Stolypin??

If there is any surprise in finding Josef Stalin on a list of most popular Russians, I suppose it is finding that he is only third from the top (link). We've been hearing for years about how Russian truck drivers carry Stalin dashboard medallions, and how impoverished pensioners moan that "if only Stalin were alive ..." Sure, he was a brutal dictators but so many of his opponents are, well, dead. And not just because it was all so many years ago.

Stalin also defeated the German invaders--a characteristic he shares with the number one choice Alexander Nevsky, whom regular readers of Underbelly will remember for his place in the Second Pskovian Chronicle, recording events of the 13th Century (Alexander had an even bigger problem with the Golden Horde, whom he fended off more with fancy footwork than with fire and sword). But number two is--Pyotr Stolypin? Having had the good fortune to be actually awake in Russian history class that day, I remember him as an interesting guy--the conservative counter-Lenin, who wanted to stem the tide of revolution by creating a class of industrious farmers. He probably does deserve a place in any respectable narrative of the Russian state--but second most popular? How is it that Russians know so much about him? Has there been a series on the Russian version of Mawsterpiece Theatre, or some such? Stolypin? [For a fuller and less flippant answer, see Abraham Ascher, P.A. Stolypin: The Search for Stability in Late Imperial Russia (2001)].

Aside from the "popularity" problem I'd say that putting both Stalin and Stolypin on the same list is no more remarkable than bracketing these two on the "Most Admired American Woman" list. Hat Tip: Wichita Bureau. Thanks, John.

Update: Moscow Times offers a bit of context (link).