“A Specter of Liberty and Equality”: views of the Russian enlightenment thinkers on a Constitution through the prism of the French Revolution

The paper considers evolution in political views of the Russian thinkers at the turn of the 18th–19th centuries in light of their perception of results of the French Revolution. The study is based on the comparative analysis of views of A.N. Radishchev and I.P. Pnin. The paper confirms a pattern of negative assessment of the French revolution result by the Russian writers. It shows that Pnins’ criticism of provisions of the Jacobin Constitution of 1793 indicates that the French experience was perceived as unacceptable for Russia. The paper concludes that an alternative to the unacceptable revolutionary path lies in a plan to preserve foundations of a class society with legislative consolidation of the property rights for all its representatives.

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