Revoluční Rusko 1891-1991 – Figes Orlando (2019)

A renowned historian and one of the leading British experts on Russian and Soviet history examines the Bolshevik revolution not as an isolated event, but as a centuries-old cycle of violence and attempts to achieve utopian goals. He distinguishes three basic revolutionary phases: the era of Lenin and the old Bolsheviks, during which the old regime was destroyed and a new one was created; the Stalinist period, which in the 1930s brought a new wave of terror, consolidated the structures of the Soviet regime, and confirmed its legitimacy through victory in World War II; and the generation of 1956, which was influenced by the revelation of Stalin's crimes, yet remained loyal to the system. The author shows that while the revolution changed form and character over time, it preserved the same ideals – Soviet leaders believed until the very end of the regime that they were the bearers of revolutionary Leninist ideas. Orlando Figes offers an unexpectedly new perspective on well-known events in his book. With his characteristic style, he brings a fundamental change in understanding and evaluating one of the most significant events of the twentieth century.