The experience of A. V. Soloviev as a representative of “Belgrad school” of Russian Byzantine studies

The article provides insight into the nature and scope of versatile legacy of A. V. Soloviev who specialised in the legal history of Slavic nations, being a researcher who worked at the nexus of political science and Byzantine studies. The work shows the tragic metamorphosis in the history of Russian emigrant diaspora in Belgrad (not infrequently called “the professor diaspora” due to its qualitative distinctiveness), whose life in Serbia involved a number of stages, from highest favour to severe political persecution. It emphasizes the importance of the British Russian archive of Leeds to investigation into the life of the scholar during his second emigration period in Switzerland after the Great Patriotic War, along with taking Soviet citizenship, which became a factor for forming and developing international scientific links with his colleagues in the USSR. The paper expands the profoundly personal spiritual and cultural stem of Soloviev’s research interest in Byzantine-Russian issues, which is typical for Russians involved in Byzantine studies.