20th centuries, works of modern historians of the considered countries, publications of various genres on the Internet, translations of Russian works about Peter the Great, educational and children's literature, documentaries and other materials have been studied. The specificity of interpretation in different ethno-cultural environments of facts about the life and work of the Tsar is explained.