Discussion
This paper deals with the political thought of the Decembrists who revolted against Russian autocracy in 1825-26. It argues that Decembrist political thought is best understood when placed in the context of the Age of Revolutions. The Decembrists saw themselves as Europeans and Russia as part of Europe. Yet, they were patriots in the sense that they sought the common good of the Russian people. They were influenced by a combination of contemporary currents of thought such as liberalism, republicanism, romanticism and civic nationalism.
The paper shows how liberal ideas are generally expressed in the political documents of the Decembrists, while republican ideas are more often conveyed in civic literature and poetry. These ideas are not contradictory, but complement each other and together form a comprehensive political programme. Civic nationalism is reflected in the way the Decembrists defined the nation as political and as a voluntary association, but at the same time ignored ethnic differences in the multi-ethnic state. The paper concludes that the Decembrists should not be dismissed either as Romantic dreamers or as extreme revolutionaries. They held mainstream liberal ideas and their thinking was consistent with a Western tradition of liberalism and republicanism. This is not to say that the Decembrists or their political programmes are irreproachable. Pavel Pestel’s authoritarian ideas about the transition to a liberal state are certainly problematic, as are Nikita Muraviev’s restrictions on the right to vote. Both held an ethnocentric and in some cases derogatory view of minorities. The fact that the same criticism can also be levelled at contemporary Western liberals does not make it any less valid.
