Issue 2017 No. 3 (52)

Evidence of the presence of Christians in the Golden Horde is extremely rare. Most often these are finds of wearable crosses. The article analyzes the fact of finding a Christian burial with a silver cross, as well as a copper cross and an encolpion on the В«Mayachny bugorВ» burial ground in the Ast ... rakhan region. Encolpion - a double-winged hollow cross with the image of Our Lady and saints in medallions on the beams of the cross - refers to the first quarter of the 13th century. A small copper cross with balls at the ends of beams dates back to the late 12th - early 13th centuries. The burial of a teenager with a silver cross on his back is also dated by the inventory in the first half - the middle of the 13th century. Types of crosses from the "Mayachny bugor" burial ground were widespread in the territory of Ancient Rus - in the Kiev land, as well as in the Old Ryazan, in Novgorod, in Tula, in the Raikovets settlement, on Beloozero. The author assumes that crosses and burial can belong to representatives of the higher strata of the society of Ancient Russia, because the custom of burial with crosses was spread only among the secular and spiritual elite of society. Burials of the Russian nobility in the Volga delta in the early Golden Horde period could appear only next to the first capital of the Golden Horde. The author localizes this city on the Krasny Yar settlement.
Read more

This article is devoted to the role of service groups in the history of the Bukey Horde. Bukey Horde and its history represent an important part of the history of the entire Caspian region. Despite the fact that the study of various aspects has two centuries in its history, there are gaps. One such ... aspect is the history of service groups. Changing social development paradigm in Bukeyev Horde (orientation on the takeover of "Tatar" just and the Nogai type in the formation and management has contributed, in our view, the rise of several groups - Nogai and Tatar (Mishar) origin of the first named Nogay - kazakh and karagashnogay, second - named Karakalpak. These groups, it's basically amounted to support the authorities Khan. This is especially apparent in the uprising Isatai Taimanov. Subsequently, representatives of the groups carrying out police duties received special location of the authorities. These groups were before special ethnosocial, have now become special sub-ethnic units as part of the western (Bukeyev) part of of kazakhs. Nowadays of the descendants of groups that left the bright trace in the history of Bukeyev horde live there to keep the memory and traditions.
Read more

In the article examines the participation of Astrakhan military and civilian governors in the management of the Kalmyk steppe and its most important socio-political institution, the Buddhist church of the Kalmyks. At the stage of the final integration of the Kalmyk people into the state machine of t ... he Russian Empire, the Buddhist church played a significant role. The Buddhist clergy sought to actively participate in the socio-political life of the Kalmyk uluses, defending the rights of the clerical elite. Astrakhan governors, adequately assessing the importance of the Buddhist clergy in the life of the Kalmyk society, sought to integrate them into the regional political elite, regulate the activities of the Buddhist church. In the first half of the XIX century personal contacts of the Astrakhan governors and representatives of the Buddhist clergy were restored, and the most urgent problems of the Buddhist church were discussed. A characteristic feature of the policy of the Astrakhan governors in the period under review was the rejection of a radical reform of the Buddhist church of the Kalmyks, the desire to avoid political crises in the Kalmyk society in the process of realizing the main goals of state policy in the region. The Astrakhan governors (A.Ermolov, I. Popov, V. Pyatkin) made a significant contribution to the creation of legislative acts of 1825, 1834, regulating the management of the Kalmyk people and the Buddhist church of the Kalmyk steppe.
Read more

This article is devoted to judgment of an image of Georges the Victorious in Russian heraldry. The great martyr Georges the Victorious one of the most dear Saints who for Russians was of particular importance. Georges the Victorious the patron of soldiers and the defender of the world of people, the ... one who has managed to make a spiritual feat. For the courage of the true soldier shown in the face of death for a spiritual victory of Georges the Victorious Christians of the different countries honor. Georges the Victorious's image as rider the two-headed eagle striking with a spear of a dragon and crowned, have entered the State Emblem of Russia.
Read more

