Moscow Archives Revealing the Long History of Russian Power Projection: A Scholarly Review of Ela Cosma (ed.), The Tsarist Military Campaign in the Romanian Principalities, 1848–1850. Military Documents, Vol. III, Komarov & Nepokoitchitsky: Campaign Journal (Cluj-Napoca – Gatineau: Argonaut Publishing – Symphologic Publishing, 2022) / Campania militară țaristă în Țările Române la 1848–1850. Documente militare, vol. III, Komarov & Nepocoicițchi: Jurnal de campanie (Cluj-Napoca – Gatineau: Argonaut Publishing – Symphologic Publishing, 2017); DOI 10.5281/zenodo.17964878

Moscow Archives Revealing the Long History of Russian Power Projection: A Scholarly Review ofEla Cosma (ed.), The Tsarist Military Campaign in the Romanian Principalities, 1848–1850. Military Documents, Vol. III, Komarov & Nepokoitchitsky: Campaign Journal (Cluj-Napoca – Gatineau: Argonaut Publishing – Symphologic Publishing, 2022) / Campania militară țaristă în Țările Române la 1848–1850. Documente militare, vol. III, Komarov & Nepocoicițchi: Jurnal de campanie (Cluj-Napoca – Gatineau: Argonaut Publishing – Symphologic Publishing, 2017)¹ -DOI 10.5281/zenodo.17964878 in L'Europe unie / United Europe 23/2025 CEEOL - Journal Detail moscow-archives-revealing-the-long-history-of-russian-power-projection-a-scholarly-review-of-ela-cosma-ed-the-tsarist-military-campaign-in-the-romanian-principalities-1848-1850-military-documents-vol-iii-komarov-nepokoitchitsky-campaign_Content%20File-PDF.pdf DR. MARIA COSTEA²Romanian Academy, “Gheorghe Șincai” Institute for Social Sciences and the Humanities, Târgu-Mureș ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-7201-645XWoS ResearcherID: JWP-2948-2024;Google Scholar Maria Costea – Google ScholarResearchGate Maria COSTEAhttps://www.webofscience.com/wos/author/record/JWP-2948-2024 Author(s): Maria Costea Language: English Subject(s): Essay|Book Review |Scientific Life Issue: 23/2025 Page Range: 167-168 No. of Pages: 2 Keywords: Book review; Ela Cosma; Moscow Archives Summary/Abstract: Book review: Moscow Archives Revealing the Long History of Russian Power Projection: A scholarly Review of Ela Cosma (ed.), The Tsarist Military Campaign in the Romanian Principalities, 1848–1850. Military Documents, Vol. III, Komarov & Nepokoitchitsky: The historian Ela Cosma, an exceptionally rigorous Cluj-based scholar, has achieved a truly remarkable editorial accomplishment by publishing military documents of high historical value retrieved from the Russian State Military Historical Archive (RGVIA) in Moscow—sources that are exceptionally rare and difficult (today, effectively impossible) to access. Volume III of Documente militare din anii 1848–1850 [Military Documents from the Years 1848–1850], coordinated by Ela Cosma, was published in two major editions: a Romanian edition (2017) and a revised and expanded English–Russian edition (2022). The Romanian edition bears the title Campania militară țaristă în Țările Române la 1848–1850. Documente militare, vol. III, Komarov & Nepocoicițchi: Jurnal de campanie [The Tsarist Military Campaign in the Romanian Lands, 1848–1850. Military Documents, Vol. III, Komarov & Nepokoitchitsky: Campaign Journal]. This volume was coordinated by Ela Cosma, who authored the introductory study, compiled the regesta, notes, and indexes, and edited the German-language documents. The Russian-language documents were edited by Tatiana Onilov, Angela Stîcalin-Colin, and Alexander Stykalin. The book was published within the series Biografii istorice transilvane [Transylvanian Historical Biographies], vol. XIII (Cluj-Napoca – Gatineau: Argonaut Publishing – Symphologic Publishing, 2017), comprising 550 pages. The English–Russian edition, The Tsarist Military Campaign in the Romanian Principalities, 1848–1850. Military Documents, Vol. III, Komarov and Nepokoitchitsky’s Campaign Diary, was again coordinated by Ela Cosma, who prepared the critical edition, introductory study, notes, glossary, references, short biographies, regesta, and indexes of names and places, as well as the editing of German-language documents. Contributions to the Russian-language editing were made by Tatiana Onilov, Angela Stîcalin-Colin, and Alexander Stykalin. The English translations were carried out by Marcela Ganea and Ela Cosma. This edition was published in 2022 in the same collection, vol. XIV, and comprises 578 pages. This third volume continues the scholarly endeavor initiated by Ela Cosma with the publication of Volumes I and II of the same series: Armatele imperiale austro-ruse şi românii la 1848–1849. Documente militare, vol. I, Descrieri generale şi militare [The Imperial Austro-Russian Armies and the Romanians, 1848–1849. Military Documents, Vol. I: