«A trial with Crimea...» imperial mind in Russian society in the period of Crimean wars in 1853 to 1856 and in the contemporary policy’ stage

The paper explored the imperial mind being a part of public consciousness, including the concepts (about a position the country has taken in the world and back in history) correlated with the origin, development and retrieval of the phenomenon of empires. Focusing on cross-border affairs is a fundamental element of the imperial mind: a specific relevance of cross-border policy of a state and its military success and defeats being typical of the bearers of the imperial mind. These reasons could explain an interest of the authors in exploring the imperial mind in Russian society held in the framework of studies on public perception of events of the Crimean Wars of the XIX century and the contemporary policy in the region.