Memory Makers

How the Kremlin uses myth and memory to legitimize repression at home and imperialism abroad.

Why aren’t ordinary Russians more outraged by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine? Inside the Kremlin’s own historical propaganda narratives, the aggressive move makes complete sense. From its World War II cult to anti-Western conspiracy theories, the Kremlin has long used its patriotic history to justify its policies, legitimize its rule, and redefine what it means to be “good” Russian.

In Memory Makers, Russia analyst Jade McGlynn takes us into the depths of Russian historical propaganda to reveal the chilling web of national narratives and practices perforating everyday life, from after-school patriotic history clubs to tower block World War II murals. The use of history to manifest a particular Russian identity has had grotesque—even gruesome—consequences, but it belongs to a global political pattern in which one’s view of history is the ultimate marker of political loyalty, patriotism, and national belonging. Memory Makers demonstrates how the extreme Russian experience is a stark warning to other nations tempted to stare too long at the reflection of their own imagined and heroic past.

Jade McGlynn is a researcher in the War Studies Department at King’s College London. She is the author of Russia’s War and the editor of two volumes on memory politics and history in Eastern Europe. She is a frequent contributor to the BBC, CNN, Foreign Policy, Times, Telegraph, and Spectator.