The opening of the Slavic brothers. Russian travelers in the Balkans in the first half of the XIX century

Was the belief in the "Brotherhood of the Slavic peoples by the simple result of their original cultural and linguistic unity, or did it become a product of overcoming completely different models of perception in the era of the" national revival "? The evidence presented in the collection is the result of the direct contacts of Russian diplomats, military leaders and unofficial persons with the Slavic population of the Balkan Peninsula, local cultural, religious and political figures. The evolution of the ways of describing the Balkan Slavs is considered in the context of social dynamics, literary and ideological trends, institutional changes in the intellectual life of Russia, as well as international relations of the first half of the 19th century. A comparison of these texts reveals similarities and differences in the positions of diplomats, Slavic scientists, public figures, and populis travelers with general cultural baggage. They allow you to analyze the process of forming stereotypical ideas about the Balkan Slavs as the "fraternal" peoples of Russia.
More than a third of the materials included in the collection from a number of archival storage facilities (RGBI, NIR RGB, OPI GIM, PFA RAS, OR RNL) were not previously published. All the texts placed in the book were suggested about their authors, who are concentrated mainly on the circumstances of the trips they undertaken and the emergence of the published evidence, as well as comments. In the final article accompanying the publication, the highways of the perception of the Balkan Slavs in Russia on a half -century segment, which is crowned with a complete version of "fraternal" ideas, were analyzed.
Compilation, preface, biographical certificates, comments and final article by M.V. Belova