The Formation of National Ideology in the Context of the Establishment of the Russian Republic

The paper presents the author’s interpretation of the events that took place from February to October 1917 and related to the establishment of a republican form of governance in Russia, through the lens of changes in worldview constants and the formation of a new national ideology. The collapse of the value system that un derpinned the absolutist regime precipitated a profound systemic crisis affecting all spheres of state and social life, with the spiritual domain being foremost impacted. The democratization of state and local governance, the municipalization of law enforce ment agencies, and the normative enshrinement of bourgeois-democratic rights and freedoms of citizens as supreme values were intended to serve as necessary conditions for the development of a new national ideology «in the name of a free Russia, the sal vation of the homeland, and the renewal of all Russian life». Based on a comprehensive examination of various sources, the author investigates the experience of the Provi sional Government in its attempts to establish the foundations of a new national ide ology and its accompanying value system. The findings indicate that such efforts were unlikely to succeed amid a context of persistent spiritual crisis, increasing nihilistic and extremist sentiments, and a multitude of other political, socio-economic, cultural, religious, and related factors.

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