The article is devoted to peculiarities of a foreign award system in the Russian Navy in the second half of XIX - early XX centuries are Considered awards Northern Europe, Western Europe, southern and South-Eastern Europe, Africa, Asia, America, the Far and Middle East. Separate attention is paid to ... the facts of the foreign award with the insignia of the lower ranks of the Russian Navy. Provides information on the hierarchy of foreign awards in the Russian Navy and the rules of wearing them. Orders and medals of the world are studied on the prestige of admirals and naval officers. Indicated by the official position of the national state authorities to various foreign orders and medals. Explores the relationship of national foreign policy in the second half of XIX - early XX centuries. and of rewarding the crews of the ships of the Russian Imperial Navy. Examines the history of foreign insignia. Analyzes the rules for awarding orders and medals of the world for crews of the Russian ships in the second half of XIX - early XX centuries. In addition, examines the history of the Russian fleet in the second half of XIX - beginning of XX centuries First of all, it is about the circumnavigation and long-distance hikes-related awards and foreign orders and medals.
Read more

The article deals with the events of the Civil War on the territory of Hoper and Ust-Medveditsa Don regions and identifies the position of local Cossacks in respect of military and political confrontation of those years.In spite of the fact that the participation of Don Cossacks in the Civil War was ... highlighted quite well both in the Soviet historiography and in the recent history, in the article we would like to analyze one of the most painful moments of that period in this Land. In the article it is defined the main contradictions that were in the Southern Russia in spring in 1918 and as a result they led to the division of the Cossacks. It is studied the process of transition of Hopper Cossacks and Ust-Medveditsk ones from local conflicts to wide-ranging fighting in the period of the Civil War. It is paid attention to the process of forming up the first troops of Red and White Army in spring in 1918.The conflict was between the cossacs who support Bolsheviks and who were against this idea.The events are described till the autumn of 1919 when the Red Army`s troops displaced the White Guard Military units from the Land and set the Soviet power.
Read more

In this article, the authors disclose the specifics of such small genres of Astrakhan folklore as proverbs and sayings that differ in inclusiveness, i.e inclusion with the everyday life of the inhabitants of the region, and historical determinism. In the array of existing proverbs and sayings, the a ... uthors singulate and analyze two groups: proverbs and proverbial markers that form the image of Astrakhans in the Russian expanses, and mini-texts, created on the Astrakhan territory and reflecting the specific nature and special features of the multinational population of the Volga Ponizovie.
Read more

This paper shows that, in prioritizing of the welfare state leading challenge is to build on a fundamentally different basis of relationship between the state and civil associations through the strengthening of institutions cross-sectoral social partnership, public management based on public values ... and interests, allows you to create a strategy for social development in which the beginning of the civil self-organization was supplemented by systematic efforts of the state and reinforce each other. Through this mechanism, formed civilized practice of public and social relations based on solidarity and responsibility of the subjects of public administration.
Read more

The analysis allows coming to the conclusionthat although today Russia's political system has a certain resistance, without making some changes in public policy the degree of its stability in the near term would be significantly reduced and will approach dangerous levels of destabilization of Russia ... n society. The author proposes a number of measures aimed at strengthening the stability of modern Russian political system.
Read more

In the article the factors that contribute to changing the modernization paradigm in relation to the countries of the East are considered, the specificity of non-Western, eastern societies is analyzed. The social capital of the Asian development model is explored. The stereotypes of the mass politic ... al consciousness of the eastern societies are presented.
Read more

