History of Russia
Course code
AIG6112.HT
old course code
Course title in Estonian
Venemaa ajalugu
Course title in English
History of Russia
ECTS credits
6.0
Assessment form
Examination
lecturer of 2026/2027 Autumn semester
Not opened for teaching. Click the study programme link below to see the nominal division schedule.
lecturer of 2026/2027 Spring semester
Not opened for teaching. Click the study programme link below to see the nominal division schedule.
Brief description of the course
The course focuses on the Russian Empire as an imperial case study of particular relevance to Estonian history. It provides a chronological overview of Russian history from the Middle Ages to the present, paying particular attention to Russia’s geography, the formation of statehood, territorial expansion and the development of empire. The course traces Russian development from Kyivan Rus’ and the Grand Principality of Moscow through the Russian Empire, revolution and the Soviet Union to post-Soviet Russia. Particular attention is paid to the rise of Moscow, the reign of Ivan IV, the reforms and Europeanisation of Peter I, the formation of the St Petersburg empire, nineteenth-century modernisation, the revolutions and the collapse of the empire. The Soviet period is treated in broad outline, while closer consideration is given to the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the formation of post-Soviet Russia, Putin’s rise to power and the resurgence of neo-imperial ideas. Lectures are supplemented by seminars and the analysis of written and audiovisual sources.
Learning outcomes in the course
Upon completing the course the student:
- historicises and contextualises Russia’s political, social and cultural development from the Middle Ages to the twenty-first century, taking account of ethnic relations within the empire and relations with neighbouring countries;
- is familiar with the principal sources, individuals and historiographical debates in Russian history and distinguishes historical facts from opinions and myths;
- critically analyses primary sources and scholarly literature and produces evidence-based and appropriately referenced academic texts;
- presents their knowledge orally and in writing, participates in discipline-specific discussion in a foreign language and works in a multicultural team.
- historicises and contextualises Russia’s political, social and cultural development from the Middle Ages to the twenty-first century, taking account of ethnic relations within the empire and relations with neighbouring countries;
- is familiar with the principal sources, individuals and historiographical debates in Russian history and distinguishes historical facts from opinions and myths;
- critically analyses primary sources and scholarly literature and produces evidence-based and appropriately referenced academic texts;
- presents their knowledge orally and in writing, participates in discipline-specific discussion in a foreign language and works in a multicultural team.
Teacher
Karsten Brüggemann
Study programmes containing that course