Posted on Friday, December 5, 2008
Dr. Russell Martin, Westminster College associate professor of history, co-edited Rude and Barbarous Kingdom Revisited: Essays in Russian History and Culture in Honor of Robert O. Crummey, recently published by Slavica Press.
The book is a collection of essays from some of the most respected scholars of Muscovite (early Russian) history. Contributors are from Russia, Germany, Switzerland, the U.K., and the U.S.
"The volume is in honor of Robert Crummey, professor of history emeritus at the University of California at Davis, who is one of the most prominent scholars in Russian society and religion in the 20th century," Martin said. "It really does reflect the state of the field in early Russian studies."
Martin also contributed a chapter to the book, titled "Gifts for Kith and Kin: Gift Exchanges and Social Integration in the Marriages of Muscovite Royalty."
Martin attended the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies (AAASS) in Philadelphia, where he presented "'As I write, the study of history moves on': Reflections on Robert O. Crummey" for a round table on "The Influence of Robert Crummey on Early Russian Studies."
Martin, who is president of the Association for the Study of Eastern Christian History and Culture, Inc. (ASEC), chaired the organization's annual meeting at the AAASS. ASEC is an international organization of scholarly study of society, culture, and belief among Eastern Christian communities.
ASEC will hold its third biennial conference at The Ohio State University in October 2009. Martin will co-edit the proceedings from the previous two conferences.
Martin, who has been with Westminster since 1996, earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Pittsburgh and a master's and Ph.D. from Harvard University.
Martin appeared on A&E Biography in a broadcast on Ivan the Terrible as an expert on the controversial ruler. He is the co-founder of the Muscovite Biographical Database, a Russian-American computerized register based in Moscow of early modern Russian notables. The Neville Island, Pa., native is not only fluent in Russian, but also reads Old Church Slavonic/Russian, French, German, Latin, and Polish.
Martin continues to translate from Russian to English the official Webpage of Her Imperial Highness, Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna, the heiress to the vacant Russian throne. Translations are available at www.imperialhouse.ru. In February 2008, Martin was awarded the Order of St. Anna (with the rank of Knight Companion) by the grand duchess for his work on behalf of the House of Romanov.
Contact Martin at (724) 946-6254 or e-mail martinre@westminster.edu for additional information.
