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PHJ № 1 (49) 2026 — G. V. Krivchenkov. FORMS OF CHARITY DURING THE RUSSO-TURKISH WAR OF 1877–1878 (BASED ON MATERIALS FROM THE SMOLENSK PROVINCE)

The article deals with the organization and holding of charitable events during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 in the Smolensk province. The main attention is paid to the joint work of the provincial administration of the Red Cross, city government bodies and the landed gentry in opening hospitals in the province. Ladies of the noble class participated in the organization of charity circles at the provincial administration of the Red Cross. Ladies’ circles provided daily care for the sick sent by the Kyiv evacuation commission to the province for treatment. Material support for ladies’ circles was provided by the landed gentry. The activities of the Russian Orthodox Church in collecting donations for the army and navy, the role of the peasant community in providing material assistance to soldiers and their families are examined. In order to collect funds, the clergy established a collection of donations from parishioners during the liturgy, and the parish clergy accepted humanitarian aid for the army from local residents. Due to poverty, Smolensk peasants often participated in charitable events by collecting food and things that they themselves used in everyday life. Peasants donated warm clothes for the transportation of wounded soldiers from railway stations to medical institutions in the winter. The peasant community made decisions on collecting donations at village meetings. According to reports from Red Cross commissioners and officers, the humanitarian aid from Smolensk was of
good quality. The author concludes that the mass participation of the population in charitable activities during the war years is associated with the idea of its fair nature.

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PHJ № 3 (47) 2025 — P. G. Rogozny. THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH AND THE FIRST WORLD WAR: THE TRANSFORMATION OF RELIGIOUS PERCEPTION AND THE USE OF WAR BY THE BOLSHEVIKS IN ANTI-CLERICAL PROPAGANDA AFTER THE REVOLUTION

The Russian Orthodox Church provided unwavering support to the Russian Empire, which subsequently entered the war that would subsequently be designated the First World War. It is noteworthy that the Church regarded the war as a patriotic undertaking, among other considerations. However, the initial surge of patriotism was soon superseded by the onset of a challenging period of trench warfare. Upon assuming power in 1917, the Bolsheviks regarded the Church as an ideological adversary. A primary tenet of the left-wing parties’ anti-clerical propaganda asserted that the Church endorsed the “bloody imperialist war”. The ecclesiastical institution in question was accused of violating fundamental Christian tenets and commandments. This propaganda had a significant impact on the peasant masses, who predominantly adhered to religious beliefs. The endeavours of the Church and the religious community to respond to the Bolsheviks and left-wing parties in general, through the use of counter-propaganda, have largely been unsuccessful.