The topicality of the issue lies in the fact that the role of non-governmental and sub-national policy actors in international relations has qualitatively increased. Public diplomacy is a topical thing in breaking through the economic, information and political blockade of the Crimea. In this connec ... tion a positive experience of international cooperation of Italian regions and businesses with the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol (2014-2017) is of a definite interest. The long-term factors of international cooperation of the business and regions of Italy with the Crimea are high level of economic cooperation of the north regions of Italy with Russia; the competition of regional interests with national authorities; the increasing influence of regionalist and opposition parties in some areas of northern Italy; structural and economic similarity of the Crimea with the Italian regions. The greatest prospects for cooperation exist in the economically developed areas of northern Italy, where the influential opposition parties are «Northern League», «People of Freedom», «Movement of 5 Stars». An important resource for public diplomacy of Russia could become an information policy, pursued by means of museum, theater, educational and research institutions activities, positioning Crimea as a «bridge» between civilizations, the centuries-old place of dialogue and cooperation.
Read more

The article analyses the composition of party lists and single-seat district lists at the elections of deputies to the State Duma of the Russian Federation and to the Legislative Assembly of Altai Krai in 2016. The thesis is supported that both campaigns had personalized character connected with spe ... cific nature of modern politics as well as restoration of majoritarian component in the elections to the Russian Parliament. Thus political parties were particularly careful while generating lists of candidates. The analysis of social structure of party lists demonstrated that regional branches of political parties made efforts to show their comprehensive character, while in single-seat districts the uppermost importance was given to the recognition and resources of candidates. The comparative analysis of lists of candidates of different levels proved dependence of HR strategies in different parties on their status in the political system: under the condition of combined elections only «United Russia» had enough human resource to campaign at all levels. Other parliamentary parties had to nominate the same candidates at all levels with clear regional emphasis while new political parties hardly participated in the elections.
Read more

Article is devoted to determination of the place and a role of culture in the international relations, to detection of an entity and its features. Defining that the culture - is expression of the personal beginning of each society, we will mark that it represents - historically caused level of devel ... opment of society, a creative power and abilities of the person expressed in types and forms of the organization of life and activities of people, in their relations in the material and cultural wealth created by them. In the modern conditions the most important role of culture in the international relations is shown in its influence on constructibility of a cross-cultural dialog, in ability to promote mutual respect of people of different nationalities, solidifying of their friendship and cooperation, integration of the nations. Creation of the polycultural environment promotes recognition of cultural identity of the people and formation of polytolerance. Influence of culture on the international relations is one of the most difficult problems defining both the current state, and the future of our country.
Read more

The population of Soviet Moldova, like a large part of the citizens of the USSR, supported the policy of restructuring by creating amateur politicized associations. However, the change in the strategic course of the «Popular Front» contributed to the republic's exit from the USSR and the emergence o ... n the political landscape of heterogeneous organizations.
Read more

The article examines ways of improving the state policy regarding the electoral rights of persons with disabilities in the Russian Federation. Voting allows persons with disabilities to exert greater political influence. This group of citizens are faced with various psychological, physical or instit ... utional barriers in the exercise of their active electoral rights. In general, it can be said that the task of providing the same opportunity for participation of persons with disabilities in the electoral process, as well as for other voters, is being gradually solved. However, to date, the main ways of improving state policy regarding the electoral rights of disabled people have not yet been clearly defined.
Read more

The article considers the significance and role of law enforcement agencies in the system of state bodies of Russia responsible for ensuring national security. Legislative bases of participation of law enforcement bodies in maintenance of questions of the state and public safety are studied. The sig ... nificance of the Russian National Security Strategy for the period up to 2010 is disclosed for the participation of law enforcement agencies in ensuring national security issues. The participation of law enforcement agencies in the prevention of risks and threats to national security was determined. At the present stage, the role of law enforcement agencies in the fight against threats to national security in the sphere of culture is growing. There is a gradual expansion of the functions of law enforcement agencies in solving problems of national security.
Read more

