EARLY MODERN CONFESSIONALIZATION AND ITS CONSEQUENCES: THE RUSSIAN SCENARIO

Abstract

The concept of confessionalization became an object of an in-depth study by German historians as early as in 1950s. In the last few decades, it has been frequently addressed in the historiography of Early Modern Times. Russian scholars have also focused on the topic in recent years, studying confessionalization in the context of Russia’s development. This research is based on the similarity between the fundamental confessionalization concepts worked out by German historians and those found in political and religious practices of Early Modern Russia. At the same time, the authors reveal the specifics of the Russian confessionalization scenario resulting from specific conditions of the country’s nationhood establishment and development in Early Modern Times.