Russian Orthodox Church In The South Of Russia In Xix-Xx Centuries

Abstract

This article presents the analysis of Russian historiography. Three main approaches are identified: pre-revolutionary (from late XVIII century up to ‒ 1917; Soviet (1921‒1991); and modern or post-Soviet (from 1993 up to now). The authors claim that researchers take special interest in the relationships between the Russian Orthodox Church, the state and the Cossacks in late XVI – early XVIII centuries, just before the revolution and the civil war of 1917-1921; the relationships between the Church and the state during the Soviet period, especially in 1921-1939, 1941-1945, 1958-1965. Moreover, some topics have been covered insufficiently, including those concerning the problems of the Russian Orthodox Church in late XVIII – first half of XIX century (the rule of Catherine the Great and Nicholas I), cyclic imperial modernizations of the second half of XIX century, the first Russian revolution of 1905-1907, the analysis of the relationships of the Soviet state and the church in the post-war period from 1945 to 1985. Besides, parish registers of the Lower Don Cossacks 1869‒1912 were studied. This information, along with other sources, allows contemporary researchers to get a deeper understanding of the basis the family life and traditions, including those connected to orthodoxy, kinships and class relations among the Cossack and non-Cossack populace.