Russian Duel. Mystics and Guardians

This edition includes two books by Yakov Gordin – a well-known writer and publicist, and a researcher of Russian history of the 18th and the first half of the 19th centuries.
"Russian Duel: Philosophy, Ideology, Practice" is devoted to the most important phenomenon of noble culture, the duel as a decisive way to defend one's honor. Based on archival documents and memoirs, Y. A. Gordin traces the history of the Russian duel – from the era of Catherine II, the time of the first duels, to the reign of Alexander III, when the duel tradition was already fading. Notable fencers and duelists, various reasons for conflict situations, and different conditions of duels, as well as attempts by authorities to ban duels of honor – all create a vivid picture of noble life in the 18th-19th centuries.
The main plot of the book "Mystics and Guardians, or The Case of the Masonic Conspiracy" is a historical episode involving many significant state and public figures of the Pushkin era, starting with the emperor himself. In 1831, Nicholas I received a report from Prince Andrei Golitsyn about a conspiracy of the Illuminati order, in which the names of the "first dignitaries" of Russia were mentioned among others. However, this version of the myth about a universal Masonic conspiracy was born from the irreconcilable struggle that began during the reign of Alexander I, within Masonic societies, between mystics and Orthodox, reformers and guardians.
The publication is addressed to the broadest audience – to all who are fascinated by Russian history and culture.