On Raising and Educating the Nobility in Russia and in Europe: Results of International Cooperation

This review examines a collection of sixteen research papers by a group of renowned Russian and non-Russian specialists in early modern history. The authors try to formulate the essence of the all-European ideal of noble education and to outline the educational trajectories and strategies of the nobility both from Russia and different parts of Europe. The papers refer to a considerable number of archival sources and employ relevant methods and original approaches. The authors agree that during the period in question, for a well-educated representative of the European nobility, it was important to be able to communicate with those of equal standing, which entailed following social niceties and the art of letter-writing. As for academic knowledge, a nobleman was expected to have a general notion of various domains, including new disciplines, such as fortification, cameralism, mining, agriculture, etc. The reviewer criticises the scholarly apparatus of the publication and its design.