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Title: Black Hundred: The Rise of the Extreme Right in Russia by Walter Laqueur ISBN: 0-06-018336-5 Publisher: Harpercollins Pub. Date: 01 June, 1993 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $27.50

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Average Customer Rating: 3.75 (4 reviews)

Rating: 2
Summary: factual, but intellectually dishonest
Comment: Gives thorough, factual summaries about various resurgent extremist groups, but ends up whitewashing the role far left Jews in the Bolshevik takeover and in the NKVD (secret police), later KGB, as revealed in Christopher Andrew's "The Sword and the Shield" (available through Amazon).

Rating: 4
Summary: A Resurrection of Holy Russia?
Comment: _Black Hundred: The Rise of the Extreme Right in Russia_ by Walter Laqueur is about the political and ideological scene in Russian nationalism during the aftermath of the Soviet collapse in the early nineties. _Black Hundred_ was published in 1993, making some of its material and assessments rather dated. However, it gives excellent descriptions of the leaders of the Russian right, where they got their theories and ideas from, and what possible impact they have had on the country. The biggest problem with _Black Hundred_ is its liberal, pro-capitalist, pro-western, anti-religious and (needless to state, of course) pro-Jewish bias. Laqueur's tone throughout is thus cynical, disdainful and condescending towards his subject of study, especially regarding the Russian Orthodox Church and nationalism in particular. Also, the presentation is rather disorganized with too much editorializing on Laqueur's part. _Black Hundred_ traces the history of the Russian right to the 19th century religious groups and theorists such as St. John of Kronstadt who defended the authority of the Tsar against the criticisms of Marxists, communists, socialists, anarchists, liberals, Jews, Masons and other subversive groups in Imperial Russia. It was also rooted in the Russian Orthodox revival in the 1800s, centered on famous monasteries such as Optina. Central to the thought of the Russian far-right is that Jews, Freemasons, liberals and Western capitalism and materialism form a cohesive agent of destruction against Holy Mother Russia, her people and her Faith. Formed in the early years of the 1900s and remaining active until 1917, the Black Hundred was a group willing to use violence to defend the Orthodox Church and the throne of the Tsar. Several pogroms and incidents against Jews are attributed to them. The _Protocols of the Wise Men of Zion_ first appeared having questionable origins in Russia. The _Protocols_ describe a Jewish plan for world domination under their "son of David" by using Masonry, media propaganda, liberal social theory, international finance, usury, and promoting an anti-Christian scientific-rationalist world view: the "Jewmasonry" conspiracy. Sergei Nilus published the _Protocols_ supposedly written in Hebrew, in Russian. The Tsar believed there was a conspiracy afoot to remove him from power, but disbelieved in the overall accuracy of the _Protocols_. After the Bolsheviks seized power, the Orthodox Church was turned into a puppet of the Soviet State and the Royal Family murdered. The right maintains the Jewish origins of the Russian Revolution, Jews disproportionately overrepresented in the communist circles. Joseph Stalin, however, has a slightly better reputation among the right as he developed "National Socialism" for the Soviet Union and purged the original Bolshevik revolutionaries in the 30s. Stalin also promoted Russian nationalism to the extreme, at the detriment of non-Russian peoples in the Soviet Union. Cosmopolitanism is a concept dreaded by the nationalists and Stalin scores some points on the right for his anti-cosmopolitan campaign directed at foreigners. Besides these examples, Stalin is not held in high regard by the right, as he was a destroyer of traditional aspects of Russian culture and persecutor of the church. Some members of the Russian émigré community supported Hitler and Nazi Germany during WWII, hopefully for the destruction of the Stalin regime. The Russian Orthodox Church experienced a schism. Since the Moscow patriarchate was suspect, the Russian Church Abroad broke off, considering itself the true inheritor of Orthodoxy from Tsarist Russia uncorrupted by communist dominance and infiltration. