I love history too. My daughter thinks I'm weird, while I don't understand why she doesn't love it. 😆
I would happily read about Russian history (although probably not in Russian as I can't read it... or speak it), because I suspect anything we've learnt on it in the west is skewed after years of cold war. But I might be in the minority, though.
I will say more (the Cold War is not the only reason here) - generally speaking, in history as a science that connects facts and events into a cause-and-effect chain... objectively.... no one is interested! People, the silent majority, society as a whole, and individual figures (politicians for example) are interested in myths! in fiction stories! with which they feed themselves and their peoples, with their help they strengthen their personal power, the power of the state, justify all sorts of claims, desires, their defeats and failures, and so on and so forth. History is the poor servant of society. Alas. The most typical example is the historiography of Western Europe about the Mongol Empire. Or the attitude towards the Crusades and the Saracens. Myth sits on myth - and they cannot be moved. And the most offensive thing is that this has nothing to do with the truth, hehe.
The key thing you need to know about Russia is that it is a poor country, poor objectively, historically; due to difficult weather conditions, it is difficult to grow crops here and sell them for good money, peasants had to work very, very hard on the land - this is the key (objective!) factor that entails most of our long-suffering history.
I always picture Russia as a show covered country, well, certainly Moscow brings that to mind. It's what we see in movies. 😆
Very much this. Even when evidence is found to refute the mythical history, the myths still continue.
Aha... cause it is actually the food to feed some mental constructions. 😜😳😳