RUSSIAN STATEHOOD BETWEEN WEST AND EAST

The article deals with the early stages of the formation of Russian statehood in the conditions of russia's border position between the East and the West, but relative remoteness from civilizational centers. The meeting with the steppe East led to the collapse of Russian statehood, when its different parts found themselves in different conditions. The principality of Moscow became the center of the revival of the state, and the conditions of the struggle laid down the traditions of strong state power and public service for the benefit of the Fatherland. The establishment of contacts with the West revealed mutual distrust, dating back to the conflict of different directions of Christianity, which was overcome only after the reforms of Peter I. Rapid and forced Europeanization gave rise to a split in Russian society, which is still manifested today.