The problem of political identity is extremely relevant in the modern world, this is one of the important forms of identification of the individual. The problem of identity and the definition of the grounds for its study are also relevant because of the crisis of the identity of modern man. The iden ... tity crisis is associated with the process of globalization and the development of the information society, as well as with the attempts of political actors to form a new political system. Formation of political identity is one of the key moments for democratic countries, depending on external and internal factors. Political identity influences the foreign policy of all modern states. The principles underlying political identity must be a certain balance. On the one hand, they must be recognized as common to all citizens, be the subject of their consensus. On the other hand, they must leave the field for the manifestation of their individuality by various groups and minorities. Political identity influences the foreign policy of all modern states. The article examines the political identity of such states as Russia and Greece. Russia appears to be making several elections at once - between integration into European civilization and the desire to preserve itself as an independent center of power, relative isolation and complete openness, an empire and a nation-state. The influence that the Greek political identity has on the behavior of Greece in recent years postpones the foreign policy of the state, since the Greek government seeks to gain EU confidence and renew ties with friendly countries in spite of the crisis.
Read more

Sanctions of the EU countries have not gone completely beyond the economy of all countries: a drop in the purchasing power of Russians, a reduction in jobs in Europe, large financial losses for the European economy. The modern geopolitical situation exerts its influence not only on the world economy ... and politics, but also on such a sphere of activity as tourism. The article analyzes the changes that have occurred in the tourism market of the Russian Federation and their possible impact on the development of tourism in the Astrakhan region. The text notes a drop in demand for tourist trips abroad and an increase in the popularity of domestic tourism in Russia. In this regard, the development of regional tourism, including the tourist sphere of the Astrakhan region, becomes particularly topical.
Read more

The creation of favorable conditions in the social sphere becomes the main goal of economic activity of the state. Consequently, the task of a socially-oriented economy of the state is the activity of social protection of all strata of society and the elaboration of an effective social policy strate ... gy. Implementation of measures on social policy is largely successful due to the activities of extra-budgetary funds. There are three permanent off-budget funds in Russia: Pension Fund of the Russian Federation; Federal Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund; Social Insurance Fund of the Russian Federation. Special off-budget funds are also created in different countries. In the United States there are more than ten permanent and temporary funds, including social, scientific and technical funds, etc. Off-budget funds also exist in France, Germany and Japan. The activities of the extra-budgetary funds of Germany today are aimed at solving one of the most pressing problems of Europe - the integration of migrants and refugees and the maintenance of multiculturalism policy.
Read more

The article is devoted to the study of migration processes, in particular, the problem of the migration crisis associated with the uncontrolled influx of refugees from Africa and the East into Germany is being considered. There are some contradictions between the way information about migration proc ... esses is presented by German media and real problems that arise as a result of conflicts between migrants and the host population. A number of German researchers in their papers talk about the national threat that migrants carry in themselves, while the media, encouraging the so-called "culture of hospitality", hides the problems, describing migrants only from a positive point of view.
Read more

During an era of global challenges and threats Russia has appeared in epicenter of world contradictions, has turned into an object of political, economic and information pressure, constant intervention in her internal affairs from the outside, against the country "undeclared" hybrid information war ... is launched. The information attacks will for this purpose be organized, financing of antistate political forces is carried out, subjects of protection of human rights in internal political fight are used, provoking of the religious, international and social conflicts is carried out, protest moods are kindled. The Russophobic course of the West is at the moment actually institutionalized, and his conductors hold the leading posts in public authorities, in the international, non-governmental organizations and media. In modern conditions the probability of military action against Russia is improbable first of all because of her nuclear potential, there is no real social base for rocking of a situation in Russia therefore our ill-wishers are forced to strengthen the external pressure upon Russia also, having placed the main emphasis on applications of strategy of indirect actions and "soft power". These actions are conducted with use of certain tools of influence in all main spheres of activity of the Russian state and society - organizational and conceptual, financial and economic, political and legal, sociocultural, foreign policy, defenses and safety.
Read more

This article considers the actual topic of institutionalizing the process of forming patriotism in Russia as a necessary condition for creating a mechanism for introducing political values that regulate the system of civic-patriotic roles and statuses. The article notes that the process of instituti ... onalization presupposes not a replacement of established civil-patriotic values, but an active inclusion of society in a process in which there are contradictions between old and new institutional forms.
Read more

