The Two Capitals of Russia: Moscow and St. Petersburg

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The Two Capitals of Russia: Moscow and St. Petersburg

When thinking about the great European capitals, one would tend to

evoke romantic Paris, restless London, even still Rome or Barcelona.

But often, Russian capital Moscow is forgotten. It may be because in

the post-communist era, people easily forgot about that power in

decline. Or because they do not consider Russia to be part of Europe.

Or because Moscow had to compete with St. Petersburg, limiting its

influence. That is why it can be relevant today to talk about two

capitals of Russia.

On the one hand, it is possible to define objectively what a capital

city is, and this could help to determine which, Moscow or St.

Petersburg, fits the definition. On the other hand, considering the

situation of the two cities at one precise moment is not relevant. The

perception the cities throughout history is very important in the fact

that today they can both be considered as capitals. Therefore, it is

necessary to look back into history to find the roots of this

dichotomy.

First, objective criteria can be used to determine the capital status

of both Moscow and St. Petersburg. But then, it is interesting to know

how those two cities thrived during centuries, challenging one

another, symbols of Russia indecision about its place in the world: in

the East or in the West?

Primarily, the easiest way to recognize a capital is the presence of

government, seat chosen officially by the country's rulers. There can

be only one. The case of Russia is similar to this of Germany. Berlin

to Bonn and then back to Berlin for Germany; Moscow, Petersburg and

back to Moscow for Russia. The compari...

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[1] Moscow, encyclopedia britannica p.358

[2] merriam-webster on line

[3] campbell scott, draft

[4] p.350

[5] colton p.28

[6] volkov p.42

[7] sunlight at midnight p. 270

[8] volkov p.48

[9] Britannica p.1043

[10] Lincoln p.270

[11] id. P.315

[12] colton p. 2 puis 15

[13] colton p.36

[14] colton pp.18-21

[15] Britannica p.351

[16] p. 29

[17] volkov p.15

[18] daniels

[19] colton p.14

[20] lincoln p.31

[21] colton p.32

[22] lincoln p.121

[23] volkov p.9

[24] volkov p.452

[25] lincoln 350

[26] volkov 210

[27] shaw p.

[28] volkov 338

[29] colton 326

[30] volkov 22

[31] lincoln 305

[32] lincoln 348

[33] volkov 49

[34] volkov 31

[35] lincoln 123

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