In the service of the Russian tsar: The life and work of Konstantin Mikhailovich Bazili, 1809--1884

This dissertation is the first comprehensive biography of Konstantin Mikhailovich Bazili (1809--1884) and assesses Bazili's significant contributions to nineteenth-century Russian literature, diplomacy, and historiography. Through an examination of Bazili's illustrious career, it also provides a greater understanding of Greek-Slavic relations, the influence of Orthodoxy in shaping Russian foreign policy, and the many significant issues and events faced by Russia, Europe, and the Near East during Bazili's life.; Bazili provides a unique perspective. He and his family were Greeks living in the Ottoman Empire from where they were forced to flee during the Greek War of Independence. They settled in Russia where Konstantin excelled as a student and entered the Russian diplomatic service.; As a writer, Bazili wrote three significant travelogues in the 1830s that dealt with ethnicity, culture, and religion in the Near East and Greece. One of those works, Bosfor i novye ocherki Konsfantinopolia (The Bosphorus and New Sketches of Constantinople), was translated into Greek in 2000. Bazili was also a significant contributor and editor for Russian encyclopedias contributing essays that focused on Greek culture and history. Bazili's distinguished diplomatic career included the position of Russian consul to Beirut from 1839 to 1853 (Bazili's title was upgraded to consul general in 1844). During his tenure in Beirut, Bazili wrote a highly praised scholarly analysis of the history of Syria and Palestine, Siriia i Palestina pod turetskim pravitelstvom v istoricheskom i politicheskom otnosheniiakh (Syria and Palestine under Turkish Rule: Historical and Political Aspects), which was translated into Hebrew in 1983.; During the Crimean War, Bazili wrote insightful pieces concerning the causes and consequences of the Crimean War. After the war, the Danubian Principalities were areas of serious contention among the Great Powers. Bazili served in the significant role of Russia's chief representative to the European commission (1856--1858) that reorganized the Principalities. After his retirement from diplomatic service in 1860, Bazili held official capacities in Odessa and southern Russia during the era of great reforms, and he also acquired a reputation as an insightful commentator and writer on divisive and international issues.