Russian Neutrality in the American Revolution: Fear, Strategy, and Opportunity | S1E11 AAR

Dichotomy of Russians traditions toward the United States started from the beginning - in the American Revolution. While Russia did not fear 13 rebellious colonies that would eventually form a fledging nation, the Russian government feared the ideas of liberty and republicanism that came from America, including the popularity of Benjamin Franklin in Russia.

An interesting point about this dichotomy is that it happened at the time of Catherine the Great - who called herself Republican and liked to be known as being an enlightened ruler. But this very enlightened ruler imprisoned Russians who disseminated the American Declaration of Independence and wrote of liberty and human rights, including the morality bankrupt practice of serfdom in Russia.

In addition to all the above, my guest scholar explains two ways in which the Russian Empire indirectly helped the American cause, and why it too Russia so long to formalize relations with the United States.

📄 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠I⁠nterview Transcript

🚩About My 206th Guest: Dr. Ivan Kurilla

Dr. Ivan Kurilla is a historian of U.S.-Russian relations. In addition to many appointments at U.S. universities, he previously taught at Volgograd State University and the European University at St. Petersburg. However, in 2024 he left Russia after being dismissed for opposing the war in Ukraine and is now based in the United States as a visiting scholar in the Department of History at The Ohio State University. His scholarship also focuses on the history of U.S. and American foreign relations, the international dimensions of the American Civil War, issues of historical memory, the misuse of history, and the role of historians in contemporary Russia. Dr. Kurilla has published extensively on these subjects.

▶️Other Interviews: --Interview with Dr. Sophia Rosenfeld about the Age of Enlightenment

--Interview with Dr. Jonathan Singerton about the Habsburg Empire and the American Revolution: That interview will be linked here when it publishes.

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📑 Video Chapters:

00:00 Select Highlights

01:58 Guest Introduction

03:56 Russia During the American Revolution

10:51 Russia’s Enlightened, Republican Autocrat

14:54 American News in the Russian Empire

18:40 Franklin’s Fame in Russia

20:38 Two Russian Traditions Toward America

26:28 Empress Catherine Refuses King George III

32:51 Russia’s Declaration of Armed Neutrality

38:10 Francis Dana’s Militia Diplomacy in Russia

41:58 Dichotomy of Russia’s Revolutionaries

49:31 Just One Point

59:00 John Paul Jones in Russia

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