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian extreme right at times ironically found itself in the same camp with Communists, opposing Western influence, the free market economy and democratic government. Anti-Jewish sentiment became more open, but officials in the Communist Party previously published attacks on Jewish interests under the "Politically Correct" guise of anti-Zionism. The Russian nationalists and Communists alike favored a strong military position opposing America as well. As one Communist group proposed the installation of Russian Orthodoxy as Russia's state religion, it appears that that anti-globalist, anti-Zionist Communists are jumping in the same boat as religious reactionaries, white racialists and nationalists in Russia. Some of themes for certain Russian nationalists are occult and anti-Christian: the forged "Book of Vlas" describing Russia's "Aryan" origins, the writings of the Italian occult luminary Julius Evola, Theosophy and astrology being prominent examples. Laqueur devotes a considerable amount of space to describing the Slavophiles, authors who glorified Russia during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Fydor Dosteivsky is by far the most popular author among right wingers, with his strong emphasis on the teachings of the Orthodox Church and the redeeming role Russia plays in world affairs. Leo Tolstoy is respected but not considered patriotic enough. In recent times, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, a Russian conservative, has become a figure for nationalism. His writings critique the West for its decadent materialism and cowardice in confronting Soviet policy, in addition to exposing the communist slave state for what it really was. Laqueur, however, takes a slightly negative attitude towards Solzhenitsyn, almost portraying him as a backward peasant. Needless to say, Dostievsky's "anti-Semitism" is highlighted. Surprisingly, Laqueur praises the Russian people's connection to the land and nature. Characteristically, Laqueur constantly refers to the dichotomy between "patriotism" (good) and "nationalism" (bad) throughout his study. Patriotism is the healthy respect for one's country and improving its material conditions while nationalism is medieval chauvinism directed against imagined (i.e., imagined in Laqueur's view) external and internal enemies. Obviously, any type of nationalist movement based on the authority of the State, the Church and the Race/People would pose significant threat to the liberal academic establishment that published this book. Nationalist groups of different shades in America have been putting out literature for some time that any revitalization of the West is likely to come from Russia. There is also Orthodox literature pointing to a spiritual rebirth in Russia before the End comes. ...

Rating: 4
Summary: The Resurrection of Holy Mother Russia?
Comment: _Black Hundred: The Rise of the Extreme Right in Russia_ by Walter Laqueur is about the political and ideological scene in Russian nationalism during the aftermath of the Soviet collapse in the early nineties. _Black Hundred_ was published in 1993, making some of its material and assessments rather dated. However, it gives excellent descriptions of the leaders of the Russian right, where they got their theories and ideas from, and what possible impact they have had on the country. The biggest problem with _Black Hundred_ is its liberal, pro-capitalist, pro-western, anti-religious and (needless to state, of course) pro-Jewish bias. Laqueur's tone throughout is thus cynical, disdainful and condescending towards his subject of study, especially regarding the Russian Orthodox Church and nationalism in particular. Also, the presentation is rather disorganized with too much editorializing on Laqueur's part. _Black Hundred_ traces the history of the Russian right to the 19th century religious groups and theorists such as St. John of Kronstadt who defended the authority of the Tsar against the criticisms of Marxists, communists, socialists, anarchists, liberals, Jews, Masons and other subversive groups in Imperial Russia. It was also rooted in the Russian Orthodox revival in the 1800s, centered on famous monasteries such as Optina. Central to the thought of the Russian far-right is that Jews, Freemasons, liberals and Western capitalism and materialism form a cohesive agent of destruction against Holy Mother Russia, her people and her Faith. Formed in the early years of the 1900s and remaining active until 1917, the Black Hundred was a group willing to use violence to defend the Orthodox Church and the throne of the Tsar. Several pogroms and incidents against Jews are attributed to them. The _Protocols of the Wise Men of Zion_ first appeared having questionable origins in Russia. The _Protocols_ describe a Jewish plan for world domination under their "son of David" by using