General and Military Descriptions], coordinated by Ela Cosma, with editors Daniela Deteșan, Angela Stîcalin-Colin, Tatiana Onilov, and English translations by Horia Cosma (Cluj-Napoca – Gatineau: Argonaut Publishing – Symphologic Publishing, 2012), 286 pages + 22 illustrations; Armatele imperiale austro-ruse şi românii la 1848–1849. Documente militare, vol. II, Corespondenţă şi rapoarte militare [The Imperial Austro-Russian Armies and the Romanians, 1848–1849. Military Documents, Vol. II: Correspondence and Military Reports], same editors and publishers (2013), 356 pages. Volumes I and II introduced substantial scholarly novelty through systematic research in the Russian State Military Historical Archive (RGVIA) in Moscow, which preserves previously unexplored collections essential for the study of the revolutions of 1848–1849 and for modern Romanian history more broadly. The editorial team also consulted the Archive of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Moscow), the State Archives of the Odessa Oblast, the Central State Historical Archive of Ukraine (Kyiv), the National Archives of the Republic of Moldova (Chișinău), the Kriegsarchiv (Vienna), and the Archives of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Paris). The published documents reflect the scope indicated by the series title Armatele imperiale austro-ruse şi românii la 1848–1849 and encompass descriptions, reports, and correspondence. These volumes represent highly sophisticated critical editions requiring advanced multilingual paleographic, linguistic, and editorial expertise (Romanian, Russian, German, French, and English). Extensive critical notes, detailed regesta, and comprehensive indexes significantly enhance scholarly accessibility and dissemination. The Romanian edition of Volume III (2017) contains 46 military documents, a biographical index, a glossary of military terms, and detailed name and place indexes. A previously unknown primary source—Jurnalul campaniei țariste [The Tsarist Campaign Diary]—preserved in Moscow, is published here in its entirety. The English–Russian edition (2022) presents a critical edition of the same 46 documents, reproduced in Russian (original language) and English (translation), including the campaign diary compiled by Colonel Arthur Adamovich Nepokoitchitsky and Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Vissarionovich Komarov, under the command of General Alexander Nicolaevich Lüders. The documents consist of precise military reports sent from Moldavia, Wallachia, and Transylvania to the Imperial Army command in Saint Petersburg. They include reports from Bârlad (20 July 1848), Buzău (25 September 1848), Bucharest (6 October 1848), and Târgu-Mureș (23 June 1849). The concluding materials also comprise memoir fragments and a biographical account of General Lüders compiled in Saint Petersburg in 1874. The scholarly apparatus is robust, the editorial standards are exemplary, and the archival novelty is indisputable. The entire collection—produced within a research grant financed by CNCS–UEFISCDI (2011–2016), entitled Armatele imperiale austro-ruse și românii. Mărturii militare secrete din arhivele rusești și austriece (1848–1849) [The Imperial Austro-Russian Armies and the Romanians: Secret Military Testimonies from the Russian and Austrian Archives (1848–1849)]—constitutes a monumental editorial achievement. In conclusion, the Documente militare collection, and particularly Volume III (2017/2022), represents a major scholarly contribution to the understanding of the military history of 1848–1850 in the Romanian Principalities and of the Russian occupation—an episode previously insufficiently documented. Through rigorous archival research and critical methodology, Ela Cosma and her team have opened a new comparative and interdisciplinary perspective on international relations in Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe during the mid-nineteenth century. ¹ Maria Costea has published a Romanian version of this review: “Ela Cosma (ed.), Campania militară țaristă în Țările Române la 1848–1850. Documente militare, vol. III, Komarov & Nepocoicițchi: Jurnal de campanie (Cluj-Napoca – Gatineau: Argonaut Publishing – Symphologic Publishing, 2022),” Anuarul Institutului de Istorie «George Barițiu» din Cluj-Napoca. Series Historica LXIII (2024): 467–480. ISSN 1584-4390 (print); ISSN 2344-2093 (online). ² Dr. Maria Costea, Researcher, Romanian Academy, “Gheorghe Șincai” Institute for Social Sciences and the Humanities, Târgu-Mureș. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-7201-645X; WoS ResearcherID: JWP-2948-2024. CEEOL - Journal Detail

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