Abstract

The presentation shows the polemics of French travellers: Chappe d’Auteroche and Philip Mason, who reveal the secrets of Russian mirage during their journeys to Russia of Catherine II. The Orthodox faith and the institution of the Orthodox Church, which alongside the despotism of the authorities turn out to be the major source of Russia’s gloomy history, are at the heart of their reliable and insightful analyses. Revealing the weaknesses of the faith, it is the religion where they discover a hidden spring of Russian politics, which made the nation become the slavish peasants taught only to humble if confronted with force. Devoid of freedom or authority, the Orthodox Church, fully dependent on secular power, serves the despotic ruler.