"So terrible tsar Peter is": the image of Peter the Great in Russian culture after the great reforms (1860 - 1880's)

The paper is devoted to the problems of the historical memory in Russian culture of the second half of 19th century, after the Great Reforms. The personality of Peter the Great was amongst the main images of the past in the historical meaning of Russian society; historians, publicists, writers and artists discussed Peter's reforms from the perspective of hopes and apprehensions of their own times. in Russian culture of 1860-1880s Peter the Great had been pictured as a toiler and exploiter, democrat and tyrant, teacher and executioner. His ambivalent image mirrored the conflicts of values in Russian post-reform society. *Stipendium AZ 21/SR/05 of Gerda Henkel Foundation, Düsseldorf, Germany.