August 13, 2023

Kremlin Rewrites History


Kremlin Rewrites History
A stack of books. Alexander Grey, Unsplash.

Russia's latest history textbook for 16- to 18-year-olds includes a thorough rewriting of Russia’s history from the 1970s to the 2000s. Vladimir Medinsky, the Former Minister of Culture and one of the textbook’s co-authors, presented it at a press conference in Moscow. The book is scheduled for release in September.

“The sections for the 70s, 80s, 90s, and 2000s have been completely revised and rewritten. A section has been added from 2014 to the present that includes the special military operation,” Medinsky said. With a mix of Soviet accomplishments, resentment over the USSR's downfall, and commendations for Russia’s revival since the late 90s, the book aligns with Putin’s lie-filled historical perspective.

According to another co-author, rector of Moscow's State Institute of International Relations Anatoly Torkunov, the textbook’s events are contextualized through “today’s understanding of what happened and what is happening at the moment.”

The textbook characterizes Ukraine as an "ultra-nationalist state" with a record of suppressing any kind of dissent. It contends that the invasion aims to safeguard Donbas and proactively secure Russia. The text also suggests that the United States is a "chief beneficiary" and accuses the West of financing Ukraine, imposing "illegal sanctions" on Russia, and appropriating over $300 billion in Russian assets.

Reuters obtained a copy of the textbook. On page 393, it says: "The West became fixated with destabilizing the situation inside Russia. The aim was not even hidden: to dismember Russia and to get control over its resources."

The textbook authors advised high school students to exercise caution when consuming online war-related information, warning of a persistent stream of fabricated content, staged videos, and misleading images flooding the digital sphere. The book's narrative emphasizes that Russia's younger generation should grasp the significance of the Soviet Union's demise, be wary of perceived Western ideals, and be prepared to contribute to their motherland through self-sacrifice.

You Might Also Like

What are They Teaching Our Kids?
  • May 01, 2004

What are They Teaching Our Kids?

Profound changes are afoot that will alter how future generations of Russians see the world. In schools across Russia, new curricula are being introduced, history is being rewritten, and the role of religion in education is being hotly debated.
What Lies Beneath
  • May 01, 2021

What Lies Beneath

On the architectural heritage of Moscow that is being lost, bit by bit, though not without some resistance by dedicated scientists and activists.
Taken from Home to Belarus
  • July 24, 2023

Taken from Home to Belarus

Children from Russian-annexed Ukraine are being sent to camps in Belarus. Many don't return.
Medieval Musings
  • June 13, 2023

Medieval Musings

A medieval guide to life and ethics may be integrated into the Russian education system.
Standing the Test of Time
  • January 31, 2023

Standing the Test of Time

A conservative State Duma deputy called for the removal of The Gulag Archipelago from the Russian school curriculum.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
Murder at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
Marooned in Moscow

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
Moscow and Muscovites

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 
The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The Frogs Who Begged for a Tsar (bilingual)

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
Driving Down Russia's Spine

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 
The Little Golden Calf

The Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955