War and Peace - Лев Толстой (1864)

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War and Peace delineates in graphic detail the events surrounding the French invasion of Russia and the impact of the Napoleonic era on Tsarist society, as seen through the eyes of five Russian aristocratic families.
The novel begins in the year 1805 during the reign of Tsar Alexander I and leads up to Napoleon's French invasion of Russia in 1812. The era of Catherine the Great (1762-1796), when the royal court in Paris was the center of Western European civilization[16], is still fresh in the minds of older people. Catherine, who was fluent in French and desired to make Russia a great European nation, made French the language of her royal court. Over the next hundred years, it became a social requirement that members of the Russian nobility speak French and understand French culture.[16] This historical and cultural context in the aristocracy is reflected in War and Peace. Catherine's grandson, Alexander I, ascended the throne in 1801, at the age of 24. In the novel, her mother, Maria Feodorovna, is the most powerful woman at the Russian court.
War and Peace tells the story of five aristocratic families (the Bezukhovs, the Bolkonskys, the Rostovs, the Kuragins and the Drubetskoys) and the entanglements of their personal lives with the history of 1805-1813, primarily Napoleon's invasion of Russia in 1812. The Bezukhovs, although very wealthy, are a fragmented family, as the old Count Kirill Vladimirovich has fathered dozens of children illegitimate. The Bolkonskys are a wealthy and established family based in Bald Hills. The old Bolkonsky prince, Nikolai Andreevich, served as a general under Catherine the Great, in previous wars. The Rostovs of Moscow have a lot of property, but never enough cash. They are a very close-knit and loving family that lives in the moment regardless of their financial situation. The Kuragin family has three children, all of questionable character. The Drubetskoy family belongs to the impoverished nobility and consists of an elderly mother and her only son, Boris, whom she wishes to advance in his professional career.
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Subjects
Classic, History, Russian Empire, Fiction, Russia, Russia (federation), fiction, Fiction, historical, Classical Literature, Historical Fiction, Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821 in fiction, Textual criticism, Campaigns, Napoleon in fiction, Military campaigns, Open Library Staff Selections, Invasion of Russia, 1812, Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1814 in fiction, English fiction, Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1815 in fiction, open_syllabus_project, Russia in fiction, Napoleonic Wars (1800-1815) fast (OCoLC)fst01032683, Social life and customs, Napoleon in fiction, Voǐna i mir, Napoleonic Wars in fiction, Napoleonic Wars, Social conditions, Wars Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1815, Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1814, Long Now Manual for Civilization, Continental European Fiction (fictional works by one author), Soviet Union, fiction, Fiction, war and army, Napoleonic Wars, 1800-1815, fiction, Classics, Russian literature, Aristocracy (social class), Slavic philology, Historical fiction, general, Literature and fiction (general), Romans, nouvelles, Histoire, Guerres napoléoniennes, 1800-1815, Campagnes et batailles, Literature, Napoleon I, Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821, materials in Russian, Mœurs et coutumes, Manners and customs, Fiction, general, Napoleonic wars, 1800-1815--campaigns, Napoleonic wars, 1800-1815--campaigns--russia--fiction, Pg3366 .v6 1996, 891.73/3, Russian fiction, English translations, parodies, imitations, Russian fiction, English translations, war storiesPeople
Napoleon I Emperor of the French (1769-1821) (1812), Napoleon I Emperor of the French (1769-1821), Napoleon