To date, we have clearly seen a trend towards increasing the importance of soft instruments of public diplomacy and increasing the role of international intergovernmental organizations, including European ones, in affirming the legitimacy of the election of the leadership of the states of the world. ... This article will allow you to see how for ten years, during the three presidential Ukraine elections, the interest of international intergovernmental organizations in Europe has changed, which subsequently led to the fact that Russia's foreign policy suddenly demanded a new interpretation and a new concept of Russian-Ukrainian relations.
Read more

The article is devoted to the research of the clown image in the modern culture. Representing one of the jester figure incarnations, this image is endowed with ambivalence which is already shown at the Archaic stage. The Pueblo Indians (Zuni)'s Koyemsi ritual clowns images combine elements of the hu ... mour culture with the sacred horror, danger and sexual aggression. The original ambivalence is determined by the clown image ability to move throughout the coordinate axis Own - Different - Alien - Enemy - Monster . It can be represented as an image of Own / Different (as a kind Soviet circus clown) and Alien / Monster , into which it had transformed in the modern culture (the clown of modern cinema). The demonization of the clown image is determined by the worldview transformation in the second half of the twentieth century. With the help of the postmodern worldview platform it is possible to change traditional patterns, especially those cultural phenomena that are initially ambivalent. In recent years this has led to the prominence of the terrible clown image in the media and the acts of intimidation of people in the image of a clown, which leads to the emergence of new phobias.
Read more

Since the end of last century the problem of Alien becoming more acute, as the Alien rapidly moves from the outer circle of our being to the innercircle. Elements of vestimentary culture of Alienacquire new meaning, become markers of otherness, strangeness. The most vivid marker in the modern era be ... comes, ironically, the hijab. If before, the hijab was a symbol of backwardness, religious oppression, low status and violence against women, at the present time it is not only the object of a significant and highly controversial discourse, but alsoеруpretext to the political provocations and legal conflicts. Hijab at the moment is becoming quite a complex character, burdened with many semantic loadings. The article identifies the following characteristics of hijab: religious affiliation, affectively gender, the search for a compromise, a status, a new social reference points, a marker of strangeness and analyzed their main features. Our assumptions were supported by results of the sociological survey of the youth of the Astrakhan State University ( sample size of 100 people) and in-depth interviews. As a result of our research, we came to the conclusion that the symbolism of the hijab as a marker becomes ambivalent. From the position of non-Muslim society, it becomes a symbol of strangeness, with the position of Muslim women - a symbol of a new status and a new understanding of society.
Read more

An attempt to show the role and significance of Platonism as a cultural and historical phenomenon in general and in Russian philosophical culture, in particular is taken in the article. It is emphasized that Plato's philosophical heritage is not only the past, but on the contrary, it contains though ... ts and ideas that are very relevant for understanding and solving a whole range of contemporary problems. Along with the generally recognized Platonism as the largest philosophical doctrine and the cultural and historical phenomenon of world significance, it is noted that Platonism is not alien to scientific knowledge. The question of long tradition of Platonism in Russian philosophy is considered. As a result, several positions of understanding by the author of the role and significance of Plato and Platonism in Russian philosophical culture are presented.
Read more

The article deals with the main stages of evolution and the basic approaches to the definition of patriotism as in ancient and Christian culture. The author analyzes the process concretization of the concept of its most common and therefore abstract definitions (the idea of civic virtue and the stat ... e in ancient philosophy and culture) to its definition of the integral as a love for the spiritual content of the Fatherland of Church and State in the history of Christian thought. 1. Such an integrated analysis of the concept of patriotism in the ancient and Christian philosophy and culture is still largely unsolved problem of modern philosophy that, in fact, determines the scientific relevance of the chosen topic, its problematic and subject content. 2. As of source material used most representative texts of ancient and Christian thinkers, with intelligent logical and historical, i.e. dialectical methodology to reveal the integral meaning and factual content of the idea of patriotism in the pre-Christian and Christian eras of world history. 3. The results of conducting historical and philosophical research is the concept of an integrated model of patriotism makes philosophical and methodological positions to determine the direction of the specification of this concept in the system of modern social and human sciences: political science, history, sociology, law, culture, and others. 4. The information presented in the article of historical and philosophical concept of patriotism can be updated directly in the system of state policy in the field of patriotic education of Russian youth.
Read more

