Today we’re commemorating the anniversary of a treaty that doesn't exist. By “doesn't exist,” I don’t mean that it was in effect for a while but then got superseded by another treaty. I mean it never came into effect. I mean its terms were so unacceptable to so many European powers—states that hadn’t even participated … Continue reading Today in European history: the Treaty of San Stefano (1878)
Tag: russia
Inaccurate Conception: Orthodoxy, Autocephaly, and the Nation-State
It's time for another guest post! Today we've got a piece by freelance writer and Harvard Divinity School student Hannah Gais on the recent schism between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople over the latter's decision to give Ukrainian church leaders permission to form an autocephalous Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Hannah argues … Continue reading Inaccurate Conception: Orthodoxy, Autocephaly, and the Nation-State
How to Craft a Narrative
There's no Soviet Union anymore, but the principle is the same (from oldenburger.us, via hyperallergenic.com) If you've ever wondered how to go about creating a narrative to drive public perception about a story, I'm here to help. I'd like to start, if I may, with a couple of examples. Back in January, NATO began major … Continue reading How to Craft a Narrative
Today in European History: the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca (1774)
The Treaty of Karlowitz (1699) marked the end of the Ottoman Empire’s tenure as the heavyweight military power in Eastern Europe. Then passed several decades where the Ottomans won some, probably lost more, but still sort of held their own. But the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca, signed on this date in 1774, marked the point where European … Continue reading Today in European History: the Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca (1774)
Today in European history: the Skirmish at Bendery (1713)
The “Skirmish at Bendery” (known in Swedish as the Kalabaliken i Bender, from the Turkish word kalabalık or “crowd”) is a relatively silly affair, but it shows that, even in 1713 when they were supposedly in “decline,” the Ottomans were still capable of the occasional muscle flexing in Europe. It’s the climax of a chapter in the 1700-1721 … Continue reading Today in European history: the Skirmish at Bendery (1713)
Today in Caucasian history: the Battle of Sarikamish ends (1915)
The Battle of Sarikamish was one of the more overwhelming Russian victories of World War I. It was so overwhelming, in fact, that it put the Russians on the offensive in the Caucasus for good—or, well, until Russia quit the war following its 1917 revolution. Which is why its legacy is hard to judge. Whatever … Continue reading Today in Caucasian history: the Battle of Sarikamish ends (1915)
Today in European History: the Russians capture Plevna (1877)
Although they’ve settled into a kind of love-hate rut nowadays, historically relations between the precursors of modern Russia and modern Turkey have tended not to be so great. Consider that the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire, two of those precursors, fought a whopping 12 wars against one another between the second half of the … Continue reading Today in European History: the Russians capture Plevna (1877)
Today in European history: the Battle of Sinop (1853)
Apart from the Charge of the Light Brigade (the actual charge, but also the poem), the Crimean War (1853-1856) is best known as the first “modern” war, in that it was during the Crimean War when later military staples like rail, telegraphs, trenches, and rifled firearms and artillery first got tested in a major engagement. Oh, … Continue reading Today in European history: the Battle of Sinop (1853)
The Foreign Exchanges Companion 