[AT] In Russian historiography, probably since the time of the historian Nikolai Karamzin, there is the term "gathering of the Russian land" or "gathering of the Russian lands. In the 19th century, this term was used to describe the process of reintegration, including through conquest, of the fragmented Russian principalities around different political centers that began in the 14th century.
On June 9, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin praised the policies of Russian Emperor Peter the Great, who was engaged in "the return of the Russian lands." After Putin came to power, the tendency has crystallized to consider the Russian Federation the heir to two states: the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. This perspective led to the legitimization of the "gathering of lands."
The lands held by the two predecessors of the Russian Federation include Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Baltics, Finland, Poland, Alaska, Ukraine, and Belorussia |