The article is devoted to the influence of ethnic migration in Dagestan as a factor in the transformation of regional power elites. The author considers one of the consequences of rural ethnic migration in the region - from the mountains to the plain, from the village to the urban settlements: the t ... ransformation of the ethnic structure of power elites in the region. The author puts forward the thesis that the main factor in changing the ethnic structure of the political elite in the republic in the post-Soviet period was the change in the qualitative characteristics of the intraregional migration process.
Read more

Characterizing the political culture of modern elites, political science increasingly pays attention to the increasing role of political mythology and the adaptation of elites and their leaders to the falsification of political data. There is an increase in utopian thinking, creating its own virtual ... reality, which pushes aside the reality of the objective world. Western elites actually unleashed the most real information war against Russia, having engendered a new round of Russophobia in their countries. It is precisely Russophobia that underlies the modern political ideology of the Western elites, which testifies to the crisis of their thinking and the utopian nature of the perception of reality.
Read more

The article is devoted to the little studied topic of regional history, which reveals the main stages in the development of civil construction in the space of the major economic center of the Lower Volga region - Astrakhan. The authors analyze the reasons and factors that contribute to the growth of ... the city's territory in different historical periods, show the main directions of urban development, disclose the functional purpose of the erected objects, facts related to the perception of the buildings by both the Astrakhans and the guests of the city, including foreigners. The article focuses on the anniversary dates in the history of Astrakhan, contributing to the deployment of urban construction in the direction of implementing large-scale social projects.
Read more

The article is devoted to the consideration of issues related to the implementation in the XVIII century. Russia's foreign policy in the south-east direction and the role of the Astrakhan governors in this process. The focus is on the diplomatic and military-political aspects of governors in Astrakh ... an. Decrees of the Senate, the Collegium of Foreign Affairs, nominal imperial decrees addressed to the Astrakhan governors on various aspects of foreign policy are analyzed. The steps taken by the Astrakhan provincial authorities to interact with foreign diplomats, Russian consuls and residents in Persia, the rulers of neighboring countries and peoples are considered. Particular attention is paid to the role of the Astrakhan governors in coordinating the intelligence activities of Russian agents abroad, implementing measures aimed at countering Russia's external threats, supporting the Russian government's military plans in the South Caucasus, and facilitating the spread of Russian influence in the North Caucasus. The conclusion is substantiated that in the XVIII century the Astrakhan authorities were active agents of Russian foreign policy in relations with states and peoples in the North Caucasus, the Transcaucasus and Central Asia.
Read more

The article is devoted to the analysis of little-known facts of the first scientific expeditions of Russia in the Caspian Sea in terms of the role Astrakhan played in them. The author outlines the main reasons that prompted Russia to hold such events and carefully analyzes the preparation, progress ... and results of the most important studies of the Caspian Sea during the 18th century. As a result, there is a clear relationship between the political strategy of the Russian state to expand its influence in the Caspian region and its research study.
Read more

The peculiarities of migration processes in the Astrakhan province of the middle of the XIX century as an important factor in the formation of the capitalist system are considered in the article. On the basis of statistical sources, the scale and directions of peasant agrarian resettlements are show ... n, the causes of the growth of migration flows are analyzed both in the territory of European Russia and in the Astrakhan province. The Russian government, in spite of the inconsistency and contradictory nature of the policy on this issue, generally facilitated the settlement and development of the southern outskirts. Not only the vast territories of the Astrakhan province attracted migrants here - various industries were developed here. Resettlements contributed to the rise of productive forces, the redistribution of land ownership, the creation of a labor market in the region, the strengthening of the marketability of the economy, the distribution of rent. It was concluded that in general, migrations in Russia on the eve and after the reform of 1861 were a progressive phenomenon for the economy and contributed to the strengthening of capitalist elements in the economy. Peasant resettlements to the Astrakhan province contributed to the development of the region's economic potential, stimulated the revitalization of crafts, trades, the trade industry, determined and strengthened Astrakhan's role in the domestic market of Russia.
Read more

