History of the "Western Russia" in the writings of A.D. Stolypin

Komzolova A.

The article considers views of A.D. Stolypin (1822–1899), father of the reformer P.A. Stolypin, on the Polish question, the history of Lithuania and the historical ties between the Russian state and Lithuanians. Interested in the history of the lands of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania while serving in Vilna in the 1860s., A.D. Stolypin became the author of several historical works, as well as a play “Sofia”. Following the historical concept of N.G. Ustrialov and recognizing the division of Rus' into two parts – eastern and western, «Lithuanian», in the XIII century, A.D. Stolypin sought to prove the «primordial Russianness» of this region. The idea of the common Russian-Lithuanian historical heritage was justified by the notion of continuity in the statehood of the Kievan Rus', the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Russian empire.

Keywords:Lithuania, Belarus, North-Western Provinces, A.D. Stolypin, M.N. Muraviov, historical memory