The Formation of Russia as a Great Power in Foreign Policy (Self-perception and Reflection), 1756-1796

By the mid-18th century it was suggested that the “great powers” are – Britain, France, Russia, Prussia and Austria. There are several points of view about that time Russia “joined” the team of “great powers”. Basically, the researchers (G.A. Nekrasov, L.A. Nikiforov, D. Lieven) are of the opinion that Russia obtained the status of “great power” almost immediately after the Northern War. However, some researchers (M.S. Anderson, H.M. Scott, M.Y. Anisimov) who stated that Russia received that status only after the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763). Therefore, one of the most complex and important problems in this study is “How and when Russia became a great power?” The analysis of changes of Russian status in the European political arena can be traced due to the change of its status as an Empire and the nature of foreign policy. The work is based on the unpublished (Russian collections from AVPRI, RGADA, IIRAN) and published historical sources of the history of Russia, Austria and Poland, as well as the historiography on the topic (Scott H.M, Anderson M.S, Halecki O., Anisimov M.Y. and other). This study could be applied within the problematic related to history of international relations and diplomatic history of Europe.