The article is devoted to the study of the interaction between Astrakhan region and Turkmenistan in the end of XX - beginning of XXI century. The Caspian region has always been a crossroads of Europe and Asia, but after the collapse of the Soviet Union has increased the need to strengthen relations ... of the Caspian States, which strengthened the role of Astrakhan in this process. In addition, the Russian region and Turkmenistan has long been within the nyali economic, trade and cultural ties, the government of Astrakhan of the field for a number of years, taken steps to establish a two-way mutually beneficial relations with Turkmenistan. The article gives characteristics of the priority directions of cooperation between the two regions, especially trade ties, relations in the sphere of shipbuilding, train, aviation, tourism. Great attention is paid to the cultural contacts of the peoples, noting that on the territory of Astrakhan region is home to a large community of Turkmen. The interaction is carried out in the educational sphere, science, The Turkmen side is interested in training specialists in various fields. Undoubtedly, it is important to note that the Governor of the Astrakhan region Alexander Zhilkin and the President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov emphasizes that the Astrakhan and Turkmenistan have long-standing economic and cultural ties based on historically established good-neighbourly relations. All this provided the opening of the Consulate of Turkmenistan in 2013, the Author comes to the conclusion that the level of development of dialogue between Ashgabat and Astrakhan can serve as an example of the fruitful partnership between Turkmenistan and the individual regions by the Russian Federation.
Read more

The shipbuilding branch of industry from the stage of its origin in the Lower Volga region, i.e. from fishing to industry. Even very small shipbuilding yards, as well as workshops based solely on manual labor, as well as large enterprises that grew to the level of factories were identified. The deve ... lopment of shipbuilding in the Astrakhan Province on an industrial basis was promoted in 1826 by the transfer of the Admiralty from Kazan to the city of Astrakhan. It remained the base of the Russian navy in the Caspian Sea until moving to Baku. Parallel with the state building of the navy, merchant shipbuilding developed. Shipbuilding, and closely related ship repair, had a significant impact on the economic life of the Lower Volga region, expanding and deepening commodity-money relations. In the forties of the XIX century on the Lower and by 1900 in Astrakhan province there were almost three dozen ship-repairing enterprises, most of which were discovered in the last decade of the XIX century. It was then, when the Caspian and Volga oil fleets received rapid development. The majority of owners of the Middle Volga river started an industrial revolution on river transport, which allowed increasing the marketability of production in this region. The fifties of the XIX century became a boom in the shipping business and the development of construction of steamships on the Volga. The shipping company on the Volga began to develop rapidly with the abolition of serfdom. Along with the equipment of steam engines, the ships began to be built from iron, and then exclusively from steel.
Read more

In the article, the Caspian region becomes the subject of scientific analysis, as one key area for Great Britain during the XIX-XX centuries. The argument is based on the fact that after the collapse of the USSR, a vacuum of force was formed on the territory of independent Caspian states, which mark ... ed the beginning of a new period of the "big game". The authors reveal the specifics of this period and substantiate the very idea that such a period of "big game" generally takes place. Based on the analysis of the English sources, it is proved that, despite the generally accepted opinion, rivalry in the Caspian region in the 21st century is much more complicated than the confrontation between the two great powers (the Russian Empire and Great Britain) in the past. Specificity of this moment is that at the present stage of historical development, many actors are fighting for the region, including extra-regional and regional forces, as well as oil corporations and international financial institutions.
Read more