Masonry, media propaganda, liberal social theory, international finance, usury, and promoting an anti-Christian scientific-rationalist world view: the "Jewmasonry" conspiracy. Sergei Nilus published the _Protocols_ supposedly written in Hebrew, in Russian. The Tsar believed there was a conspiracy afoot to remove him from power, but disbelieved in the overall accuracy of the _Protocols_. After the Bolsheviks seized power, the Orthodox Church was turned into a puppet of the Soviet State and the Royal Family murdered. The right maintains the Jewish origins of the Russian Revolution, Jews disproportionately overrepresented in the communist circles. Joseph Stalin, however, has a slightly better reputation among the right as he developed "National Socialism" for the Soviet Union and purged the original Bolshevik revolutionaries in the 30s. Stalin also promoted Russian nationalism to the extreme, at the detriment of non-Russian peoples in the Soviet Union. Cosmopolitanism is a concept dreaded by the nationalists and Stalin scores some points on the right for his anti-cosmopolitan campaign directed at foreigners. Besides these examples, Stalin is not held in high regard by the right, as he was a destroyer of traditional aspects of Russian culture and persecutor of the church. Some members of the Russian émigré community supported Hitler and Nazi Germany during WWII, hopefully for the destruction of the Stalin regime. The Russian Orthodox Church experienced a schism. Since the Moscow patriarchate was suspect, the Russian Church Abroad broke off, considering itself the true inheritor of Orthodoxy from Tsarist Russia uncorrupted by communist dominance and infiltration. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian extreme right at times ironically found itself in the same camp with Communists, opposing Western influence, the free market economy and democratic government. Anti-Jewish sentiment became more open, but officials in the Communist Party previously published attacks on Jewish interests under the "Politically Correct" guise of anti-Zionism. The Russian nationalists and Communists alike favored a strong military position opposing America as well. As one Communist group proposed the installation of Russian Orthodoxy as Russia's state religion, it appears that that anti-globalist, anti-Zionist Communists are jumping in the same boat as religious reactionaries, white racialists and nationalists in Russia. Some of themes for certain Russian nationalists are occult and anti-Christian: the forged "Book of Vlas" describing Russia's "Aryan" origins, the writings of the Italian occult luminary Julius Evola, Theosophy and astrology being prominent examples. Laqueur devotes a considerable amount of space to describing the Slavophiles, authors who glorified Russia during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Fydor Dosteivsky is by far the most popular author among right wingers, with his strong emphasis on the teachings of the Orthodox Church and the redeeming role Russia plays in world affairs. Leo Tolstoy is respected but not considered patriotic enough. In recent times, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, a Russian conservative, has become a figure for nationalism. His writings critique the West for its decadent materialism and cowardice in confronting Soviet policy, in addition to exposing the communist slave state for what it really was. Laqueur, however, takes a slightly negative attitude towards Solzhenitsyn, almost portraying him as a backward peasant. Needless to say, Dostievsky's 'anti-Semitism' is highlighted. Surprisingly, Laqueur praises the Russian people's connection to the land and nature. Characteristically, Laqueur constantly refers to the dichotomy between 'patriotism' (good) and 'nationalism' (bad) throughout his study. Patriotism is the healthy respect for one's country and improving its material conditions while nationalism is medieval chauvinism directed against imagined (i.e., imagined in Laqueur's view) external and internal enemies. Obviously, any type of nationalist movement based on the authority of the State, the Church and the Race/People would pose significant threat to the liberal academic establishment that published this book. Nationalist groups of different shades in America have been putting out literature for some time that any revitalization of the West is likely to come from Russia. There is also Orthodox literature pointing to a spiritual rebirth in Russia before the End comes. Also recommended: _Behind Communism_ by Frank Britton, _Utlimate Things_ by Engleman and _The Third Rome: Holy Russia, Tsarism and Orthodoxy_ by Matthew Raphael Johnson.