| History
Tribute to RW Davies
On what would have been his 96th birthday, I offer this tribute to RW [Bob] Davies, who died last week. For those of you who have studied Soviet history, you will be aware of the important impact that Bob had…
| History
soviet union
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Celebrating the Lives of Soviet Women: Lyudmila Mikhailovna Alekseeva
I was greatly saddened to wake this morning to the news of the death of Moscow-based human rights activist Lyudmila Mikhailovna Alekseeva on 8 December 2018 at the age of 91. I was fortunate to be able to interview Lyudmila…
Prof. Melanie Ilic Celebrates a New Publication
On 7 November, I was privileged to be part of the presentation panel at the Centre for Russian, European and Eurasian Studies (CREES), The University of Birmingham, to mark the recent publication of the seventh and final volume in the…
Celebrating the Lives of Soviet Women: Tamara Vladimirovna Petkevich (29 March 1920 – 18 October 2017)
‘Gulag Actress’ Tamara Petkevich died recently in St Petersburg at the age of 97. Here is an abridged version of the review of her Memoir that I wrote when it was published in English in 2010. This volume has made…
Women’s Experiences of the Great Terror – new publication by Prof Melanie Ilic
I posted on our Facebook page in September that I had a book due to come out very soon, and now it’s actually here! Women’s Experiences of Repression in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe is a co-authored volume focusing…
History welcomes Dr Wendy Slater
Dr Slater is joining the History team at the University of Gloucestershire as part-time lecturer in Russian and Soviet history for semester 1, replacing Prof. Melanie Ilic who will be on a research sabbatical. I came to Russian history through…
Arrest of Wives: NKVD Operational Order No. 00486, 15 August 1937
The Great Terror of 1936 to 1938 left an indelible mark on Soviet politics and Stalinist society. In addition to the three major show trials in Moscow, purges and arrests took place across the country. Initially, these were mostly, though…
Stepan Ivanovich Karagodin: Lost and Found
Stepan Ivanovich Karagodin: Lost and Found An intriguing story has emerged recently in the Russian press and it’s now being picked up by some of the British media. It touches on some interesting questions relating to historical responsibility, victimhood and…
30 October: Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Political Repression
Crowds gathered in Moscow and in other Russian cities over the weekend to remember those who died as a result of Stalin’s purges in the 1930s and 1940s. The commemoration in Moscow took place in Lubyanka Square, where the memorial…