Russia's First Republican is designed to fill a gap in the historiography of the Decembrist movement. The research done in archives and libraries in Russia, the US, and the UK has led to the production of a comprehensive study of Pestel, the political activist and ideologue. It comprises a reconstruction of his formative years, an analysis of his role in the Decembrist secret societies from 1816 to 1825, and an assessment of his ideological contribution to the early nineteenth-century Russian revolutionary movement. Particular attention is paid to his highly original project for a Russian republic, Russian Justice.

Pavel Pestel (1793-1826) was the key figure in the Decembrist's Southern Society and author of Russian Justice , Russia's first republican manifesto. He was executed in St. Petersburg for his leading role in the 1825 conspiracy against Tsarist autocracy. This first comprehensive study of Pestel fills a major gap in the literature on nineteenth-century Russia. Focusing on his highly original manifesto, the book analyzes his ideological contribution to the Russian revolutionary movement, and re-appraises his controversial role in the Decembrist secret societies.