Establishment of Russian studies at the Victoria University of Manchester and Russia abroad

P.A. Tribunskii

Alexander Solzhenitsyn Center for Russian Émigré Studies, Moscow, 109240 Russia

Institute of Russian History, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 117292 Russia

E-mail: pt2140@yandex.ru

Received October 27, 2020

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DOI: 10.26907/2541-7738.2020.6.134-142

For citation: Tribunskii P.A. Establishment of Russian studies at the Victoria University of Manchester and Russia abroad. Uchenye Zapiski Kazanskogo Universiteta. Seriya Gumanitarnye Nauki, 2020, vol. 162, no. 6, pp. 134–142. doi: 10.26907/2541-7738.2020.6.134-142. (In Russian)

Abstract

This paper considers the formation of Russian studies at the Victoria University of Manchester and the participation of A.S. Mindel, a representative of Russia abroad, in it. Teaching the Russian language at the Victoria University of Manchester started in 1907 in the wake of interest in the events in Russia (the war with Japan, the revolution). However, the exotic and difficult language lessons taught by the teacher of English W.J. Sedgefield quickly began to fall out of the public’s favor. Another “Russian boom” in Great Britain occurred during the World War I, when the two countries became allies in the fight against Germany. Due to the increasing interest in Russia in that period, A.S. Mindel, a clerk of the commercial firm, was in demand as a teacher of the Russian language. In addition to teaching, A.S. Mindel gave lectures on Russia, mainly on economic topics, because the Manchester business community, which financially supported the development of Russian studies at the university, was willing to forge contacts with Russia. The pinnacle of A.S. Mindel’s achievements as a teacher was the preparation and publication of a reference book on Russian commercial correspondence (1918). The funds collected by the university authorities in conjunction with the business community of Manchester made it possible to organize a chair of the Russian language, a post for which A.S. Mindel, with his level of education, could not apply. He was not involved in the subsequent development of Russian studies in Manchester.

Keywords: Victoria University of Manchester, Russian studies, Russia abroad, W.J. Sedgefield, A.S. Mindel, M.V. Trofimov

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